Well, I could be wrong.

Won't be the first time.

 

This is sort of a misnomer. Current does have to flow for you to get shocked, but it's not flowing through the tires. What happens is that the car has built up an electric charge that is different from that of the ground. The tires insulate the car so that the charge does not equalize. When you get out with your feet on the ground and touch the car, you are providing the path to ground for the car's built up charge to flow through.

We sometimes have problems with this in the robots we build. If there's enough metal and other conductive components to store electric charge, and we're using rubber tires, the chassis of the robot builds up a static charge, by moving around in its environment, that sometimes causes problems for the internal electronics. At times we've had to resort to dangling a ground wire to drag along the ground to dissipate this charge.

The flashlight analogy doesn't seem to make any sense. A flashlight works because there is a path to the "ground" inside the flashlight, which in that case is the negative terminal of the battery. That's a closed system that has nothing to do with earth ground.

 

Current flows between things that are at a difference of potential.
If you have a potential different from the car and touch it current will flow between you and the car.
Connection with earth ground is not necessary, in fact you could be wearing rubber-soled shoes.

Same with a battery.
No connnection with earth ground is necessary.

 

Just an anecdotal reference here. I had a 1993 Civic EX when it was new. The shock I got getting out of that car (and it was always that way - I attributed it to seat fabric) was worse than what I experience on the 06 Hybrid

Eric

 

If you do a lot of driving on the highway in the cold dry air of winter, the car will build up a certain amount of charge from the air passing over the metal body. Some toll booths have a static dissipation system so that before you hand the toll taker the money your car is discharged thus avoiding a nasty shock between you and the toll taker. You can also purchase static electricity dissipator straps for your car that dangle to the ground when you slow down or come to a stop, which dissipates the charge. But this doesn't eliminate the shock you get from sliding across the seat on a cool dry day.....

You should always discharge this static build-up before refueling as well. This is a common cause of car fires at gas stations in winter. Can't wait for hydrogen filling stations and untrained operators refueling your hydrogen powered vehicle. BaddaBoom.....

 

I actually like those shocks...

 

Yes this is another possible situation. If you're getting shocked then either you're at a differrent potential than the car or you're providing a path to something else, like the ground, which is at a different potential than the car - either way you'e getting shocked and current is flowing.

 

I get shocked all the time, BOY it irritates me,,,,

 

I believe part of the problem is the rubbing together of wool, silk and synthetic materials . I do not think this happens in leather upholstered cars. The answer is for a nationwide trial of those with cloth driving in the nude. As so few of us run into each other there should be no cause for embarassment.................

Besides the car has an excellent heating system. Let me know how you all get on? Sadly I have leather and will not be able to participate!

 

I've occasionally seen 18-wheelers with metal chains attached to the undercarriage, which stay in contact with the pavement (often throwing off sparks in the process). IIRC, they serve the same purpose.

Just for the record, I've been getting a lot more shocks when leaving our HCH's than from our previous cars. However, it's been very dry here all month, and I don't recall that many shocks last summer.