Shocking Envoy

boutbroke · December 29, 2003

2003 Envoy with cloth seats- Does anyone else have a problem with static charge when exiting? It doesn't matter what weather condition our what type pants or shoes I have on.

I have learned to shut the door with my elbow because it is less sensitive than my hand. Even the passengers can hear the pop of the electrical arc.

does the vehicle just not like me?

Wingnut · December 30, 2003

Where do you live? I only ask because when I live in a dryer climate (Denver), during the winter I had the same issues...(3 inch blue flame from the tip of my finger)

Best solution I found was to take a dryer sheet (Bounce, Snuggle et al) and rub it on the seats a couple of times per month. My reasoning was....If it gets rid of static cling on my silk drawers it should do fine in the truck.

I would think that the spray-on static stuff would work better, but I never tried it.

Hope that helps.

BTW...If you take a used dryer sheet, and rub it on the TV, it will help reduce the dust build-up from static. A fresh one will leave an icky coat on the glass.

Greg · December 30, 2003

This is why they advise people not to get back into their vehicle when fueling. I used to have this problem in my Avalanche, but it mainly went away over time. Maybe a little dirt goes a long way?

jherdt · December 30, 2003

Same issue on my 2001 s10 crewcab no matter what the weather is like.

I'd appreciate any advice. It gets annoying after a while.

Jim

boutbroke · December 30, 2003

Wear and/or dirt might help. I only have 6K miles on the Envoy and it's my spotless "Sunday Truck".

I'm a cattleman in southern Tennessee. Our weather has been raining or high humity.

As bad as I hate to admit taking advice from a guy named "wingnut" who wears silk drawers I'm going to try the fabric softener sheets or maybe the spray.

Thanks for the info. I'll let you know if it helps.

Wingnut · December 30, 2003

As bad as I hate to admit taking advice from a guy named "wingnut" who wears silk drawers I'm going to try the fabric softener sheets or maybe the spray.

Well...."Tutu wearing gorilla" was taken

I would think that the static spray would work better...Wish I would have thought of it three years ago.

boutbroke · December 30, 2003

I've already got the can of spray sitting out to use in the morning. Just glad you didn't say the silk drawers solved the problem. I'd hate to have to take off the red woolies. That trap door in the back is really a handy feature.

boutbroke · December 30, 2003

Wingnut, you've taken the spark out of my life. I sprayed my seat with Static Guard this morning and not even the slightest hint of a static shock all day.

Thanks for the tip.

Wingnut · December 30, 2003

Well looky there folks....Wingnut had a useful post.

It only took 1900 tries.

Seriously, glad it helped.

carl722 · December 30, 2003

Every vehicle I have had with cloth seats does this to me in the winter no matter how dirty or mileage on the vehicle. If you didn't move in the seat and didn't twist to get out it wouldn't shock you. Every little move in the seat causes friction and friction causes static. If you drove bare butt you wouldn't have this problem but cotton, wool and polyester are really bad at static. Do you remember the straps that the ghetto cars used to have hanging from the back bumper that got rid of the static charge. You could always put those on there but it would look funny not quite as funny as driving bare butt though.

Greg · December 31, 2003

A co-worker drove to lunch today with his Envoy with cloth seats and probably 20K miles on the clock. When I got out I got the largest shock I've every gotten from a vehicle. Rather dirty seats didn't seem to help. I was wearing all cotton jeans and a shirt - fabric that usually doesn't contribute to static buildup. So, I think you have a point about this vehicle being especially "shocking". I'm going to suggest the drying sheet idea to him and see if it helps. Till then, I'm driving to lunch.

Dihappy · December 31, 2003

Woah, bad news. Be extra careful to touch the door when exiting the vehicle.

From what ive read, the explosions at gas stations are due to people exiting their vehicles without touching anything. They start pumping and re-enter their vehicles and when they come back out accidentally (or intentionally) touch the fuel door or other metal near the open fuel door and kaboom.

Most accidents are caused by women, who have a higher tendancy to re-enter the vehicle due to weather conditions or just plain dont want to stand and wait for the vehicle to fill up.

J-rod · December 31, 2003

In the winterd I would always brush my forearm against the door before I touched it with bare skin and this seemed to do the trick ... however, the dryer sheets and static guard is a much better idea.

Of course, if money is no object ... recovering your seats w/ leather is my recommendation!