I'm curious if anyone else has come up with a solution to car vs cats. I garage my car at night, but my cats prefer to sleep in the garage at night (usually curled up against the hot water pipes). They haven't yet shown any interest in the new car yet, but it seems like the roof of a cab is primo scratching material and clear bra looks like it would grab little claws quite easily too. I've been covering it every night just to be safe, but I've gotten a bit lazy and just sort of toss it over the hood and make sure the soft-top is 100% covered.

I saw the thread from 2011 about the guy with cats, but I wasn't sure if a good resolution was in there. The wolf urine sounds good, but I don't want them to feel unsafe in the garage.

So, I guess my question is, are cats an actual risk, or am I worrying about nothing? If they really are a risk, do I need to wash the car before covering it (I read somewhere not to cover a dirty car)? Oh, and is it safe to fully cover right after driving when the engine cover is still hot?


Thanks for your thoughts!
~Matt

 

I completely understand about covering the car. I can't get mine into the garage due to the steep angle into it. I have park mine under a tiny canvas awning. I then cover it with the outdoor silver blanket. My wife calls it the baked potato. I also don't want to cover it at times. It is so much easier to just get to it later. Sometimes you just have to take that extra step and use the three minutes or so and do it.

As for the engine cover. The tiny manual that came with my blanket said to not let the cover contact the exhaust pipes after an extended use due to the heat causing it to melt onto the pipes. It did not mention the engine lid. The instructions did say to not cover it if the vehicle is wet. Dirty is another issue and the cover cannot help or hurt there. If mine is dirty, I don't cover it as it just reminds me I need to wash it again

As for the cats, I'm not sure. I feel for you as we have several outdoor cats as well. My wife gets mad if I drove over 15mph on our street for fear of a cat accident

 

Chup, I've read that covering a dirty car will transfer dirt to the cover, which will then grind against the car. Have you run into any issues like that? I DD my car in mostly sunny weather, but I can tell it's slightly dirty at the end of the day. Maybe just give it a wipe down once home?

 

That logic makes sense to me.
I can't say I've seen any grinding on the car, but I do see the cover as dirty when removed.

I'll start another thread so no to hijack this.

 

Not a threadjack at all, this is part of my quandry. Given that you've put a lot of miles on your car already and haven't noticed any of the dirty-cover scratch, could be a minor risk. Does the aqua blue hide blemishes well? Mine's white, for comparison.

 

I can't say I've noticed anything out of the ordinary. I wash it regularly, and it gets detailed once a month by Nukes Mobile Detailing (shameless plug), so if there is anything they take care of it and give me the third degree if I have been really bad. I do need to get it clay barred as a reward for one yr of service.

I think the blue does hide marks pretty well, not too light, not too dark. But just like other dark colors, bird crap stands out.