I just got a new car, a black z8 with white and red pinstripes (if thats what thet're called). The car looks really good but i dont really like the pinstripes. How do you take them off. Can i just peel it off or is there an easier way. I dont know if the paint under it would be newer looking but i doubt it would be noticable if it was different.Would it?

 

Ugh, I took the pinstripes of my camaro when I had it, one side peeled right off, but for whatever reason the other side I had to scrape off, took forever and left the car a mess. See if they will just easily peel off, other wise, get some razor blades and rubbing compound.

 

A heat gun works best to get the glue to release. You can use a hair dryer but your likely to burn it up in the process.

 

Yeah, a hair dryer can be used. Give yourself an hour to do each side, and start at one end. Heat a section of the pinstripe about 8" long or so, for about 20 to 30 seconds. Then while it's still hot, using a razor; carefully pick at the leading edge until you can peel it back. If you heated it right, it should just start to come right up as you go. If not, it may break off in your hand and you'll have to keep heating the section.

Once you've got the hang of it, it will come off in a smooth motion, and you'll keep going without missing a beat, or breaking the stripe. Unless the pinstripes are crusty, old and sun baked... - Then they'll probably break off in your hand every few inches. If that's the case, go grab a beer. You're gonna be doing it for a while. Best case scenario is to be very smooth and steady, and do not break the stripe off in your hand.

Sometimes, the adhesive (glue) on the back of the stripe will pull right up with it. If it does, you're golden. Other times, it will stay behind on the car, in a dirty, gooey mess. If that happens, cancel your appointments, because you're not going anywhere for the afternoon. You'll need a can of "Oops! Multi Purpose Remover" (or a similar solvent that is safe for your paint job). My neighbor does vehicle graphics, and he uses Oops. Don't use rubbing compound for a job like this... You'll take off more paint than adhesive.

Once you've got the stuff, you'll need a spray bottle. Fill it up with some of the Oops, and of course make sure you don't spray this stuff in the direction of your face. Be careful of which way the wind is blowing. Spray it on a section of where the stripe was. Using a squeegee, scrape the glue up - the solvent will make the glue begin to break down so you can scrape it. You'll need another rag (plan on throwing it away because it will be worthless after this) to continually clean the glue off of the squeegee. The glue is going to turn into the most sticky, nasty mess of gunk and it will eventually look like your rag is covered in model cement.

That's basically it. In most cases, depending on how good the quality of the graphic or pinstripe was, it will come off and leave behind no adhesive.

 

go to a paint shop and ask for a pinstripe remover wheel ..he will give you a rubber wheel and you put it on the end of your electric drill and it will take pinstripe and the adhesive off and it will never bother the paint ....it should take maybe 20 minutes to do the whole car and it works well on other projects around the house and will take tar off your paint in no time

 

When I have had to remove dealer stickers and stuff like that, I would use a combination of a heat gun and plastic razor blades. They are not as sturdy as the metal ones obviously, but there is less risk in nicking the paint.

 

Thanks guys, i just took it off, it peeled away really easy but the thing is the adhesive is still on, i went to find something like you said kick Z tail out but when i went to autozone i couldnt find anything. Would walmart or kmart have something like it.

 

Walmart and Kmart probably should. You can definitely find it in places like Home Depot, Lowes, Ace Hardware, True Value, etc. So it'll be at hardware stores for sure.

 

What's the deal with dealers putting pinstripes on used cars? Even my Corolla has them .

 

they do it to raise the price of the cars, i think, im not sure though