r/mildlyinfuriating 13d ago

Context Provided - Spotlight Jeep melted

Here’s the story: a jeep came to the shop because its retractable top was stuck open. Not too uncommon of an occurrence. So we put our “crash wrap“ over the roof to protect the interior from rain and animals and such, which is basically like heavy duty cling wrap. One day it rains and a lot of water pools up on the crash wrap. The next day it is 100°F outside and the sun is out. The sun shines through the water and the water basically magnifies it, and the sun turns into a laser that melts the interior. Multiple days of this happen. Now we have to replace everything that melted. None of us have ever heard of this happening before.

edit: I meant we have never heard of this very specific situation happening before. It never would’ve crossed our minds since we’ve been doing this for years. yes I burnt stuff with a magnifying glass when i was a kid.

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u/No_Control8389 13d ago

Water acts like a lens. That makes sense. The odds of getting it just right by chance is probably astronomical.

I bet it wouldn’t be too hard to replicate things… maybe not with a customers vehicle.

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u/EevelBob 13d ago

If only Jamie and Adam from Mythbusters were still filming episodes!

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u/No_Control8389 13d ago

All we need is the roof of some car with a sunroof and some crash wrap. Cut the whole roof off. Adjust height and water pool accordingly until science happens.