Why is it dangerous to use a sun screen in a car?

Summer has finally asserted its rights. The thermometers in the daytime do not fall below twenty degrees, and the long-awaited sun brings joy to both adults and children. However, as it turns out, not everyone likes hot weather. For motorists, summer brings problems worse than winter. And the reason for this is the same sun. How to protect the car interior from its destructive rays and what are the dangers of popular protection methods, the AvtoVzglyad portal found out.

The easiest way to protect the interior plastic of a car from the sun and overheating is to cover it. All means are used: from tabloid newspapers to children's blankets. However, there are also special means of protection - reflective screens. They are made of a rather soft material and covered with a silvery or yellow mirror layer that reflects the sun's rays and ultraviolet, preventing them from heating the plastic, affecting its color and, most importantly, drying and destroying it. Of course, they are the most effective. But such screens also have disadvantages that car dealers do not talk about.

As planned, sun screens should fit over the windshield. However, if somewhere in Europe this is possible, then in our country, most likely, a brave driver will be considered a benefactor and altruist, helping other people to get what they want. And therefore, being not properly fixed, the sun-protection cape has every chance to change the owner, and for free.

In this regard, all those who have such protection do not put it on the glass, but on the front panel under it, or mount it on special suction cups on the inside of the glass, mistakenly believing that this is how they kill two birds with one stone: they protect the interior from damage, and the sunscreen itself against theft. And this is where the fun begins.

In order for everything to work as it should, there should be nothing superfluous in the path of the sun's rays, which, not being able to pass through the protective screen, are reflected from its mirror surface. Unfortunately, with the help of the screen, the rays are only redirected, but do not lose their harmful abilities. Being reflected, they do not cool down and dissipate, but continue to heat up any surfaces they meet on the way. Now remember what you have fixed on the rearview mirror or directly on the windshield?

It’s true that it’s not the interior plastic that begins to suffer from the sun, but devices located in the area where the rays are reflected: video recorders, radar detectors, etc. Therefore, it is necessary to make it a rule for yourself: put a reflector - remove all devices that may fall on the glass redirected sun rays. Otherwise, a negligent driver will face unforeseen expenses for a new device. And if you give up on the problem, the costs can become traditionally seasonal.

If it is not possible to quickly dismantle the electronics, it is necessary to mount the protection so that all devices remain in its shadow. To do this, use a knife or scissors, and cut holes in the sunscreen.

There is another problem that sunscreens can exacerbate - chips and cracks. The sun's rays concentrated at the site of damage can provoke the growth of the focus. That is, before you start using such protection, it is necessary to replace the damaged glass, or perform its high-quality repair.

However, there is another high-quality way to protect the interior from the negative effects of the sun: try to park the car in the shade or so that its feed, and not the front, is facing the luminary.