$tillen$ux

I live in a dry area and everytime i get out of my car and reach over to the door pillar to close the door, I get a very unpleasant shock. I think it conditions me to fear touching my car door and I hate it!! I end up pushing and therfore smudging the window to close the door! Why do some cars do this and others dont (what causes it)? And what can I do to stop this annoyance?

GreenSE

Check this out

http://www.zapno.com.au/home.html

or

http://cartalk.cars.com/Columns/Arch...ctober/01.html

also this one

http://www.static-sol.com/articles/s...of%20my%20car?

and this one

http://homepages.pavilion.co.uk/jeremys/home.htm

and this one

http://www.pei.org/static/index.htm


That Yahoo is really useful!

Lime

All cars with cloth seats have this problem. Spray your seats with STATIC GUARD, an aerosol product found in supermarkets and such stores like Walmart, Kmart, and Ames.

pjalst

When that happens to me I just tap the door with the key before I touch it with my hand . That does the trick. Just a light tap.

pjalst

Don't spend money on that zap s#!t, just use your key, works the same way

GreenSE

I think this is the easiest solution, just be sure not to do it to the car paint. I read that the voltage that is created can reach 10,000 Volts easily.

Les97se

n/m

yngdisciple26

I recently read on article on the static electricity problem. This wasn't just a problem with nissans (thank God), but n-e ways. The article was basically talking about the problems that can be created by the electric current, mainly how people go to gas stations with this electrical buildup and when they remove the gas cap (instead of touching the door) it creates the shock you're talking about and it mixes with the gas vapors and starts a fire. it was kind of a notice from the petroleum industry. So I try to touch the door or something metal when I get out of my car, I also don't get back in my car which is where some people go wrong also, and I don't use my cell phone at the gas station b/c of the same problem. Happy maxn

Chebosto

iTrader: (1)

..what you have to do is have your passenger ground the car before YOU do. mwuhahaha.

have you ever seen static travel 4 inches to ground?!?! here in the desert. i swear i can lite **** on fire with the electrons i get off my car!!!

Soon2BMaxed

hahahaha i shock myself quite a bit when i drive alone. thats exactly why i let my passengers get out first!

GreenSE

The article you are talking about is one of the links I cited before.

http://www.pei.org/static/index.htm

Although the part of the cellular phones is considered a hoax. I think there is an adultered version that talks about the cell phones and also something about women being more prone to these accidents.

JsL

iTrader: (5)

I hate that paranoid feeling of getting shocked. Tapping everything with your key first will prevent your from getting shocked, but of course don't tap your paint.

99maxi

iTrader: (2)

i think a way to avoid the shock is to hold on the door pillar before or something metal before u step out of the car..

HLMAX

It is cause by your clothe rubbing against the fabric car seats. Just spend a few bucks & buys some Static Gurad. Spay it on the car seats & you are static-free for a few weeks.

speedtrip

It's a little early but here is my once a year explanation of why we get shocked and how to lessen or avoid it. I deal with static elimination in all enviroments, industrial to clean rooms.



What causes static electricity?

For our example, getting out of the car, it's friction. At the molecular level there is an exchange of electrons between the seat fabric and our cloths as we get out of the seat. Electrons are negative. So strong atomic structures gain electrons and become negatively charged. Weak atomic structures lose electrons and become positively charged.

Why do I get shocked?

Humans are static sponges. As the friction occurs between the seat and our cloths a charge is formed. This charge is then absorbed by our body. Since our body is not grounded and is covered by an insulator (cloths, shoes) this static charge keeps building. When our body comes in contact with ground (metal door) the static charge is discharged and we get zapped.

Why are some cars worse than other?

Seat material, specifically composition and texture. Seat fibers with alot of nylon and polyester will create alot of static. Conversely if a manufacturer substitutes other material instead of nylon and polyester the propensity to create static is less. Leather is much smoother than cloth seats so there is less friction. Less friction means less static. Now the cloths we wear also influence the static charge immensely. Cotton is the best choice to reduce static charges. Wool or synthetic materials are the worst.

How can I stop getting zapped or lessen the effect?

The suggestions up to this point all work. Fabric softner works but keep in mind this is just coating the seat fibers. All coatings wear off. How often you have to spray your seats will have to be deterimed by you. Touching metal before you start to leave your seat and maintaining contact as you get out is the best way. This way your body is in constant contact with ground and there is no chance of a static charge building. Now lets say you forget to do this and your looking to bite the static bullet. Use your elbow or the heel of your hand to close the door. This displaces the static discharge over a larger surface area. When you reach out with your fingers and go to touch the door a very large static charge is heading for a very small, focused point, your fingertips. Visable static discharges are in the area of 30,000 volts and can go much higher.

99maxi

iTrader: (2)

u can also close the door by pushing on the window..

$tillen$ux

Wow! extremely thorough! Thanks guys for all the suggestions! I never though about the key trick either. Maybe I should get leather seats!

$tillen$ux

Dang, cant escape this cant I? It really bothers me! How about putting a matching colored sticker cut into the shape of the door pillars. maybe that will insulate me from the metal when i close the door. how about those carbon fiber stickers on the door pillars...those shouldnt conduct electricity