The Car Wash Is So Over! Nissan Has Created A Self-Cleaning Car

The European arm of the automaker isn't changing anything about the car itself, just the paint job. It's using super-hydrophobic and oleophobic paint that repels water and oils, so dirty water that hits the car never sticks and never needs to be cleaned off.

The car wash owners of the world have begun to tremble, collectively.

Nissan is testing the paint, sold by UltraTech International Inc, on a Note to see how it performs in various conditions, including rain, frost, and sleet.

This isn't a brand new idea - you can buy similar coating without spending a fortune - but we haven't seen an automaker try it before. Nissan says it doesn't plan to make the technology standard, but it "will continue to consider the coating technology as a future aftermarket option."

You can see what a difference the special paint, applied to the right half of the car, makes the mud and dirt rolls right off:

[An earlier version of the this story was written by Alex Davies.]