How to Remove White Shoe Polish From Car Paint
White shoe polish---much like road paint---can stubbornly adhere to your car's paint and be tricky to remove using conventional car wash treatments. Shoe polish is made from a variety of ingredients, including dyes and waxes, which dry into a tough, resistant stain that resembles chalky paint. Luckily, you can use the tools detailing pros use to remove tough polishes from vehicle finishes by making a quick trip to the auto parts store.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Car wash solution
- Cloth
- Bucket
- Garden hose
- Soft chamois cloth
- Detailing clay
- Detailing clay spray
- Soft cloth
- Isopropyl alcohol
- Distilled water
Instructions
-
-
1
Move your car to a shaded area before washing. Wash your car with a professional car wash solution and soft cloth, rinsing well with a garden hose. Dry with a soft chamois cloth.
-
2
Mix up a solution of two drops of car wash solution to 30 oz. of water in a spray bottle. Or purchase a professional clay bar detailing solution from an auto supply store.
-
-
3
Open your clay bar and cut it in half. This ensures that if you drop the bar during cleaning you will still have another piece to fall back on. Once a bar hits the ground it must be discarded.
-
4
Work the bar into a flat pancake shape in your hands. Work over areas on the car that are no larger than two feet by two feet. Liberally spray lubricant over areas that are affected with the shoe polish.
-
5
Position the clay bar in the palm of your hand and work it over the stained area, gliding the bar over the shoe polish in back and forth motions to remove the residue. Turn the clay over to use the clean side of the piece as you remove the polish. Once the other side is also soiled, knead and rework the clay bar until there are two clean surfaces for you to use on the polish.
-
6
Remove any leftover clay with the spray lubricant and a soft clean cloth. Examine the surface of the car. If there are any remaining bits of polish on the car paint, continue to Step 7.
-
7
Use a 50/50 solution of isopropyl alcohol and distilled water on a soft cloth. Gently rub over the stained area to remove any remaining polish residue.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
If smears appear across your car when using the clay bar you may not be using enough clay lubricant when removing the soiling.
Clay bars will also remove car waxes and polishes; you may need to reseal the area after using the clay bar.
