I stand corrected on this one. However, I still wouldn't rule out the possibility...a walkie-talkie can probably get you killed just as well if the right circumstances came about.

I still think that static discharge caused explosions are very rare in the instances where the pumps were used properly. Smoking, filling up containers in the back of your pickup, etc. are much riskier. Short of equipment failure on either the pump or car side, getting blown up by static discharge is pretty nil.

 

I get it this too. It's worse when I wear my wool jacket.

 

Seems like 49 out of the 81 cases of gas station fires included in the study by the Petroleum Equipment Institute can be attributed to static electricity being the cause.

Static electricity actually causing a gas station fire is still like 1,000,000,000,000 to 1 though. Think of all the times you fill up in a year. Multipy that by (how many people drive cars in the US) and you've got a lot of fillups with only 49 fires caused by static electricity. You've probably got a better chance of being struck by lightning.

 

Add me to the list too! I'm definitely also conditioned for that inevitable shock when opening the door. The way try and combat it (even though it's not the best), once the door is open, I sort of make a fist and lightly tap my knuckles against the window and that takes care of the static immediately. I have at least noticed it's not nearly as bad as when you touch the door/window with your fingers. Anyone else able to get rid of the static via touching the window itself??

Funny thread though, I seriously didnt realize so many others had the same thing! One thing though it seems to happen more when it's cold out rather than not. Sorry if thats a "duh" thing, but hey when it's warmer I open the door w/o fear

-drew

 

I DEFINITLY remember this exact same thread during the winter last year.

yes I get it.

mythbusters did a show on this, sorta. they sprayed gasoline into the air of a tank; then called a cell phone and rubbed fabric on a seat; all to create sparks; even in this dense fuel atmosphere it didnt do anything; and they WERE producing visible sparks; just not enough to ignite the fuel.

 

I think this is just an issue in colder climates. When I went to Siberia in the winter I remember all the cars had this little strip attached under their car that drug on the ground. If it's a big problem I suggest doing this
Also when I get out of my car I always touch my watch to the car handle this doesn't hurt at all.

 

i just use my leg to push the door closed. or my backside. although today that didn't work and it shocked me anyway. through my jeans and wallet!

 

It's due to the cold dry air. It has nothing to do with our Z's. It happen to me in my Z and Accord. As soon as the humidity rises it should stop.

 

I'm not sure why no one replied to this, but here is the easy answer....

<previously posted by mikestro> "I saw a Cadillac with a small pad inside that you touched before exiting the car and it would discharge the static on you to ground. You could make one easy enough for the Z. Actually, just repaint the interior door handle with a metallic conductive paint, then run a wire with a series 1M ohm resistor from the door handle to ground. Done.

Or another place to do it would be the small aluminum insert on the shift ****. Just connect that to ground (anything conductive that is connected to the unibody) with a resistor in series. You still discharge, but the resistor slows it down to a point that you can't feel it."

If you do the above, you will discharge the potential on your body before leaving your car and avoid the *ZAP* other people are experiencing. ;-)


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I get shocked too... My maxima is worse, that car shocks me bad, but what ive become acustom to doing is to brush my left leg on the door sill, this sends the shock down my leg, and it no where near as painful as the finger... What you could always do is just hang one of those grounding strips from the body of the car, maybe not the very back like the hondas, but from somewhere in the middle, where its less noticable... Just a thought

 

i have to say i get shocked all the time, and i have the cloth seats, so i will attribute it to that. I never got it in my explorer. Also for a safety reminder, (i doubt you'll remember this, but you never know) If it does catch fire, leave the hose in the car, because the worst thing you could do is pull it out and shoot gas everywhere.the flames supposedly die down if you leave the pump in the car.

 

I have the same problem but it helps if I make sure I'm touching the body of the car as I step out and put my foot on the ground.

I still get a static shock a little sometimes but it's not as bad as if I step out and then try to close the door.

 

Yip. My Volvo has the same little strip on the door handle. And, needless to say, I have NEVER been shocked, driving her.

I suggest you guys get the little strip installed, with a resistor connected anywhere on the Z's body...

 

I've never gotten this either of my cars, including the Z. Having said that, what Mikestro said about the aluminum strip on the Caddy reminded me that we do kinda have all kinds of aluminum pads down at the pedals, including that one on the left that just doesn't do anything except maybe let your foot rest when you're not playing with the clutch. Thoughts?

 

this is strange....and rather funny!

 

My Z shocks me really badly during this winter. Much worse than any of my other cars for some reason. What I usually do is bump my leg against the car body because it hurts less. I actually am scared to touch metal objects after getting out of the car and cringe automatically now. I feel like some sort of tortured lab rat.

Funny story: I got out of my Z the other day at a Mobil gas station to fill up. It was really cold outside and I didn't touch the Z to release the static electricity. I entered my ATM card into the gas pump and started to punch in my PIN #. At that point, my finger zapped the keypad REALLY badly. I saw the blue spark and my finger started to hurt. I then noticed the machine was flashing gibberish. It then went blank. I basically killed the gas pump. Nothing could get the screen to go on again, so I had to go to another pump. Thankfully I wasn't pumping gas after that spark!!

 

It probably occurs when the temperature goes down to a certain level along with the dry air. I know the air is dry here is Southern California yet I have never been shocked like you have because it is usually over 50 degrees.

I guess you guys better wear a rubber glove to close the door, or put strips of electrical tape on your door handles in the winter. I remember a carpet we had when I was a kid.........shocked us every time we touched a door ****. The anticipation of the shock was worse than the shock itself.

 

>>I've never gotten this either of my cars, including the Z. Having said that, what Mikestro said about the aluminum strip on the Caddy reminded me that we do kinda have all kinds of aluminum pads down at the pedals, including that one on the left that just doesn't do anything except maybe let your foot rest when you're not playing with the clutch. Thoughts?

The aluminum foot rest on the Z is not connected to the chassis and hence is not a ground. Even if it was a ground, it would not help if you were wearing insulative shoes (most shoes are) :-D

 

I did a search for static electricity and one of the sites had this to say about static electricity when getting out of your car. They give a couple of things to try to avoid getting shocked. Hope it works for you guys. Here is the info:
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What about shocks when I exit my car?


Many people experience shocks when they get out of their car. Often they believe that the car is charged - but this is not normally so.
Sitting in the car, electrostatic charges are generated on the car seat and the person's body, due to contact and movement between the clothes and the seat. When the person leaves the seat, They take half of this charge with them. As they get out of the vehicle, their body voltages rises due to this charge - a voltage of 10,000 Volts is not unusual.

When they reach to touch the vehicle door, the electrostatic discharge and shock occurs as their hand approaches the metal door.

The voltage build-up can often be avoided by holding onto a metal part of the door frame as you leave the seat. This provides a return dissipation path for the charge on your body.

If you have forgotten to hold the metal door part as you leave the seat, a shock may often still be avoided by touching the glass window before you touch the metal door. The glass may be conductive enough to dissipate charge, whilst preventing the rapid discharge which is felt as a shock.

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Here is the web site with tons of info on the subject:

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

 

add me on the list too