Nissan's Tiny Car Wash Puts Its Own Little Spin on Paint Testing
CARS.COM — Some things are better in miniature, like horses or hamsters eating burritos. Nissan has taken that logic and applied it to the car wash, but this car wash serves a purpose beyond tugging at your heartstrings. (No, this is not part of a cross-promotional campaign between Nissan and the movie “Downsizing.”)
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If you’ve ever wondered how manufacturers like Nissan test new car paints without having to paint an entire car, wonder no more. Nissan has created a miniature car wash to test the durability of its exterior paints.
Sadly, the footage used here is only for illustrative purposes and tiny toy cars are not constantly run through a tiny car wash to the delight of an engineer’s inner child. Instead, rectangular pieces of metal — like the yellow plate below the toy 370Z — are used.
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The car wash has blue bristles that can spin at close to 180 rpm, and there are also water jets and sprays of what Nissan calls “Arizona dirt” to add to the potential wear factor. The car wash is located at the Nissan Technical Center North America in Michigan.
Check out the video below for a closer look that may get Rose Royce stuck in your head.
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