I have some grime on my car’s paint that won’t come off with standard washing. The grime spot is below the antenna - the antenna is covered in rubber and there are parts of the the rubber that is deteriorating, so I would think the grime is composed of antenna rubber and dirt, and has been baked on by heat. It’s a little sticky to the touch. What’s the best way to clean that off? I was going to try baking soda since I use it for nearly every surface in my house and it works wonders in getting things clean that I thought would be impossible to clean. But I’m worried that it will ruin the finish. Any ideas?
Try using finger nail polish remover. This is basically acetone which won’t harm the paint. But it will remove any wax so the surface will need to be rewaxed.
Tester
Bug and tar remover is also a solid choice. This will also strip off the wax.
Be careful with baking soda. It will scratch up the paint. It also may not work well against an oily substance unless some soap were mixed it.
Use a rag moistened with gasoline.
I’d start with repeated applications of bug and tar remover. If that didn’t help, I’d experiment with a clay bar next.
The product I use for road tar, and a lot of other stubborn spots, that does not damage paint, is WD-40.
It also works great to remove grease from your good shirt before you wife sees it. Use WD-40 to break up the grease, then wash the shirt in warm/hot water to remove the WD-40.
I’m with @Maolito WD40 works on just about anything and will not harm your paint. Baking soda will scratch the clear coat and then you will have to polish it out.