Nissan Technology Breakthrough Brings New Meaning To "Cool Paint Job"

Cars can get very hot, not just within the engine or inside the cabin with the heat turned up, but cars are generally susceptible to heat because of all the metal and paint. A big issue over the years has been people leaving children and pets in their cars during the summertime with the thought, “I’ll be right back.” Luckily, Nissan may have an answer that can not only save lives, but also save money.  

A Cooler Car Means a Better Car

Nissan, along with other automakers, have been trying for many years to keep cars cooler overall. The more a car can stay cool, the less people will have to rely on air conditioning, which in turn uses more energy and components to operate properly, which will need to be replaced at some point over time. It would be better for the longevity and reliability of your car, as well as better for the environment to have cooler cars.

Cool Paint Isn’t Just an Adjective

Nissan has been working on a new type of paint they call “Cool Paint” and has applied it to a Nissan NV100 service vehicle at the Tokyo International Air Terminal in Haneda, Japan. As a partnership with Japan Airport Terminal Co., LTD., Radi-Cool Japan, and All Nippon Airways, this project aimed to see the difference in temperatures between a car painted in the cool paint and one in standard vehicle paint and left on the hot tarmac at the airport for 12 months.

How Did Testing Go?!

With two identical cars parked next to each other on the tarmac, the testing results have been rather interesting. The Nissan cool paint NV100 has shown to be up to 21.6 degrees Fahrenheit cooler on the outside and as much as 9 degrees cooler inside. While that 9 degrees may not seem like a lot, that could be the difference between feeling cooler after running the car’s AC for 5 minutes compared to 10 or more minutes.

A Word from Dr. Miura 

"My dream is to create cooler cars without consuming energy," explained Dr. Susumu Miura, Senior Manager and expert at the Advanced Materials and Processing Laboratory, Nissan Research Center. "This is especially important in the EV era, where the load from running air-conditioning in summer can have a sizable impact on the state of charge," he said. 

Certain Standards Needed to Be Met 

Miura and his team had to work considerably harder to ensure that the cool paint could work well with a clear coat that all cars have, as well as being able to be applied using a spray gun and not a roller or brush. This meant that it had to meet the standards a regular Nissan automobile had to meet when being painted.

A Future with Fewer Paint Issues

The great news is that the team did it with more than 100 different samples. They’re currently testing a 120-micron-thick paint that is six times thicker than the average car’s paint. This paint, they say, is resistant to salt, chipping, peeling, scratches, chemical reactions, keeps its color consistency, and is easily repaired.

At Dick Smith Nissan of St. Andrews, we value our customers and offer some of the best prices and services. With more than 100 new and used vehicles to choose from, our outstanding sales team and finance department will work hard to make sure you drive away happy. Our fantastic service department will take care of your new-to-you vehicle as if it were their own.