Removing 3M Body Moulding Tape residue?

[kb798]

I removed a lip kit off of my car earlier this year, and I still have the residue from the body moulding tape. It`s not a glue residue, but rather the tape is so strong that the it tore in half thus leaving the foam portion of it on the car.



I`ve thought about using dry ice to freeze the adhesive to crack it (like removing tar from interiors), or Goo Gone. I could try and remove the tape by hand, but that`ll take years before all of it comes off. Anybody have a better solution?

[BigJimZ28]

wd-40 will take car of it!



put some on a rag and hold it over the area

and let it dissolve what adhesive is there



then just wash to remove the wd-40!



p.s. try dental floss to cut the foam off

first to let the wd-40 at the adhesive

[Accumulator]

I`d use 3M General Purpose Adhesive Remover, it`s made for that sort of job and works great.



The trick is to keep the tape saturated long enough for the solvent to effect its solvent-action on the adhesive that`s behind the foam; you need to let the solvent dwell for a while. I`d saturate a rag with the Adhesive Remover and then find a way to hold said rag against the panel. Like maybe put a yardstick against the rag, pressing it against the panel, and then wedge the end of the yardstick under a brick to hold it in place.

[kb798]

How long should I keep the rag soaked solution on there?

[imported_hooked]

I have the same problem, but for my rims. When I balanced by wheels, the original weights were removed and replaced with new ones. The weights weren`t those little clip ones that are attached to the lip of the wheel. They were a strip of small weights taped to the inside of the rims. When the balance guy removed the old ones, he didn`t bother to take all the foam/tape residue off. I guess that`s a good thing because he probably would have scratched the h*ll out of them.



I tried soaking the residue with degreaser, but that didn`t help much. I`ll try the wd-40 route. It`s difficult to get to the insides of the rims without removing the wheels, but I`m too lazy to do that. Definitely the trick will be keeping enough of the solven on the residue to soften it up.

[BobD]

I`d use 3M General Purpose Adhesive Remover, it`s made for that sort of job and works great.



The trick is to keep the tape saturated long enough for the solvent to effect its solvent-action on the adhesive that`s behind the foam; you need to let the solvent dwell for a while. I`d saturate a rag with the Adhesive Remover and then find a way to hold said rag against the panel. Like maybe put a yardstick against the rag, pressing it against the panel, and then wedge the end of the yardstick under a brick to hold it in place.



+1 For the 3M Adhesive Remover.

[Zrex61]

I`d use 3M General Purpose Adhesive Remover, it`s made for that sort of job and works great.

That stuff is basically Naptha...

[Accumulator]

kb798- I dunno :nixweiss Long enough...and I`m not being a smart-aleck, you just never know how long it`ll take. I`ve never had the 3M Adhesive Remover cause damage to paint, so IMO you`ll get tired of waiting and try peeling/rubbing it off a little too soon anyhow. I`d start with maybe 2-3 minutes. I had to leave it on for nearly 15 (!) minutes when removing a sticker from my mechanic`s BMW, so you really never know.



hooked- yeah, I`d rather they leave stuff alone so I can do it right. That sounds like another job for the 3M stuff. I`ve taken off weight adhesive that I didn`t think would *ever* come off. Honestly, I think it`ll be easier to take `em off to do the work, at least in the long run...but then I seem to pull wheels off more than most normal people anyhow :o



Zrex61- That could be, never looked into it. It sure works better than any of my other (numerous) solvents though.

[bad venge]

I`ve had great luck with an "Eraser" brand wheel ...It removes the tape residue and most of the glue too ....As with any orbital keep it moving and don`t burn your paint

Small touch up`s with the adhesive remover will clean it up since it strips wax rewax

[fdizzle]

more kudos for the 3M . . . . stuff rules

[David Fermani]

I`ve tackled this type of thing tons of time and I don`t think anything out there will melt down the foam. The glue - yes. It can make a real mess too. The easiest way to do this is to use a heat gun/hair dryer to warm the glue and then peel it off with your finger nail. Then use 3M to disolve the residue.