Recently, some pictures of swollen cars in China – which many netizens and news sites call ‘pregnant’ cars – have been shared quickly. Since then, some people have said that the cars are of poor quality, so they swell up because of the hot weather. What is the truth behind this?
Recently, in many places in China, there has been intense heat, which not only affects people but also has a very surprising impact on cars.
Photos have been circulating on social media showing cars that have been inflated in a bizarre way, looking like inflated balloons. And these are real photos.
The images of this strange phenomenon have been viewed nearly 800 thousand times, making many people both curious and worried. They do not understand what is happening, some even hastily assume that the quality of “made in China” cars is not good, which is why the car body swells up when it is sunny.
Many rumors and speculations about the “pregnant” cars have forced technical news sites to intervene. Accordingly, the problem with the cars is not due to machinery or manufacturing errors, but related to the high air temperature in China. The intense heat causes the car’s wrap to expand and swell.
The bulging car looks quite unsightly. Photo: Jennifer Zeng.
Car wrap is a vinyl film (PVC plastic) that is applied to the car to protect the paint, or to decorate according to the owner’s preferences, or to create advertising images.
According to experts at Wrap Guys, a company that specializes in car wrapping, prolonged exposure to direct sunlight and high temperatures can compromise both the durability and appearance of a wrap. The heat causes the wrap to lose its adhesion to the vehicle, and the air inside expands, and in some cases, it can blister like the ones seen online, although it usually doesn’t blister that much.
The Audi also suffered from a bulge. Photo: Jennifer Zeng.
There is also another element, compressed air: A nozzle is inserted under one corner of the wrap and compressed air is pumped in, causing the wrap to “lift” (to peel it off the car without damaging the paint). In this case, large “bubbles” are created, just like the one in the picture.
In short, the “pregnant” cars look quite strange, but the cars themselves are fine. Besides, this is not a problem with the quality of cars made in China or any other country, because among the swollen cars are Audis made in Germany. For cars with swollen coatings, people can peel off the coating and that’s it.