Car decals can be a great addition to any car, but they are hard to take off if you don’t know what you are doing. Click here for the best ways to get them off.
Removing old stickers or decals from your car can be a real pain – especially if you’ve used the best vinyl for car decals. Old glue and dried out stickers are a recipe for a challenging removal process.
Thankfully, there are a few things you can do to make scraping off those stubborn stickers a little easier. Read on for a few quick tips to remove car decals.
1. To Remove Car Decals: Clean, Clean, Clean
Before you start scraping or pealing, make sure you’re working on a clean surface.
Auto decals or stickers are often much more difficult to get off if the decal and the area around it are dirty. More often than not, just cleaning the area around the sticker will make it fairly easy to remove.
Use water and a quality car soap to get the area cleaned up right.
2. Apply Some Heat
Heat is another excellent way to remove most stickers and decals. The adhesives in stickers don’t hold up well to high heat.
Use a heat gun or hair dryer to warm the sticker, then try pealing or scraping it off. 30 seconds of direct, high heat from a hair dryer is usually enough to loosen stubborn stickers.
Use water and a quality car soap to get the area cleaned up right.
If you want to get a professional touch, use quality Car Interior Plastic Cleaner. This tool will not only help to get rid of Car Decals but also other dirt, spot & grime easily.
3. Scrape the Right Way
Trying to peel decals off with your fingernails is a recipe for frustration.
Before you try to remove car stickers or decals of any kind, head to a hardware or auto part store and pick up a high quality plastic blade scraping tool. Similar tools with razor blades are available for use on car windows but should never be used on paint.
4. Add Rubbing Alcohol
If heat and a scraper just aren’t working, try applying some rubbing alcohol around the edges of the sticker. Alcohol is one of the best ways to help loosen the sticker’s adhesive–and you probably already have some lying around.
5. Try a Glue Removal Product
Another option is a glue removal product like Goo Gone.
These products can be rubbed right onto stickers or sticky residue. Solvents like these are great for removing even the most stubborn adhesives.
6. Window Cleaner for Windows
If you’re removing a sticker from a car window, try using window cleaner to help remove it. Window cleaners are usually designed to remove sticky residue and other things from glass.
Try scraping the sticker and spraying it as you work it off the window.
7. Clean it Again
Once you have the sticker off, it’s important to clean the area really well.
Even if it looks like you got everything off, the adhesive residue is usually hard to see. If you don’t clean the spot right away you’ll probably begin seeing sticky black stuff on your car in a few days.
Your Turn
If you’re struggling to remove car decals, try getting the area clean, applying some heat, and using a quality scraper. If that doesn’t work, use a solvent to remove stubborn adhesive.
Removing old stickers and decals can be a challenge to remove.
Check out all our car maintenance articles for more on how to keep your car clean and running properly.