Does any else get hit with a burst of static electricity when they get out of their car and close the door? This happens to me EVERY TIME... This happened to me in my old car too.. so maybe I'm just a very good capacitor.

 

Happens to me once in a while. I was wondering if that's the same static electricity that everyone was talking about which will set off a fire when your at the gas station.

 

I heard an in-depth story on the radio (NPR) -

The static is caused by the tires. Have you changed from stock? There are grounding straps (I think it comes in packs of 3 to 10 straps) that you can attach to the car. It should touch the ground when you stop. It'll wear out eventually, you have to replace them.


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It's also your shoes, what kind of soles, rubber etc.

I've narrowed it down to the shoes, and I've "tested" my theory on many cars.

Try some other shoes, tell me if I'm right.

GSB

 

it's the shoes. When i wear different shoes in the grocery store, some shock my friend more than others when i touch her.

 

Try this solution (I've been doing this for years out of habit):
Before your foot/sole touches the ground outside, hold onto a metal part of the door. Then as you're holding on, step out to safely discharge. On my 99TL, I merely push open the door via the chrome metal strip at the base of the window while I step out.

Hey, it works and it's free!

Jung

 

I don't think it's the shoes (alone)....

Certain types of shoes might let the static discharge...

But the tires are probably the source.

 

Didn't you people learn physics? When you rub natural and synthetic material together, static charge forms. When you touch something metal - you discharge. Static can reach few thousand volts, that's why you can see a little spark. But amperage is extremly low, so there is not much power - just enough for you to feel it sting.

 

why go thru such an ordeal and just take the "pain" if u wanna call it that of a shock

 

I used to get a shock every once in a while with my old car ('97 Toyota Corolla). For some reason when I would go to shut the door from getting out I would get a nasty shock. Then I realized it only happened when I was wearing my North Face PolarTec Jacket. I guess the fleece and I have some chemistry.

 

Stop Playing with yourself before you get in the car. All that rubbing makes for good static electricity.

 

it happens to me quite a lot. but only on ghetto cars. never happened on my TL

 

rub a dryer sheet on the cloth areas, that should reduce some static.

best way though is to touch a metal part of the door as your exiting the car. the energy will discharge through you so you won't feel a shock.

btw, the strap on the tires, no tires come with that as far as I know. Trucks and some other higher profile cars have them, but even they don't drag on the ground - they're about 1 inch off from the asphalt. Look at the underside of a smi next time you pass it, you'll see chains hanging near the ground. these chains are attached to the frame of the car, not the tires.

 

aftermarket alarm didn't groud right?

 

never had it happen to me on my TL ..

 

I noticed that I get shocked when I wear a certain pair of shoes. The same pair of shoes also generate quite a bit of static while i'm at work.

 

medic, I don't think anyone said anything about attaching straps to the tires. Now that's trippin'. Put down the pipe!.




.
eggbert

 

im an Electrical Computer Engineer and i work with electro static sensitive devices all the time......and my parents own a gas station so i cna help you guys here alot.....all around us in the air are positively charged ions as our cars go speeding thru it the body of the car picks up some of the charge. the only way for the car to loose this charge is 3 ways..


1 time...time will slowly let the charge discharge
2. ground it..(reason you see some car with those wires hanging from the back underbody touching the floor)
3.us--our bodies are great condductors for this charge and the positive charge is desperatly trying to ground it self as that is what it in its nature......since out cars are on tires its hard for them to get thru the rubber....so they take the next easiest way which is us.. now this is where our shoes come in to play if say we had good shoes like one made from 100percent rubber then the static charge wouldnt be able to ground it self in other words no shock...but if we had CHEAP shoes watch out as you will get zapped if the charge can ground it self...thats why they say when in your car and you get hit by lighting dont get out until they ground your car....i hav epersonally seen them do it and what they do is throw a crow bar against you car and when the charge grounds itself....the bar gets welded onto the body of the car...crazy aint it?

JON LERD

 

Here's a study on static electricity and how it relates to your clothing. Pretty dry stuff.

http://www.jci.co.uk/Carseats2.html