Removing Permanent Marker Off the Exterior of Your Vehicle

I wanted to share an amazing secret that I have found regarding removing permanent marker off the exterior of your vehicle. Recently I stopped to get something at the store and came out to find my car had been vandalized. Someone took a black permanent marker and wrote on the side of my car, starting on the driver side door all the way to the back. This incident turned into a time consuming hassle, so I would like to share this information in the hope that it may help someone else. First, I filed a report with the store, then the police and finally my insurance company.

When I took my car into the insurance company for them to look at the damage, I found out I had a $500 deductible for vandalism. There is a body shop they recommended and the body shop said it would be $350.to fix it, and that there is absolutely nothing that can get permanent marker off your car. I was worried about the expense, and took my car home without having the work done and tried scrubbing it again. It still wouldn't come off, so I drove to my dealership for help. The dealership told me they could fix it for several hundred dollars, but there is no product that can remove permanent marker from your car.

I found out they were wrong. A friend told me that hairspray would take it right off. I didn't really believe him as I took a box of tissues and a can of hairspray out to my car. I sprayed the tissue with the hairspray, and tried rubbing the permanent marker. To my amazement, the marker came right off and did not damage my paint job whatsoever! If I would have had that knowledge the day my car was vandalized, I could have saved myself much time and frustration. I would recommend the hairspray since I know first hand that it works, but since this day I have heard about other products that are supposed to work as well. For example, many people will recommend a dry erase marker. With the dry erase marker you simply write on it and then rub it off. You can also spray marker with wd-40 and then car washing detergent to get it off or take off the permanent marker with acetone (fingernail polish remover). So, don't despair if someone writes on your vehicle with permanent marker, it can easily be taken off in 10 minutes or less!