Road tar

I've used white spirit /methylated spirit (sparingly) and I haven't noticed any bad effects on the paint. It shifts the tar quite easily.

I imagine that petrol would do ok too (and there don't seem to be any stains from petrol spills around the filler cap);

I'd use diesel to get it off, it's a lot cheaper then buying stuff in a can at the auto parts store. I've seen it done and I don't think it will hurt the paint. It will make it really shiny for a while. But I'd wash the diesel off with soap and water.

Funny things in life....

bug and tar remover smells like diesel fuel.....

engine shampoo smells like diesel fuel...

All the directions associated with these products include warnings to rinse or wash after...

Varsol... varsol 3139.... solvent 3139.... good stuff... rinse and/or wash well after use...

You could use gasoline... but there is an inherent danger involved due to the increased flammability of the product... the upside is that break.com will give you $300 for a video of you on fire...

If you feel uncomfortable working with these sorts of chemicals (they are carcinogenic... nitrile gloves are recommended (I'm nearly 60 and over 40 years of being familiar with these things haven't killed me yet and some even resort to breathing filters) you might find out where the "make ready" department sends these problem cars....

There are no problems that are insurmountable.... however, there are times we might need to part with coin of the realm....

Some say they are kerosene but diesel is a lot easier to buy.

WD-40.

Get a can of bug and tar remover at any parts store, soak the hell outa the tar, rub a small area, when you got the tar off you might need to use a little of the "scratch remover" for clearcoat, you use a damp cloth and rub it until the compound is all picked up by the cloth, done it many times.

Sounds like the "make ready" dept at your dealership is clueless, I am surprised they have no idea, or wont help you.

Varsol or kerosene

I'll echo the advice of several of the posters. I grew up in rural Missouri. Our driveway (half a mile long) connected to a dirt road which the county sprayed with either very thick oil or very thin tar. It took several days to soak into the dirt and dry. You can imagine the condition of our cars and trucks. We used coal oil (kerosene) to remove the oil/tar and then washed the vehicles well with laundry detergent and rinsed several time. Never noticed any adverse effects on the paint. Of course, this was on vehicles made in the '40s and '50s and the paint jobs were a bit different in those days. Diesel fuel should work just as well as kerosene and is easier to find and cheaper, too. One word of advice - do the washing on a cool, cloudy day...Otherwise, work quickly, very quickly....Good Luck....

DaveD

I was in Auto Zone debating with myself what to buy off the shelf. I spotted one that made the claim "safe on clear coat finishes" in an aerosol bottle. In the front is a pictorial that looks like a lemon with "Citrus formula" over that lemon. The ingredients themselves, none are mentioned anywhere on the bottle. The other bug/tar remover products listed petroleum distillate as the active ingredient at Auto Zone. So, I bought the "green" oriented stuff.

At sunset, I went out to the car and applied the bug/tar remover as instructed by the bottle directions. 30 seconds was not long enough to cut the tar effectively per the directions. I gave it 2 minutes next go-around. Except for some minors that were thicker, it did a good job. A repeat and elbow grease finished off the remainder. Applying very heavy seems to also help. That was the driver's side of the car, passenger side I'll do today. May have to get more as I used by weight a bit more than half. The use of water for rinsing the cloth used works fine. I'm using a fresh cloth next go-around as the other one is too soiled with tar. The clearcoat seems unblemished in this morning's sun.

A little gasoline works fine, then re-wax.

Liquid Wrench drives through rust, dirt, and baked on tar a bit faster, as a penetrating OIL ...

not harm clear coat any ...

not as cheap as diesel which is also an OIL ...

and in some cases a BIO-OIL as bio-diesel and that will work as well.

Tar is just thick oil ... thin is out Hombre or-da-lay ...

sumbuddie wear blind sea

:?

If I owned an old car with original faded paint, or a cheap paint job on the same dinged up jalopy, I might consider that recommendation. Thing is, I don't.

To which recommendation are you referring? I am happy for you that you own a new, unblemished automobile and not and old dinged up jalopy - so what would your brilliant recommendation be? Or don't you have one? Please, enlighten us.

DaveD