On our never-ending quest to improve this place by listening to feedback from the B&B, we are taking a new tack with these product posts, choosing instead to focus on items we use and have purchased with our own meagre income. After all, if we’re giving you the truth about cars, we ought to give you the truth about car accessories.
You know the drill. After driving several hours for hundreds of miles, the front of yer car resembles a bug graveyard. And a messy one at that. Compounding the problem, there’s a solid chance that, given the right weather conditions, most of the mess will be baked on and very difficult to remove. What to do?
Enter some specialized cleaning gear. Companies like Meguiar’s and others know the difficulty of safely removing bug guts from paintwork and have formulated specific products which can make quick work of the absolute state covering the headlights and front fascia area of your car. In fact, modern cars also have no shortage of sensors and cameras dotting that surface, and plastered bugs can play havoc with their function. Just the other day this author took a road trip in a new Acura MDX only to find the front camera completely obscured after arriving at his destination. The culprit? You guessed it. Bug guts.
Running the thing through an automatic car wash doesn’t always produce awesome results, not to mention all the hazards gearheads associate with those types of facilities. However, in a pinch, they can do the trick if a quick fix is needed. Spraying a good dose of bug remover prior to entering the automatic wash seems to help the situation, allowing the formula to loosen the bug guts so the facility can more effectively get rid of them during the automatic wash. There are ample options of this product, though we do tend to gravitate to major brands for anything that will be applied to the finish of our cars. Taking a chance on dollar store finds or products from unfamiliar brands one cannot pronounce just simply is not worth the risk in our jaundiced opinion.
It doesn’t hurt to keep a bottle of the above items tucked in the spare tire well during summer road trips; though, if you do, go ahead and add a so-called ‘ bug sponge’ in with it as well. These scrubbers have enough texture to break up tough bug guts without damaging or destroying the delicate finish on your car. Loosening the mess will allow the spray product to do its job very effectively. My favourite spray, not available in the States, is thicker than you’d expect and green in color; simply paste it on the front bumper, allow it to sit for a short spell, then just hose it all off – using that scrubber if necessary.
Some companies used to offer those scrubbers presoaked with the bug removal liquid, which was a tremendous idea. Individually wrapped and easy to keep in a glovebox, they were the ideal road trip companion. These days, for whatever reason (probably environmental or something equally asinine) they’re difficult to find. If you can source any, especially from the Meguiar’s brand, load up.
As planned, this series of posts will continue to focus on items we actually use and have bought with our own money. We hope you found this one helpful.
[Image: Sellers at eBay]
Become a TTAC insider. Get the latest news, features, TTAC takes, and everything else that gets to the truth about cars first by subscribing to our newsletter.
