The End of the Car Wash? Nissan Develops 'Self-Cleaning' Vehicle

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Nissan's Note, the company's first car to feature the company's new prototype for self-cleaning paint.

By Karissa Bell2014-04-25 21:05:13 UTC

Nissan unveiled a new prototype that could potentially do away with car washes on Thursday.

The car maker is experimenting with a special super-hydrophobic paint called Ultra-Ever Dry that it's billing as "self-cleaning" for cars. It has been specially engineered to be extremely water- and oil-resistant by UltraTech International.

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"By creating a protective layer of air between the paint and environment, it effectively stops standing water and road spray from creating dirty marks on the car's surface," the car maker said in a statement.

The company says the paint, which is currently being tested on the Nissan Note, has "responded well" to normal weather conditions, including sleet, frost, snow and standing water. Nissan said its engineers will continue testing the paint over the next few months at Nissan's Technical Center in Europe.

Nissan added that is has no current plans to offer the paint as a standard feature, but that it is considering eventually offering it as an aftermarket product.

Watch the video, below, to see the "self-cleaning" paint in action.

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Topics: Automotive Technology, dev and design, Dev & Design, Nissan, Nissan Note, Tech