Updated at: 05-07-2022 - By: Lucas

People use magnets for more than just putting art and papers with an A+ on the fridge.

Did you know that there are a lot of magnets inside your car that help a lot of important parts work?

How do these magnets work together to make your car work? And…I assume your car is made of metal.

Does that mean that cars are magnetic or that they are not?

Most cars are magnetic and use magnets in different parts of how they work. Magnets will stick to any flat metal surface on your car, and some magnets are strong enough to lift a car off the ground.

Magnets are used more often in making cars, so over the past few decades, more powerful magnets like neodymium (NdFeB), aluminum-nickel-cobalt magnets (Alnico), and samarium cobalt (SmCo) have been made, and more rare earth metals have been mined.

There is also a lot of competition between the businesses that make these high-tech magnets for business use.

Why Do We Need Magnets in Our Cars?

Are Cars Magnetic (2)

Today’s car systems are made with a couple hundred magnets.

Since hydraulic, pneumatic, and mechanical control systems are being replaced by electrical control systems, magnets are needed to control:

Fans, engine motors, power steering, alternators, seat motors, starters, and winds are all types of motors.

Airbag sensors, position sensors, ABS speed sensors, seat belt sensors, and engine control sensors are all types of sensors.

Actuators – cruise control, doors, brakes, vents, suspension, fuel injectors, etc.

So, the need for magnets in the industry has gone up because carmakers are making more electric and hybrid cars and putting more electronic gadgets in them.

Traditional ferrite magnets, which were used in older cars, are no longer as popular as high-performance magnets that are smaller and work just as well.

Even though they are very magnetic, they lose their magnetism when they are exposed to high temperatures.

Neodymium (NdFeB) loses its magnetism at 80°C, but with different alloy compositions, manufacturers can make it work at 250°C.

Read on to find out how to put magnetic signs on your car to make it look nice or for advertising.

Are Some Cars Not Magnetic?

It is very possible to have a car that doesn’t have any magnets in it.

Car companies are looking for new ways to make cars lighter, which means they will use materials that are lighter.

This is because a car will use less fuel the less weight it has.

Some car body panels are made from carbon fibre, fibreglass, aluminium, and stainless steel.

Magnets only stick to cobalt, nickel, or iron. These materials are not magnetic.

Aluminum is used by a lot of companies, like Ford and Audi, to make lightweight body panels.

What Parts of a Car Are Magnetic?

1. Anti-Lock Braking Systems

These will help your car stop faster when you hit the brakes.

This lets you keep steering even when the car slows down, which keeps accidents from happening.

ABS systems use magnets that are always there and are attached right away.

2. Seat Belt Detection

Reed switches will be used to stop the flow of electricity in this system. The type of reed switch and the presence of a magnet will determine how the switch works.

The flow of electricity will tell if a passenger is wearing a safety belt or not and will sound an alarm if they are not.

3. Door positioning

This system will also use reed switches to sound an alarm if the door isn’t closed all the way.

4. Tracking systems

Neodymium magnets, which are very strong, are used to keep the tracking system in place and make sure it works right.

This will keep the tracking system from moving if the vehicle goes over rough terrain, high bumps, etc.

5. Engine

The engines of electric cars are powered by strong magnets.

Powerful magnets are placed around the engine’s coil. When these magnets push against each other, they make the coil spin.

Boron and neodymium iron are two types of stronger magnets that are used in racecar and other high-performance engines.

Do Magnets Stick To Cars?

Magnets can stick to any metal surface. They won’t stick to anything but a flat surface.

You don’t have to worry about putting magnets or magnet signs on the surface of your car.

They won’t hurt the paint on your car. In fact, they’ll help protect it from UV rays that can chip the paint or make it look dull.

But if you put your magnet on a surface with paint chips or rust spots, it will lose strength and might fall off.

Many business owners like to put magnet signs on their cars because they aren’t as permanent and are easy to take off when they’re no longer needed.

If you don’t want to ruin your paint, you should have a pro put it on for you and show you how to take care of it.

Water is not magnetic, so it moves away from magnets. This means that even if it rains hard, your sign will stay in place.

With the right care and maintenance, magnetic signs can last up to 5 years.

How to Make a Magnet Stick To Your Car

Putting a magnet on a flat surface is best (flat magnetic strip). Curved surfaces are not stable, so it would be easy for the magnet to fall off.

You should think about buying magnets with corners that are rounded. A magnet with a round shape moves through the air better.

Make sure there is no dust on the surface you are sticking the magnet to. Wipe the surface clean before you stick the magnet on it.

There are many ways to stick magnets to a body panel that isn’t magnetic, like aluminium.

Before you use any of these ways to stick your magnet, you should talk to an expert to make sure you won’t damage the paint on your car.

Among them are:

Putting Gripper MatsTM on the back of the sign and sticking it to the car is one way to use them.

Gluing the magnet to the car by putting glue on the back of it.

Putting a ferromagnetic material behind the aluminium body plate and sticking the sign to it

Connect the aluminium to a source of power to make a magnetic field that will hold the magnet in place.