We all know how dangerous the suns UV rays can be towards our bodies. Everything from premature wrinkles to even skin cancer can be linked to ultraviolet radiation exposure. But did you know that UV rays can be harmful to our vehicles as well? Left unprotected, the sun can wreak havoc on our vehicles paint and interior.
One of the best ways to fight against this is by keeping our vehicles in a garage or under a carport as much as possible. But for those of us who don’t have a garage or carport, a car cover is the next best thing. But can a car cover really protect your vehicle from the sun?
The short answer is yes! Car covers are great at protecting your vehicle from the sun’s harmful UV rays. Keeping a car cover on your vehicle can help keep your paint from fading and your interior components from deteriorating.
If you’d like to know more about how the sun can damage your vehicle and how using a car cover can help prevent it, keep reading to learn more.
What Can the Sun do to My Car?
If you’ve ever seen a vehicle that has faded or peeling paint, chances are the sun played a role in that. Vehicles that are left to bake in the sun unprotected are more likely to have paint issues. This is because car color affects heat – darker color vehicles such as blue, black, and maroon are more susceptible to the damaging effects of the sun. This is because darker colors naturally absorb more sunlight than lighter colors.
UV rays can also cause damage to other parts of your exterior. This includes any plastic parts such as your headlights, bumpers, roof racks, and trim. Headlight restorations are often needed after oxidization occurs due to UV exposure. Most headlights have a clear top coat that helps prevent this. Over time, however, this clear coat fades away and leaves your headlights unprotected, leading to foggy, cloudy headlights.
The exterior isn’t the only part of your vehicle that can be damaged by the sun. The interior can be affected as well. When the interior of your vehicle is exposed to excessive UV rays, it can lead to cracked dashboards, dried out leather, and fading.
Dashboards are often the first to show signs of excessive sunlight. This is because the majority of the sunlight let into your vehicle comes in through your windshield and hits your dashboard right away. All of this sunlight, and heat buildup, can eventually lead to your dashboard cracking.
Leather seats, too, can become dried out and begin to fade and crack. This is because the sun dries out the natural oils found in leather that helps keep it smooth and pliable. Both replacing your dashboard and getting your seats reupholstered are costly repairs that can be avoided.
In summary, damage caused by the sun can include:
- Paint fading and peeling
- Discoloration of plastics and trim
- Headlight Oxidation
- Cracked Dashboard
- Dried and Cracked Leather
- Faded Interior
How Does a Car Cover Protect My Vehicle From Sun Damage?
Most car covers are made up of multiple layers. All of these layers combined help to create a barrier that blocks out harmful UV rays. Some car covers even come with a reflective layer that helps reflect the sunlight as well. This feature further adds to the protection you can receive from a car cover.
Additionally, keeping your vehicle covered will help keep the interior of your vehicle cooler. Less heat inside your vehicle means less damage over time. Not to mention, no one likes getting into a vehicle that has been baked in the sun all day.
Obviously the more sunlight you can block out the better. That’s why its important to keep your vehicle covered as often as possible. While this may not always be convenient, especially for daily drivers, it can go a long way towards keeping your vehicle in good shape.
A perfect example of a car cover with a reflective layer is this 6 layer heavy duty car cover, available on Amazon. Each layer is made out of high-density, breathable material that helps block out the sun and keep your vehicle dry. The reflective layer is made out of an aluminum material which works great for reflecting UV rays back off your vehicle. Definitely worth looking into if you’re worried about protecting your car paint from the sun. Not to mention the host of other things a car cover can protect your vehicle from.
What Other Benefits are There to Using a Car Cover?
Besides protecting your vehicle from the sun, car covers are worth it because they offer protection from many other things that could cause damage to your paint as well.
For instance, dirt that is allowed to sit on your car for extended periods of time can become embedded in the paint. So can animal droppings and tree sap. Once embedded, removing these impurities can be done, but it often requires a little bit of know how and elbow grease.
Car covers are also great for keeping your vehicle dry and protected from the rain. Standing water on your car will eventually dry and turn into water spots. Again, these can be removed but its typically best to prevent them from forming in the first place.
By keeping your vehicle covered when you’re not using it, you can help protect it from the majority of things that can cause damage to your paint. Most covers even come with a soft interior layer that helps prevent it from scratching your vehicle during removal. Add to that the fact that most are machine washable and you can see how easy it is to keep your car cover in good shape as well as your vehicle.
How Else Can I Protect My Vehicle From the Sun?
Besides using a car cover, there are some other steps you may want to take in keeping your car protected from the sun.
These steps include:
- Parking in the Shade – While it may sound obvious, keeping your vehicle parked in the shade is a great way to keep it out of harms way. This includes when you’re at home, work, the grocery store, etc. The more often you can park in the shade, the better off your vehicle will be. Inside and out.
- Wash Your Vehicle Often – Keeping your vehicle clean is essential to keeping your paint in great shape. When you let dirt, mud, bird droppings, or anything else sit on your vehicle for long periods of time, eventually it will get baked into the paint. When this happens, its a lot harder to remove than simply washing it off. Also, be sure to hand dry your vehicle with a chamois. This will keep any water spots from forming and getting baked into the paint as well.
- Wax Your Vehicle – Waxing your vehicle regularly will help keep it protected from the sun. Most high quality car waxes protect against UV, just like this one by Meguiars. Having a coat of wax on your vehicle is a great way to keep it protected when you’re not able to keep it under a cover.
- Tint Your Windows – This is a great way to reduce the UV rays allowed into your vehicle through your windows. Not only do tinted windows keep your car cooler during the summer, it will also help protect the interior of your car. Although window tint can be a DIY project, its typically a job best left to the pros.
- Use a Sunshade – A windshield sunshade is a must have during the summer months. These simple, inexpensive products work wonders for the interior of your car. They have been shown to help reduce the temperature inside your vehicle by 30° F or more as well as block out up to 99% of UV rays that would usually pass right through your windshield. A high quality windshield sunshade is a great way to help protect your cars interior from excessive sunlight.
In Conclusion
Taking all the precautions mentioned above, along with keeping your vehicle under a car cover, should extend the life of your paint for years to come. Obviously the more preventative measures you take towards keeping your car in great shape, the better off you’ll be. I hope this article has been helpful. Thanks for reading!