When you park your car under a large tree, you might come back to find a spattering of a sticky substance coating the car. Most people refer to this as tree sap, but it's far more likely to be insect honeydew, excreted by aphids in the leaves and branches of the tree. It's composed of sugars and other waste products that pass through the insects' bodies undigested [source: Browh].
Whatever you call this sticky stuff, it's very difficult to remove from your car, and doesn't respond well to a normal soap solution. If you leave it alone it will turn black and be even harder to remove. Here are some things you can use to remove tree sap from your car.
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- Nail polish remover: Pour some nail polish remover onto a cotton ball and wipe it on the sap. The sap should come right off. After it's removed, wash away any residue with a paste of baking soda and water to be sure the car paint doesn't come off as well. Then wash the car [source: DetailXperts].
- Mineral spirit: Dampen a soft cloth with mineral spirit (turpentine). Rub the cloth on the sap, and the sap should come off. After it's removed, wash the area well with water to remove any residue.
- Lighter fluid/rubbing alcohol/bacon grease/WD-40: Place any one of these on the sap and leave it there for a while. It will get to work dissolving the tree sap. When you notice the dissolution, rub off the remaining sap [sources: Browh, WD-40].
- Commercial car cleaning product: Try cleaning the area with a commercial car cleaning product. These products are available in automotive supply shops.
- Tar remover: Try applying a bug and tar remover [source: Allen].
Removing tree sap can leave the spot dull, so you may want to polish the area with car wax to bring back its original luster.
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