Can you get carbon monoxide poisoning while being in bumper to bumper traffic? Can it seep thru glass?

Answer 1

Of course, your venting system is drawing it in all the time
Feeling sleepy

Answer 2

Carbon monoxide won't go through glass, but your car is not airtight. Just pass a dead skunk on a highway to notice that fact.

In the strictest sense, you might have a small reason to be concerned in that a minute amount of carbon monoxide could enter your blood system. But in stopped traffic, it months to poison you, if even then. In the U.S., cars are heavily regulated for output emissions, so already carbon monoxide emissions are much lower than they were years ago. Additionally, what emissions do emanate from vehicles are mostly dissipated into the atmosphere and only an incredibly minute amount can try to seep into your car.

Leaving the car running while the garage door is closed is a bad idea, as some people have found out. But leaving your car running with the garage door open will subject you to more emissions, due to constrictions (walls) on 3 sides and a ceiling, than you'll experience in open air. Although there are more cars doing the emitting, there is also a magnitude of more atmosphere to dissipate it.

Also consider that in Manhattan, there is wall to wall traffic all day long, and traffic cops have to stand in the middle of it, directing the traffic.

Answer 3

Normally the gas is pulled in by the vent system. Most cars today have a safety requirement for the fan to circulate air at a low volume even when turned off with the switch. To become by gas in traffic, it would take a total containment such as in an unvented tunnel with traffic at a standstill. Due to danger, all tunnels of a length that could be of a danger are vented. If the windows are rolled up and all the seals are in good repair, the amount of gas getting in is so small it would be almost non-detectable. The vent system is the biggest problem.

Answer 4

Yes.
No.

Cars are NOT hermetically sealed, so yes, you can end-up with CO poisoning. However, the likelihood is slim. Tunnel workers in various places deal with higher levels of Carbon Monoxide than you'll encounter in a traffic jam.

Glass is non-porous, so nothing seeps through it...unless it is cracked.

Answer 5

Yes, it does not go through glass,,but cars are not totally closed up. Police directing traffic get slow carbon monoxide poisoning, in tunnels you can get CO poisoning, they run huge fans. I often start yawning in heavy traffic.(a symptom of CO)

Answer 6

if you have problems with your exhaust system and it comes seeping into your car then yes you can get carbon monoxide poisoning......seep through glass? no but can come through cracks and the such..but other cars exhaust would have to be very very bad and you not getting any fresh air

Answer 7

You can certainly get a headache, but as long as you are outside the atmosphere dilutes the intensity of effects of the carbon monoxide.

Answer 8

No, you/we do breathe some exhaust in, in that situation, but when idling, vehicles produce a low amount of exhaust, thus it would take a very long time and the exhaust to air ratio would have to be high. when an idling car is in front of you, the vast majority of the exhaust is going to be rising or blown away by the wind no matter how slight or strong the wind is. summary; the mixture of air and exhaust people would breathe in that situation you describe would have to be very pure, but it isnt.

Answer 9

It won't seep through glass but will get into your car through vents . I don't think it will harm you if your travelling as plenty of fresh air out there as well but you wouldn't want to stay amongst it each day all day

Answer 10

Generally, CO poisoning is only a problem indoors. Outdoors, it dissipates into the atmosphere fast enough that it isn't really an issue.

Answer 11

I really doubt it, if you have an old rusty car with a lot of holes like mine it could come in :) But when your outside I don't think it will hurt you, there is too much open space.