Parked my car under a sappy tree last night for a few hours, went in the garage this morning to feel the smoothness of the new coat of wax I put on yesterday (clay barred and all) and felt thousands of little ****. I sprayed maguire's detailing spray and wiped it all off. Figured its not a great idea to wipe the car even after you drive it once because of dirt and dust but at least I caught the sap before it had a chance to bake on in the 100 degree weather we have.

My question is, does that detailing spray take wax off or just restore the shine a bit?

 

You're such a lucky guy.

I'm not the detail expert, but I thought you had to clay it to remove the sap completely.

 

'rubbing alcohol' removes tree sap... but you must re-wax the paint surface after removal.

 

My thought exactly - those individually packaged textured alcohol prep pads phlebotomists use are great. Even if the sap has been sitting a while, they'll take it right off.

 

If you catch it soon enough the detailing sprays will take it off. It does depend on the type of sap. My neighbors tree "rains" sap. At first glance is looks like tiny dew drops.

I never wash my car. Use a California duster and detailer daily. This method has worked great for me here in SoCal where we get so little rain. It doesn't hurt to keep the car garaged when not in use either.