THE NISSAN Leaf is now the world’s first self-cleaning car, thanks to a new paint designed to repel almost any liquid.
THE ALL-ELECTRIC Nissan Leaf, already billed as the world’s cleanest car thanks to its zero-local-emissions electric drive, has a new trick to keep itself clean. Its new paint is designed to repel almost any liquid, helping to keep the car clean and to claim the title of the world’s first self-cleaning car.
Called Ultra-Ever Dry, the exterior coating uses “nanopaint” technology. The coating creates a surface chemistry and texture with patterns of geometric shapes with “peaks” that repel water, some oils, wet concrete and other liquids.
By creating a protective layer of air between paint and environment, it effectively stops standing water and road spray from dirtying up the car’s surface. Nissan is the first carmaker to apply the coating made by UltraTech International. It repels rain, spray, frost, sleet and standing water.
Nissan is the first carmaker to apply Ultra-Ever Dry on automotive bodywork, first testing the technology on a Note hatchback.
So far, the coating, which is being marketed and sold by UltraTech International Inc., has responded well. While there are currently no plans for the technology to be applied to the model as standard, Nissan will continue to consider the coating technology as a future aftermarket option.
Nissan first announced the self-cleaning coating in April, and is demonstrating its potential via a series of online videos. The first involves pranking bystanders to douse the Leaf in paint. “The Nissan Paint Prank” on YouTube takes a page from the “Three Stooges” as the video catches innocent bystanders in shock when a crew of painters “accidentally” spills buckets of paint on a parked Leaf.
Nissan also challenges its Instagram followers to suggest liquids to be poured on the Leaf—ketchup, eggs, etc., you name it. These will be featured in a series of videos called “Will It Stick?” Nissan will share videos on Instagram featuring the liquids suggested by selected fans.
Meanwhile, another Instagram campaign, “Guess the Mess,” will have fans guessing what liquid is being poured on the car. The Instagram tag is #WorldsCleanestCar.
Nissan says it has no plans to make the self-cleaning coating a standard feature, but does not rule out it being a future option on its cars. As yet, the coating does not dry clear, so it cannot be applied to glass to eliminate windshield wipers.
“The Leaf is already one of the cleanest vehicles around even without this incredibly innovative paint technology; that said, we’re not afraid to get our hands dirty to take this to the next level,” said Pierre Loing, Nissan North America Inc. vice president for product planning.
“Getting fans involved via this social media campaign is a fun, creative way to show how the Leaf can stay clean no matter how dirty the world around it may be. A marriage with the Ultra-Ever Dry exterior coating truly puts this Leaf in a league of its own, and we’re excited to see where this technology can take us,” Loing added.
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