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If you ever wondered what its like to get hit by lightning when inside of a car, just hit the play button below.
[via Spluch]
Tags: automobile, lightning
16 responses
Mar 12, 2007 at 2:08 am
They always give Hammond the fun jobs.
Mar 12, 2007 at 2:16 am
I just read in the paper the other day that they upgraded Hammond’s condition from critical to stable from his last “fun job” on Top Gear
links for 2007-03-12 « Romulo Lopez Cordero
Mar 12, 2007 at 2:26 am
[...] What Happens When Lightning Strikes Your Car? Amazing (tags: ligthning car faraday box) [...]
nežinau.lt » Ä®rašų archyvas » Per audrÄ… slÄ—pkis automobilyje
Mar 12, 2007 at 7:32 am
[...] voltų nieko nepadarė nei Golfukui, nei jo vairuotojui, tai ir tau nieko neturėtų atsitikti. (via) RSS Išorinės citatos URL 12. Kovas 2007 (13:30) Tema: [...]
May 20, 2007 at 8:44 am
I disagree with this testing!!! This maybe true for “Newer” cars but is total false for older cars. I experianced it first hand 20years ago in Miami Florida USA. 1978 Camero with a small CB antenna, with my wife and I driving on a Florida Turnpike. Bolt of lightening hit my antenna, the noise was so loud I couldn’t hear my wife yelling next to me. The cataylic convertor was trashed which chocked out my engine, forcing me to pull over. As it turns out the lightening also blew the steel belting in my tires out through the treads, as the tires went flat, the metal rims soon touched the ground which created a shower of sparks which lasted only a few seconds. My car had become energined by the lightening and wasn’t discharged until the rims tocuhed the ground. If the tires hadn’t gone flat and I got out of the car touch any metal part of that car, the lightening would have gone through me to discharge to ground.So this is test is not proof positive that you are safe in all cars……
Jul 7, 2007 at 12:17 am
I agree, getting hit by lightning was not like what the video portrayed. I was searching for information on this because my 2005 Infiniti G35 was hit by lightning today while I was driving in a thunderstorm. All of the sudden, there was a huge boom and my car was enveloped in a very bright white light. At first I thought a transformer blew out but soon realized that there were no transformers on the highway. Then I noticed that all the lights on my dash were illuminated and I was now coasting without any power from the engine. So there I was, right there on the freeway during rush hour traffic in the middle of a thunderstorm freaked out about getting hit by another vehicle. Upon later inspection of the car I saw that there were small cigarette type burn marks on the car’s roof and trunk, and white streaks on the tires. A rubber piece near the roof and door frame was blown completely off and the car would not restart. Very weird….very surreal experience. I’m now just waiting to see what they’ll (insurance) do with the car. If anyone has had an experience like this please let me know what outcome and/or experience you had. Thanks.
Jul 9, 2007 at 3:11 pm
I agree totally! My family was just on vacation in Taos, NM when we were struck by lightning in my 2006 Nissan Altima. We heard a loud boom, smelled some smokey smell, lost power, and coasted onto the side of the highway. The bolt left a small hole in the roof, a quarter sized hole in the paint and blew out the antennea in the windshield. We had to rent a car to get back to Denver. The car is still at a dealership in Sante Fe (closest shop that could perhaps fix it.) We are waiting for word on it. I have no idea what the shop will be able to do but the insurance will fix it after my $500 decuctible. I was totally bummed. Now we have to go back there to pick it up. We were hit on June 30,2007 , its now July 9 and still no word on what’s exactly wrong with it.
Jul 24, 2007 at 2:58 pm
I was searching for info on this topic because I, too, had something similar happen to my car. However, I was not aware of a lightning strike at the time - we were driving through a storm, and were ultimately pulled over because our taillights were completely out. We made it home. The next day, the car had all sorts of weird lights lit and systems not working, and no one can find the reason why. I also put in a claim under comprehensive. There are things on the car that are lit when the car is off. Very weird.
Aug 4, 2007 at 8:06 pm
i also was hit by lighting at 70mph,my truck was one month old less than five thousand miles,i want to be idemnified by the ins.co,for a new truck,can this be done?
Sep 9, 2007 at 3:26 pm
My car was struck and took out my whole electrical system, boards, everything, car was 5 months old. It was been at the shop for 6 weeks and they still cannot get it to start. So outside shell does not always protect you from everything. It struck my antenna, went through my radio.
Sep 9, 2007 at 9:54 pm
Follow-up to my earlier posting - after three weeks of searching, the dealership found a variety of scorch marks inside the right front wiring harness (1999 Camry). Every computer was fried. The weirdest thing about this was how I was unaware of a strike, and the car, although it lost its taillights, worked until the next day. It was totaled under comprehensive - have a new car now.
Oct 4, 2007 at 4:03 pm
Our experience was in an 88? volkswagon quantumn. heavy storm that i shouldn’t have been in anyway. we heard an extremely loud noise and their was a bright light.Upon inspection later there where burn marks on the hood of the car . It didn’t hurt the car in any other way. I on the other hand had very limited hearing for over two weeks. It didn’t affect my kids at all who just thought it was ‘cool’. it could of been worse since one of my windows was missing at the time! as for the testing…Lightning is unpredictable,all cars are different, and circumstances would also play a roll. Thank God we “ALL” survived! You can’t test chaos theory and nature is that theory in it’s truest form!
Jun 19, 2008 at 2:27 pm
This happened at my office this morning.
http://forums.locogringo.com/forums/tm.asp?m=866181
Jun 19, 2008 at 8:42 pm
Update to my previous posting: The car was not totalled however there was over $7000 in damage. It took a month for the dealer in Santa Fe to get it running. They could not fix the air cond. and we needed the car back–no coverage for rental car–so my husband rented a car to drive back to Santa Fe and pick up the Altima. Then we had it fixed completely (body damage and air cond.) here in Denver. At the time my car was only a year old. It is running fine now, almost a year later but I wish it would have taken less time to fix.
Jun 20, 2008 at 5:49 pm
Update on my Car, it took 5 months to fix, $16,000 and the car has not worked the same. I am currently in a lawsuit with the dealership for the repairs and just had the car back in the shop for the Radio…lesson learned, if you want to buy a used car…CARFAX!!
Jul 17, 2008 at 1:19 am
I was just struck by lightning the other day and car died totally when it happened. My car is a lease car and I’m only half way thru it. Any clue if I will be able to get out of my lease. Pretty sure there are more money in damages to the car then its worth. I also have full covereage on the car.
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