Removing Cal Hov Stickers

[Bodyhauler]

Haven't seen any posting on this, but I'm interested in getting another used Model S and I've seen several nice ones on Tesla site for sale that have come from California.
Unfortunately they have those awful HOV Stickers on the bumper and rear side panels.
Does anyone know how easy these are to remove? Has anyone had good response getting them off the car?
I'd hate to put good money in a nice car only to have scratches, scuffs or whatever, after removing the stickers.

 

[Gixx1300R]

Hair dyer....use WD40 or Goo Gone to remove residue

 

[Jamesus]

Mine came off pretty easily without much residue or scratches. I left the car out in the sun, warmed up the sticker with a blow drier, and soaked the sticker with goo gone.

 

[jkoya]

I second goo gone. I removed them from my 2016 Volt with a heat gun and goo gone. There was a thread on this forum where someone said peanut butter works. I tried that, but all it did was make a mess.

 

[Bodyhauler]

Thanks for the input. Maybe all hope is not lost!
Anyone have before & after pics?

 

[axhoaxho]

Yes, I used an hair dryer to warm up the stickers, and then applied a little goo-gone to remove them. I did it slowly and gently. No problem at all.

 

[whitex]

Why not ask the CA owner to remove the sticker as part of the deal, or get a quote from a detail shop how much to remove them and subtract that from the price? It seems like a straightforward ask.

 

[Ciaopec]

I second goo gone. I removed them from my 2016 Volt with a heat gun and goo gone. There was a thread on this forum where someone said peanut butter works. I tried that, but all it did was make a mess.

Should have read the whole thread. It said peanut butter AND jelly.

 

[Mark Z]

I removed mine from the lower dark plastic of the 2012 Tesla. A 1200 watt hair dryer worked well placed near the surface. Heat the easiest corner you find to start the removal. Start with 10 seconds at your start point then move the hot air away from your hand as you start to pick at the corner with a fingernail. Continue to lift the sticker slowly while heating the remaining sticker that is attached. Be careful, the heat of the dryer is uncomfortable as you lift the sticker, so don't heat your hand. Overheating or scraping is unnecessary.

After the sticker was removed, I had about one half dozen or so VOID pieces that were removed with a small portion of paper towel and Goo Gone. Use your fingernail with the moistened paper towel to gently remove remaining VOIDs. Once finished, clean the area with water or a gentle water based soapy solution to remove the Goo Gone.

 

[aesculus]

Not that I want to gloat but knowing this day would come I had installed mine on a clear, peelable backing and just lifted a corner with a razor blade, pulled and they were gone. A little wipe with a towel and you could never tell they were there.

Of course I ran the risk of someone doing that procedure on me to steal my stickers, but I relied on herd mentality where they probably thought they were stuck on just like everybody else's stickers.

 

[jkoya]

Not that I want to gloat but knowing this day would come I had installed mine on a clear, peelable backing and just lifted a corner with a razor blade, pulled and they were gone. A little wipe with a towel and you could never tell they were there.

Of course I ran the risk of someone doing that procedure on me to steal my stickers, but I relied on herd mentality where they probably thought they were stuck on just like everybody else's stickers.

I learned from my mistake of putting them directly on the car. This time around, I purchased @skylargray clean-cling films which work great !!!

 

[Loco_Nomad]

hair dryer, goo gone, polisher ( buffer ) and lots of patience... I applied mine directly to the paint because most likely going to sell it next year

 

[PhilDavid]

In the future, if you put any stickers on the car, stick the sticker on Paint Protection Film or a "cling sticker" and then apply that to the car. Amazon sells them in sheets of various sizes.

 

[jcy1012]

Just recently did this. Carefully removed the stickers as best as I can, then used goof off on a microfiber cloth. Took about three gentle passes, about 5 minutes per sticker.