jimc11

OK you can put grounding straps on it if you would like. Winter per say isnt the cause of it...Dry air is the cause. How thick is the pile on the caravan seats? That will play a role. Her floormats, rubber or carpet? There are tons of variables involved here but I would bet come summer time and humidity in the air you will not be shocked. Just like you walk through a carpted room in the winter or any dry air enviroment..Touch a doorknob and zap...Now do it with a hummidifer running...no zap...Dry air isnt the only variable just a very large one..

Original Junior

I actually dealt with this issue on my wife's accord before we traded it in on a Discovery. I had to order grounding straps for it. The straps worked but everytime she drove it people would stop her and tell her something is hanging from underneath her car. One time I was driving it and ran into a Goodyear employee (not tire shop guru, actual Goodyear engineer) and he told me about the piece hanging under the car. I told him the "shocking" story ( couldn't resist the corny joke) and he told me about the silicon in tires. He said that many manufactures use silicon in the tires to increase their lifespan. He went off on an engineering tangent, I smiled, didn't catch most of it, thought some was B.S, and finally thanked him and moved out swiftly. After that encounter I decided to check his story out and I found some info on the net and via some word of mouth that supported his story. I am curious to see what brand/type of tire you guys are running that get the shocker! I've never had a shock with mine and I have the factory stock Goodyear GSA's. Food for thought.

Geico266

The spark can set off a fire if you are refueling a gasser. To properly fuel an airplane they must all first be grounded.

dgm

jimc11....thanks for the science lesson... Just kidding...I'm a teacher remember. I actually do understand why there tends to be more static electric shocks during winter than during the summer. However, this does not explain the difference between both new vehicles in my household. To answer your question, the pile on the seats is almost exactly the same, she has carpet on the floor and I've got rubber floormats...go figure. Doesn't quite work with your theory does it. ....just playing with ya, not trying to be a jerk.

....my truck tires are BF Goodrich AllTerrain. The van tires, I think, are GY's.

-daniel

phox_mulder

Yup that is the culprit.

Silicon or Carbon content is higher in modern tires then it was even 10 years ago.


phox

AaronT

Flame, Flame: This only happens to negative people. When Negative is leaving the Positive truck, there is an arc flash to assist the leaving.

Fronty Owner

I must be doing something wrong lately... I have been using my D-Ring to discharge before touching my truck.

Joe N.

I have the problem but also had the problem with my Ford Ranger I had before the Dodge. All you have to do is hold onto a metal piece of the truck while exiting the vehicle and you will not be shocked.

It is this static shock that has prompted the warnings not to get back inside your vehicle while buying gasoline. The warnings say if you do get in your vehicle after inserting the gas nozzle you should touch a metal part of the vehicle before approaching the gas nozzle again to prevent the static discharge and a possible explosion.

SuperGewl

Install a STATIC strap to the truck to get rid of that problem. They run about $5 at you local auto store.
You probably notice them on most of the city & school buses and just didn't know waht they were for

jimc11

There were some tires in the late 80s I think that built up a HUGE amount of static elec...I saw an "educational" film on them in school. They would build such huge charges that the toll takers would sometimes take a shock that would knock them off there feet. It was very interesting. I cant remember the compound that was the culprit but they did test and they had sparks shooting like 6feet...It was impressive...

SSRAM

I was just about to post a thread on this very subject. I have been "popped" a couple of time since I got my 05 but both times has been when I have gotten INTO the truck not getting out of it. This last time knocked the crap out of me! How weird is that? It has happend both times after getting in the truck and as I am putting the key in. I used to have a truck that shocked me everytime I got out of it untill I trained myself to be grounded as I got out of the truck. I learned a little trick that I don't think I can do on this truck because of how high off the ground it sits. The trick was as I got out of the truck I would slide my left leg out and touch the ground with my foot as I kept the back of my calf on the door sill. I made it such a habit that I still try to do this out of habit today. Maybe this is why I have not been shocked getting out of my Ram and I really don't know why I have been shocked getting into it.

doomgaze

Without fail, every time I get out of my truck I will get some sort of shock if I do not take the proper precautions.

I either grab ahold of the metal frame or lately I have been jumping out and just closing the door with the door handle.. that also seems to keep me safe.

dgm

LOL....this is really a pretty funny thread. I thought maybe I'd get a couple responses telling me I'm just crazy, but we're into two pages now! Its good to know that its not just my truck that does this..

I'm very curious though, per jimc11's comments, how many of you have this same experience during the summer, more humid, months?

-daniel

deezulsmoke

I get the pi$$ shocked out of me every single time I get out of my truck, I mean every time.

c172driver

I get zapped all the time. I can pull my truck out of the garage, get out to pull out the mirrors and get the shock of my life when I grab the mirror. This tells me it's not from the tires
Sometimes I get in the truck, insert the key and my finger touches the metel on the keylock and shocks the c--p out of me. I keep wondering if I'm going to blow any electronics in the beast.
Keep thinking...winter is almost over
(then I'll complain about the humidity)