Probably inspired by an owner of the Toyota Corolla Altis, a senior doctor has covered his Mahindra XUV500 in cow dung to beat the scorching heat
It looks like smearing cow dung on your vehicle has become a new trend in the country. Recently, it was reported that one Sejal Shah from Ahmedabad covered her Toyota Corolla Altis in cow dung in order to keep its interior cool during the scorching heat that has hit a large part of the country.
Now, we have got to know that even one Dr Naynath Dudhai, who hails from Pune, has covered his Mahindra XUV500 in cow dung to keep the car cool in the scorching heat that affects Pune.
As you can see in the images, the Mahindra XUV500 that belongs Dr Naynath Dudhai has been completely covered in cow dung, that is, except for the greenhouse and the lights. In fact, Dr Dudhai claims that his car has been given as many as 3 coats of cow dung to protect the cabin from the intense heat.
He says that the three coats of cow dung that have been applied to his Mahindra XUV500 will stay on his vehicle for at least a month to come. This way, he has ensured that the sun rays do not reach the body shell of his vehicle and that the temperature inside the car stays 5-7 degree Celsius lower than the outside temperature.
The cow dung can be easily removed by washing the car with a pressurized jet of water. Cow dung doesn’t leave stains behind on the car’s bodyshell, which means even the paint of the vehicle remains unaffected. However, the smell of the cow dung seeps into the cabin for some time initially.
Dr Nayanath Dudhai, the owner of this Mahindra XUV500, is a senior doctor at Tata Cancer Hospital in Mumbai. He says he decided to use cow dung to protect his car after he studied the benefits of cow urine’s benefit for cancer patients. However, until now, there has been no scientific study that highlights the benefits of putting cow dung on the bodyshell of the vehicle.
Speaking on this, Sachin Punekar, Founder President of Biospheres, an organisation working with the mission of conserving biodiversity, has said- “There is no such research on whether car coated by cow dung repels heat. One needs to assess it properly and then go further with the method. I do not understand the idea of coating car with cow dung, because once the metal is exposed to sunlight, it will heat up. But if this is method really works, then the scientist and researcher should work on it. We can adopt new technology by doing so.”
Frankly, using cow dung on the Mahindra XUV500 or on any vehicle to prevent the scorching heat from heating up the cabin doesn’t seem to be a great idea. If you think about it, it’s actually the glass area that helps the UV rays penetrate into the interior, while the former even acts like a greenhouse and aids quick heating of the cabin. The only benefit of putting cow dung on the vehicle’s body shell is that acts like an extra layer of insulation between the interior and the direct sunlight.
This might have a slight benefit in keeping the cabin cool. However, we think it’s best to avoid usage. Apart from the fact that you’ll have to face bad odour, your car will have to carry some extra weight, which will have an adverse effect on both its performance and mileage. Plus, the vehicle is bound to look totally weird.