Summer. It’s the best season. The days are long, the nights short, and it feels like you just have more time. Maybe you can finally take that road trip you have been planning. Maybe that’s on your mind as you head out to your car, your mind lost in the reverie of the things you will do and the things you will see. It’s going to be amazing…
You unlock your car.
You’re finally going to have the chance to…
You open the car door.
… see those…
You poke your head inside the car door.
Actually, you’re not going to do any of that, because your car is a microwave. You feel the tide of heat rising from it the moment you open the door, like being enveloped in a hug by stifling warm air. You feel like you’re beginning to sweat the moment you are wrapped in its embrace, clinging on to you like a distant relative at a family reunion.
Settling into the driver’s seat, the feeling just becomes worse. You touch the steering wheel, the fabric of which seems to have been replaced by woven molten lava. You jam the air conditioning on in the desperate desire for relief, but it’s going to be awhile before it kicks in. While you wait, you slowly suffer in what feels like a torture device rather than your vehicular pride and joy.
There’s no doubt about it; summer has its upsides, but for your car? Not so much. The sun might have its uses when it comes to cars, but the heat generated from a stationary car in a sunny spot is definitely not one of them.
So, rather than moaning about this problem for the umpteenth summer, what can you do about it?
#1 – Cover Your Car
There’s no doubt about it; this works. It’s best to cover the entire car rather than just the windscreen, as any window is a potential magnifying glass for the heat of the sun’s rays. This will massively reduce the external temperature of the car when you step inside it. It won’t be perfect, but it’ll be better.
The one downside of this is that you have to do it every time you get out of the car. Do you have the patience to put a cover on at every stop you make while running errands? Or pull the cover over in the staff car park at work when you’re running late? If not, then you could try…
#2 – Tint The Windows
If you don’t want to have to constantly be wrestling with several yards of fabric, then car window tinting could be the solution for you. The protection offered will make a difference to the car temperature whether running or standing still, as well as offering your skin protection from the potentially-harmful UV rays.
This is well worth considering if you’re concerned about your car heating up throughout the day at various points.
On a final note…
It’s worth mentioning that the above solutions have little effect when it comes to a convertible – if you leave the roof down, that is. You’ll see this happening in car parks across the land through summer. The result? Not only will the interior of the car be hot enough to fry an egg on, but it will also prematurely age the seats and upholstery. Convertible drivers: put the roof up and then try one of the methods above!
