Ok does anyone else get shocked by their car every time they get out of it? My Wife's CR-V does this as well. I didn't think anything about it until I got my Fit and it does it to me as well. Any ideas on how or if you can make it go away?

Thanks
~Bengo

 

the shock is just static discharge from you to the car. it happened to me a lot in my acura then went away, i don't know what caused it or how it goes away. It could be your shoes rubbing against the floor/floor mats build a charge...or moving in the seat...i don't know alot about static electricity so i could be totally wrong.

 

you know those little things that hang off the rear of some cars? its like a piece of plastic or fabric. that is actually to ground the frame of the car. if you get that, you should no long get shocked.

 

Before you exit the car. But one foot on the ground (outside your vehicle), and touch any metal on your car (car door should suffice). This should ground you and you won't get shocked.

 

I've owned two other new vehicles in my life, and never has that happened. I get the Fit, and almost EVERY time I get out, reach back to double checked that I locked the door, I get shocked. Gar! hehe

 

I gotten shocks from most of my cars but only in the winter.

 

That usually happens if it's dry where you are. It's not the car that's doing it, it's static electricity building up on YOU that is discharging through the car.

 

hondas are just SHOCKING!!!

 

Google the problem for all kinds of info from various sources and various cars. Most likely not a problem. Recall something about fuel efficiency and tires from awhile back (10 years or so).

If it's the care: Easiest quick fix is to get a piece of bare wire, connect it to the body and hang it down to the ground. The wire will wear out and need to be replaced.

If it's you-- well the same thing would work I suppose

Let us know what works - assuming you're not electrocuted or driven insane and that you don't light up a gas station (which I've never really thought was likely)

 

i got shocks all the time when closing my door everytime i get out..

i always thought static builds up on the outside of the car when the air particles rub against the body of the car during movement.. and so, since wheels are rubber, its doesnt conduct and ground it, and when you are outside of ur car and touch it, u act as a conductive path..

i think? lol

i'm gonna try that 1 foot on groud, touch, then get out thing mentioned above tho

 

I like the shock

 

(There is another thread on this subject.) The Fit tires are a low rolling resistance type for high MPG and are particularly notorious for this. I have found that I am doing the above described steps in other cars out of habit now! It is also lessened by waiting a bit after you stop before you get out.

 

too late for another entry for the license plate poll - the FIT will Shock U

 

I understand that but my wifes CR-V does it just as bad and the tires are different.

I am wondering if people that install the wireing harnesses have this issue? Like maybe it is ground power in the body that hasn't gone to the battery.(no science behind that just silly thinking)

It could also just be that the slipstreaming of the car causes it?

~Bengo

 

I think it's from whatever material they use in the cloth in the seats. It happened to me in my Civic all the time too.

Take your key in your hand with one of your fingers touching the metal, then tap it on the door when you're getting out and the metal will absorb the arc and discharge the electricity.

 

I have tried that before with mixed results. Sometimes I still get another shock. With there being a chip inside our key, shocking it all the time doesn't seem like a good thing to do. Hey on that note has anyone else noticed that your key is hot when you take it out of the ignition?

 

It happened to me constantly in my Civic... I always assumed it was a grounding problem when the sound system was installed. Alas, it happens in the Fit too :/

I think I rub my feet on the carpet when I drive and that causes the buildup - was actually planning on getting the all season mats to test out the theory...


Like others have said, grab something metal as you're getting out... you may still get a shock, but you'll feel it much less as the discharge is spread out across your palm instead of condensed at the tip of your finger. I'd avoid the key maneuver - it can't be good for the chip.

 

I have the all-season ones and it still happens to me. I think it's from clothes rubbing against the seat.

As for the key yeah you probably want to use one of your other ones that doesn't have a chip in it.

 

"they" say it's the tires rolling along the ground:
http://www.cartalk.com/content/colum...vember/11.html

http://www.cartalk.com/content/colum...96/May/12.html

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl...30/ai_15765780

http://experts.about.com/q/Physics-1...atic-shock.htm

"Answer
In a way your car is effectively a van de Graph generator and it collects significant charge as it moves. In warm, humid weather this accumulated charge leaks off just about as fast as it collects. In cold dry weather, however, the conductivity of the air is significantly less and the car car easily accumulate a charge equivalent to several thousand Volts! You might wonder why this doesn't kill or injure you. The answer is that although the Voltage reached by the car can be quite significant, the amount of electric charge involved is minute! Therefore, the energy transfered during such a discharge is tiny! [I might note that airplanes are automatically grounded by a special cable before they are allowed to refuel because such an electrostatic discharge could, in fact, ignite the fuel!]
The effect is harmless. However, if you are determined to eliminate the effect you can add "static straps" to your car. These are conducting straps hung from the underbody structure of your car that conduct the excess charge to the ground. [You might have noticed such straps on fuel tankers for obvious reasons!]"

Elsewhere:

"You might want to also check the type of tires on vehicle, if they are
'low rolling resistance' tires they may have more of a silicone base
instead of a carbon base and this does not allow the static charge
that normally builds up on a object moving through the air to
disperse through the tires. The silicone base is more of an insulator
than the carbon base.

Unfortunately, I don't have a list of what tires have the silicone base
and what have the usual carbon base in them.

I just know that Michelin had a series of 'low rolling resistance' tires
that came as factory standard on some recent (2-3 year old) model
Hondas and they would not allow the static buildup to bleed off into
the ground through the tires, so when you stopped at a toll booth
and touched the tollbooth operator, the operator would get a real
big shock."


regarding the key:
What Not To Do

Don't use your chipped car key as a lightning rod. Most electronic devices (or at least the chips inside) are static-sensitive, and they have to be labelled as such, and you (the user) must protect them from static discharge. The spark is merely irritating to people but will completely destroy the tiny transistors on a chip.


I did, however, find a number of sites that mention fabric, carpet, humidity, hydration levels, and menstruation (?!) as contributing factors.

Strange that after 30 cars over the years, this is the first to shock me.

 

This static shock is why I'm looking for the "Honda Access Anti-static Pad".

Anyone know where I can buy it?