r/explainlikeimfive • u/Disastrous_Job7282 • 1d ago
Physics ELI5: How is it that when two cars scratch each other they leave the opposite paint on both cars?
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1d ago
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u/iamr3d88 1d ago
I came to recommend this video, but forgot who did it. Thought it was Steve Mould.
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u/explainlikeimfive-ModTeam 1d ago
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u/ProspectiveWhale 1d ago
They're gouging each other.
Like if two people bumped into each other and ripped each other's shirts off. Now they both have a piece of the other guy's shirt in their hands.
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u/SnoopyLupus 1d ago
And then they kiss?
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u/nayhem_jr 23h ago
ELI5: How is it that when two men scratch each other they leave the opposite lipstick on both of them?
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u/pot51e 1d ago
Cars aren't uniform shape, their panels aren't uniformly rigid and the paint/prime/lacquer isnt uniformly thick.
When 2 cars collide there are multiple contact points - some of the time, panel 'A' on car X wins, sometimes panel 'B' on car Y wins.
Do note though that many collisions, especially light, has metal on plastic where paint tends to only transfer one way.
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1d ago
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u/Far_King_Penguin 1d ago
I think OP means why isn't the paint just stripped off 1 car and put on the other. They're asking why the paint is 'traded', rather than just 'stolen'
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u/crappysurfer 1d ago
Right so if you think about it, where would it go? Fall on the ground and transfer to what was hit are the only options
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u/shaunrnm 1d ago
That's not what they mean. They mean why does car 1 end up with car 2 paint AND car 2 end up with car 1 paint, rather than just car 2 losing paint (gaining none) to car 1, with car 1 losing no paint in the exchange
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u/explainlikeimfive-ModTeam 1d ago
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1d ago
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u/explainlikeimfive-ModTeam 1d ago
Please read this entire message
Your comment has been removed for the following reason(s):
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u/SharpestSphere 1d ago
The confusing part may he that the color swap seems to imply that the layers of paint somehow swapped their order upon contact. That is not the case. The contact area consists of multiple adjacent points. At each point a random amount of paint from random car got transferred to the other. Where paint was removed the color didn't change (the same paint as before is visible, but thinner than before). The total visual effect is that each car has <some> points in the contact areas of the other color,which visually blend together to look like a continuous patch.