The best car bug and tar remover

Bug and Tar Removers are specially formulated to help remove sprayed bugs and tar stains from your vehicle’s finish. Of course, these unpleasant road hazards do not endanger drivers, but they can damage the paint and overall appearance of your car.

If you’re looking for the best car bug remover, we can help you get rid of those stubborn stains marring your car’s paint with our top picks. All of these cleaner picks are based on our first-hand experience with each product. Be sure to read on for tips on how to use the products the right way.

McKee is 37

Hands down, this is the best bug and tar remover out there if you can shell out the money for a bottle. Better yet, buy a large 128-ounce jug so it lasts a very long time. McKee’s 37 Road Kill Bug Remover, in our experience, makes removing all kinds of bug stains, nasty bug guts, and baked-on tar stains as simple as spraying, waiting, and wiping the product with a microfiber cloth.

You can even add a little of the cleaning product to your favorite bucket of car wash soap and water to make Road Kill Bug Remover even better. No matter how you use it, it’s definitely our favorite bug and tar remover.

McKee is 37

We liked McKee 37’s spray product so much that we wanted to try what might be an even easier product to use – its Road Kill Bug Scrubber. You just need to soak it in some warm soapy water filled with car wash soap. We’re happy to report that it works really damn well at removing bug stains and tar residue, just like the Road Kill Bug Remover spray, it removes bugs with ease.

This bug sponge scrubber left no scratch marks on clear paint in our experience, even on a black car, and scrubbed away contaminants like dried insect guts and bird droppings with ease. If you don’t really want to add another spray bottle of detailing product to your arsenal, keeping a few of these on hand is a great choice.

Stoner Car Care

One aspect that some bug and tar removers overlook is tree sap. Tree sap is a whole different ball game if you don’t get the pesky gunk out of your car’s paint quickly. Once it hardens on the clear coat of your paint, it can be a real pain. Stoner Car Care’s Tarminator Cleaner does a good job of removing bugs and tar from a car, but we found it very effective at removing hardened tree sap that fell on our now-retired longtime BMW 330i. In that regard, you get a very good three-in-one spray product for the money.

We’re fans of a lot of 3D products here, and 3D’s bug remover spray lives up to the quality that its other products show when we use them to keep our Roadshow gear looking fresh. We especially like that it’s safe on a range of surfaces, including car paint, glass, plastic and headlights. It’s also easy to use, so you can’t go wrong with the 3D to clean almost any car surface you can think of.

Tortoise wax

If you need something a little more affordable a cleaning spray that will just get the job done with a little more elbow grease, Turtle Wax’s Power Foam Bug & Tar Remover does the trick. It does exactly what it says on the label, but in our experience, it just requires a little more product and a little more brainpower on our part to get the contaminants out of the car paint. Still, for the price, this Turtle Wax bug and tar stain remover is a solid option.

Table of Contents

Comparison of the best debuggers and tar 2022

The best car bug and tar remover	Brand	Name	Price
Generally	McKee is 37	Road Kill Bug Removal	$25
Scrubber	McKee is 37	A scrubber to kill bugs on the go	$12
For tree sap	Stoner Car Care	Terminator	$15
Multisurface	3D	Eliminate errors	$16
Cheap	Tortoise wax	Strong insect and tar removal foam	$18

Tips for using a debugger and tar

Dilute as needed: Make sure your paint cleaner is durable if the manufacturer agrees with the practice. For example, our top pick, McKee’s 37, can be diluted 1:1 with water.

Follow the instructions for best results: It may seem like spraying and wiping is all you need to do to remove tar and remove insect stains, but some products ask you to exercise a little patience to let them do their work. If so, let the cleaner sit for a while before wiping it off the paint with a microfiber cloth and it will do its job of removing dirt and bugs from your beloved chariot.
Work in a shaded area and make sure the surface is cool: It’s so simple. You don’t want to use these cleaning products on hot surfaces. They simply won’t work as expected or can leave unpleasant results on the paint.
Get rid of bugs and tar as soon as possible: Leaving debris like bug residue, bird droppings, and tar stains on the paint for a long time will only make them much harder to remove. Plus, the bugs that get stuck on the paint can actually leave permanent damage behind.

Stay bug and tar free with these Roadshow approved products

Each of our bug and tar removal solutions work well and we think we have something for everyone who needs to deal with crushed bugs, dirt and tar on their trip. Choose your favorite and rest easy knowing that mistakes don’t stand a chance.