RLX-Sport Hybrid

Ok. Someone is going to think I am bananas for asking this, but since Fukushima and its destroyed nuclear power plant were within a 2 hour drive from Saitama, what are the chances that our cars have been exposed to nuclear radiation? In the customs process don't they get scanned for that?

getakey

first symptoms of exposure to low level radiation is seeing halos around lights

neuronbob

And seeing little red lights in the overhead console.

fsmith

Final symptom before total meltdown is constantly babbling about your amazing new car.

RLX-Sport Hybrid

We are all screwed then. Time to glow in the dark.

getakey

sorry - couldn't resist

Shotgun

Getakey, your "halo" response was absolutely funny as hell and I haven't laughed that hard in years...

Edward'TLS

Buy or rent a radiation detector and do a complete sweep over from top to bottom and front to rear of the car.

This way you can 100% sure if any parts or components have been contaminated by nuclear fallouts.

George Knighton

First time in years I've laughed out loud at a forum post.

db22

Mazda owners don't seem to mind that their cars are made in Hiroshima.

RLX-Sport Hybrid

At the significant risk of all of you thinking I am a nut job, if any of you simply Google the words Fukushima, Daiichi and Nuclear in your search perimeters, then start reading anything you can get your hands on, you will arrive at the same conclusions as I have. I will not eat any Pacific originated fish, and am very concerned that significant amounts of isotopes, Strontium 90 (found on a apartment rooftop in the city of Yokohama south of Tokyo), Tellurium-129m (half life of 6 days), iodine-131 (half life of 8 days) and caesium-134 (half life of more than 30 years) that can be directly connected to the nuclear signatures from the Fukushima power plant are currently being discovered all up and down the entire western Canadian and US coast, most of those isotopes having a half life of more than 200,000 years, this means that the worst nuclear disaster in history has occurred without the typical global hysteria that a nuclear weapon would make in the world of media.

I understand that you guys were poking fun at me and I have a thick skin to any jabs, so I'm cool with it. My question was actually serious in nature. I have done a lot of research on this topic since the disaster happened in 2011. Without going into what I do for a living, I have a fairly high level of understanding on the topic. The US Customs and Boarder Protection agency scans inbound shipments of products coming from known countries of origin with either biological, chemical or nuclear "issues", with the intent of making sure hazards from outside entities do not invade US territories without inspections. My original question was do any of you know if the cars we are driving could be officially verified that they were inspected. I can't find that out through my channels, and I am asking if any of you had even considered that problem prior to my bringing it up. Ignorance it not bliss in this situation. Unfortunately because of budget issues in Washington DC and political non-sense, funding to inspect every product that lands on our shores has been slashed as being "discretionary" and thus a huge percentage of products are NOT being inspected as of today.

Now before this thread gets punted to another area within the Zine, all I am asking you to do is seriously look this information up and make an assessment for yourself about your personal safety and that of your families and friends. You can poke fun at me all you want, but this very serious issue has the potential to affect all of us in a slow and innocuous way. You remember the story of the frog in the pot of cold water right? By the time the frog realizes that the water is getting really hot and wants to get out, it is already too late because the water is already boiling. Many scientists have already agreed that this has the potential to be the worst man made disaster in human history, and there are dozens more nuclear power plants around the world and even inside the US that have similar weaknesses to disastrous events like the Fukushima Daiishi plant in Japan.

Please do not take shots at me for sharing this important issue. It is not a joke. I am not crazy. I am very credible and my research is thorough. Don't take my word for it. Look it up for yourself. The question that remains is what to do about it, and that I do not have an answer for as of yet.

P.S. I am going to have someone scan my car with a detector to see if there are any registers of contamination today.

fsmith

Okay, I am no longer laughing. I have no idea how to go about testing my car; I seriously doubt that my dealer has a Geiger counter. Who runs such tests? I believe that all the Sport Hybrids were there at the same time, so likely they have all had the same level of exposure, hopefully quite low. Please keep us all informed.

George Knighton

You wouldn't be able to get a radioactive batch of cars into the United States or Canada. We've been looking for dirty bombs for about a decade now.

:-)

A certain number of containers are given the equivalent of an MRI before entry, too. We can't afford to do them all...it's a random selection.

George Knighton

Define "sign of contamination" logically and you'll probably find yourself relieved.

You can define it in a way that will cause a scanner to go off. Don't look too far down the scale.

As far as the seriousness of what is still being leaked into the Pacific Ocean, I'm afraid that I agree with you but I am not sure what we could do about it.

Mike_TX

Halos around lights? Like this?





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RLX-Sport Hybrid

Thank you for taking this question seriously. It is not a joke. It is real world and not a test. There are silent protocols in place by people "in the know" about how to protect themselves when interacting with contaminated materials. You can't see, smell or recognize any materials that have been compromized. That is what makes it so dangerous. I saw a video of where every nuclear test has been performed and then made some assessments about it that I shared with others in a confidential way. I proposed that anyone who has lived on the west coast proper and never ventured east of the mountains likely had a much lower number of cancers per thousand people. A study was done recently to confirm that very question. The answers were astonishing. The number of cancers for those living down wind were multiples of those who were not. That means the entire continental US has high levels of exposures of fall out of various kinds since the testing began. That is every state, not some like Oklahoma and Kansas. Now the reason for this test is to be able to measure increased diagnoses of cancer for those living on the west coast. It is a certainty and that word is a big deal in the engineering and Center for Disease Control world that there will be a marked increase in diagnosed cancers, especially for those who venture into the water, or breath the humid air coming from the ocean. The particles are smaller than molecules that make up the air, thus the extreme danger. Personally I have ruled out traveling to California for this reason alone. It is a shame because it is such a beautiful place.

Again I don't have to tell you where to look for the information. It is there in front of you to find. The government is made up of people who have their own fears, bias and influences to either accept or deny scientific data which is presented to them so that they can make informed decisions on what is in the best interests of the people of the US. Unfortunately those people, both R & D persuasions (largely morons aspiring to become classified as idiots), are not taking this data seriously because it is not politically feasible to do so. We as citizens need to NOT depend on them and make our own assessments. The good thing is now we can do that research and we could not prior to the Internet. Can you imagine in today's internet world a nuclear test above ground in Nevada or New Mexico today? Not a chance. not because the environmental nut jobs would be protesting in front of the camera, but because we would all quickly realize the insanity of the decision to do such a thing and the harmful effects for all us down wind. Think about this: How long does a storm take to enter California and then be on the east coast? Depending on the track and wind patterns, 3 days, and it doesn't go in a straight line either! It takes about 5-8 days for a storm over Japan to make it past Alaska and then into the Pacific Northwest. Think about that for a moment! What do you think is in that air? Don't know? Do your research and discover it for yourself. You will NOT like what you find.

Do your homework. Don't take my word for it. Prove me wrong with independent, non-bias research. I and many others do not want to be right. But we are. Believe me I am very concerned.

neuronbob

All kidding aside, that is an interesting question to ask.

RLX-Sport Hybrid

That is the very problem. You hit the nail on the head perfectly. We are NOT scanning each one, thus the question. I say prove something is or is not true with empirical data, not a union based inspection agency that is not concerned about quality controls or has the manpower to conduct 100% inspections.

Yumcha

I think you can purchase a home-radon test kit...? It's about $50.

Yumcha

Meanwhile, I'm eating fish (sushi) like my life depends on it.

RLX-Sport Hybrid

Unfortunately "we" can't do anything about it. The Japanese people who are working at the Tepco plant now are all going to die from radiation poisoning. Every one of them who have entered and worked on the damaged plant have either died already or are in the process of doing so. Out of national pride and ancient family values they are doing it for the sake of their country and the world. The reality of the disaster is that the plant should never have been built at that location and it was the accountants who pushed it to be built there. The same plant design is in place right now in 17 locations INSIDE the US right now! Take a guess why...

RLX-Sport Hybrid

I'm being serious here.

neuronbob

When you really think about it, Honda's Saitama plant is 150 miles southwest of the errant reactor. While Customs doesn't check more than a handful of items coming to the U.S., the Japanese government IS keeping track of radiation levels in the Tokyo area. Levels there were reportedly elevated after the Fukushima disaster, but not dangerously high.

Further, our Sport Hybrids were produced in January and February (and March?) of 2014; mine was a February birth. They were shipped to the U.S. sometime during the summer, so at most they were sitting for six months and likely less than that. Is a prolonged exposure for a car to very low-level radiation enough to affect health of those driving?

As many cars as Honda produces for export in its various Tokyo area plants, I'm sure that U.S. Customs has tested SOME cars, probably the higher volume ones, and if there were an issue, I'm sure we'd have heard about it by now.

The primary objective data you need is simply to measure the radiation for your car. So do measure, and report back.

accord1999

I don't think there's anything to worry about, by 2014 typical radiation levels within Fukushima are within the same range as Denver. Hot spots were about 2.5X higher than Denver. Central Tokyo is about 1/6th that of Denver.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...A2U0YH20140331

Mike_TX

When we were kids (a long, long time ago during the Cold War), we were always told that if a nuclear bomb were exploded, the area would be sterile and uninhabitable for 200 years.

But then Hiroshima and Nagasaki inexplicably rebuilt pretty quickly and in a few years were thriving industrial and residential cities again. So I was forced to conclude there are some scare stories going around about radiation and bombs. Not that they're anything to be trifled with, but I believe there's a bit of exaggeration involved.

As for the oceans being poisoned by Fukushima's runoff, consider the Bikini Atoll nuclear test site in the Pacific, where we detonated 23 (!) nuclear devices between 1946 and 1958. You'd think the whole area would be a wasteland, but they've found that chemicals in seawater actually react with radioactive isotopes to neutralize them. Researchers expected to find high levels of radiation in the reefs and soil in the area, but were surprised by how low the levels were.

The Earth has an amazing ability to take care of the indignities we impose on it. So unless your sushi glows in the dark, i wouldn't worry too much about it.

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RLX-Sport Hybrid

All good points. I am not a conspiracy theorist, but think about it logically for a moment. If Honda or any Japanese manufacturer wanted to keep selling their products outside of their country, why would they be motivated to report the "actual" data? I don't want to be cynical, but just think about it. Would you do that if you were the CEO? It is an interesting question which leads to more interesting questions. We don't want to "live in interesting times" and I think we are and don't know it yet. Feels like we are frogs...

One other point, it is not just where the cars were assembled, but where EVERY part on the car was made, shipped to, where it was stored (indoors or out), how long it sat in a potentially contaminated environment, and then it matters where the finished product was stored before shipping to the US. This type of contamination is similar to how static electricity is transferred from one thing to another, so if one contaminated item is touched by a human or machine, the other item now has the contamination. It is also transferred by air which has dust and moisture particles as a transferring mechanism. Some contamination is already gone, but it is the isotopes that stay fully dangerous for 200,000 years! That is the scary stuff. I have to look up how long it takes for every water molecule to cycle through the entire earth from evaporation, to precipitation, to storage in ice, and back to the oceans for evaporation again (a % also goes through every living organism). My guess it that it takes less than 200,000 years for that cycle. Thus at some point every living organism gets this nasty stuff in them. That is the unanswered question. How or can we stop it from happening? In short, we don't know.

I'm leaving now to get the car tested. It is not a run of the mill thing that I am doing. You can't get this equipment at Target or Radio Shack. More later when I get back.

damaged442

This is not a true statement. There have been zero deaths at Fukushima attributed to radiation. Now, there are workers that have exceeded their lifetime dose, but to say they are in the process of dying is not true. The effect of the radiation from the reactors is extremely minimal to the overall population, in comparison to the amount of people killed from the earthquake and tsunami itself. Those individuals may not see any ill effects from their exposure. What then?

If that is the case, then we are all in the process of dying, since we were born.

Where do you live? I ask this to determine your overall dose per year based on geographical location. You are aware you receive dose, correct? You, yourself are radioactive, in fact. I'm sure you have some Carbon-14 and some Potassium-40. Each year you live, you acquire 600-1200 millirem of dose depending on location. THat is just everyday life...doing what you do.

Imaging for medical purposes, treatments for cancers, x-rays at the dentist, all more dose. A co worker of mine had a chest image done and exceeded 70 Rem. Will he die tomorrow? Maybe, but it will not be from the imaging.

Bottom line, your car can be decontaminated. You will be fine. You will never see any health issues as a result of your car being built in Japan. Neither will anyone else.

neuronbob

Agree with Mike. I understand a bit where the OP is coming from, though. I was a senior in high school in Germany (Yay DoDDS!) when Chernobyl happened in 1986. Even though the little airbase I spent high school at was 1000 miles away, we were all concerned about how prevailing winds would carry whatever fallout there was.

In the end, background radiation levels in that part of Germany never increased significantly, or at least enough to cause major health problems. All that fear was really for naught.

Looking forward to the OP's results.

RLX-Sport Hybrid

A friend of a friend of mine works for the NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Commission) and I asked him to check my car for any contamination. In case you guys are wondering, he used a Fluke 481 Radiation S-Meter. He checked everywhere he could get the meter to within a few inches of the car. In short there is very little radiation to speak of. Full disclosure, he did not get under the car because it is snowy and nasty out, but the outside and inside showed very little measurable radiation of any type. So my concerns are for not on this.

It does not change the situation I noted before for the globe as he confirmed. I shared with him what I shared today, and he said that I am dead on. The reference about the Bikini Islands and the "accident" that created a big problem when testing was done way back when was definitely suppressed as to the extent of the radiation fall out. I asked him about the Hiroshima example as noted today by one of you. He said that was an air burst and thus a contained areas with deadly radiation. The reason it is habitable now is based on the specific make up of the bomb that was used. He said that the cancer rates and birth defects there are still many times higher than surrounding areas even now. He said the really bad ones were where they were surface or slightly buried explosions. Those were the devils as he said. He said those 5-10kt explosions were worse than the 60mt Tszar bomb Russia exploded from 10k feet as that was also an air burst. He concurred that the Fukushima Daiichi disaster is not making headlines, but is being very well covered on RT.com of all places. He is very concerned as are others at the NRC. He said, "tell your friends to do their homework because this is a problem we will be talking about for generations to come". So for all of you that are minimizing what I said today, be careful. Do your homework. Get a better understanding on what happened and what is likely to happen moving forward. Nobody knows for sure, but it will not be a "nothing to worry about situation".

neuronbob

You have friends in high places.

Thanks for sharing your results! That should give the rest of us RLX owners some relief...about the car.

I don't think anyone here is minimizing what happened at Fukushima. The area near the reactor will be uninhabitable by humans for centuries, so yeah, we will be talking about it for a long time, just like Chernobyl. So much of the radiation was washed out to sea, what is the effect nearby?

getakey

Article about checking ships (I know the DIY guy in this article)

DIY Nuke Detector Patrols SF Bay

RLX-Sport Hybrid

It is not just the nearby water that is the issue. Yes the Pacific is enormous, but this shit is nasty and does not dilute enough to be harmless. Don't forget washed out to sea debris has been showing up on the west coast for a while now. You don't think that doesn't have residue on it. It takes such an infinitesimally small amount to be deadly. Do more homework on this. You will find your answers. I don't want to be the source of the information. I am not the one who should be credible. All of this and thousands of pages more are all on the net to find. Trust that this is very bad and just because most don't know about it, or they know something about it, does not mean it is not a problem. If you stick your head in the sand it does not mean your ass won't be burned by the truth. I wish I thought of that phrase, but someone smarter than me said it first.

By the way I don't have friends in high places. We all have friends we can have a beer with and others that are professional contacts.

getakey

here, water dilutes, other physical stuff does not

How Radioactive is Our Ocean?

Malibu Flyer

Thanks for doing this.

I find it curious that I now know my Sport Hybrid isn't radioactive but I don't have any real test data on what the 0-60 time is. I never would guess that to be the case.

Just some humor to help us keep everything in perspective.

RLX-Sport Hybrid

My numbers on salt covered ice cold roads with VSA wheel spin to 40 mph:
0-60 - 5.03 sec
1/4mile - 13.82 sec @ 106.1mph

I expect it to be better when we have more ideal surface conditions. I would take 1-2 tenths off to 60mph I guess with dry warm roads. Performance rubber might be even better. But that is a total guess.

wstr75

I live in central NC where many homes with basements have detectable levels of radon emissions. There have been studies pointing to low levels of radioactive exposure being beneficial:

New Study Finds Exposure to Low Levels of Radon Appears to Reduce the Risk of Lung Cancer - WPI

Long-term benefits of radon spa therapy in rheumatic diseases: resu... - PubMed - NCBI

Here is a map showing basement radon levels across the USA:
Radon Levels - RadonResources.com

I'd say we likely have more radioactive exposure watching basketball in our basements than we do when driving our RLXs at night. Daytime is another matter as we are in the line of fire for getting emissions from the sun.

dzionny_dzionassi

i work for trucking company...
Sometimes we haul scrap metal loads, there been times when the load was rejected because of radiation (they scan trailer before receiving). Rejected metal usually goes back to the shipper or ......
So don't worry about your RLX, worry about recycled metal products you...

stagefoursurvivor

A friend who's a master electrician was called in to check "malfunctioning" radiation detectors at one of the NJ piers a number of years ago screening containers from China.
A few contained home furniture that appeared to be completely innocuous but, were setting off alarms like crazy!
After checking and testing the detectors AND bringing in new portable detectors the containers were seized and isolated.
After weeks (months?) of investigation it was determined that the wood lumber used for the frames was harvested in Russia, from forests surrounding...Chernyobel.

damaged442

Yes, it does dilute enough to be harmless. It will dilute to where you will not notice it above background radiation. That's right, background radiation. The amount of natural radiation in the environment. You are aware of how radiation works, right? Radiation is everywhere. It was here before life existed on this planet, and will still be here after all life has ceased.

How is an "infinitesimally small" amount deadly? Of what are you speaking? Cesium 137? 134? You need to be more specific when talking about certain isotopes being deadly. Then, how are they deadly?

You are bombarded by radiation daily. How are you still alive? Think about it. Inhale, exhale, we will all be OK.

I'm not downplaying the seriousness of what happened at Fukushima. Lots of work still needs to be done with cleanup. But, lets put this in perspective. Over 18,000 people died from the earthquake and tsunami. Zero have died from radiation there.

Each worker there has to document their dose with a dosimeter of legal record. It is known how much dose each worker receives during their time there. We can track these people, and I am sure they are, to see if there will be any long term effects.

As far as setting off portal monitors, truckloads of bananas can set it off based on the amount of naturally occurring Potassium 40. That's right, your banana is radioactive. So are a lot of other foods. They aren't killing you.

It can keep you up at night if you want it to, but there are a lot of other things to worry about than the potential radiation exposure you could receive.

Besides, what are you doing about the 600-1200 millirem of dose per year that you are getting now?

George Knighton

Judging from your 0-60, I'd have guessed this might be a little quicker.

It's not going to be an ultimate ¼ car because the rear electrics stop working too early.