The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens dumped ash across eleven states, turning highways into skating rinks made of pulverized rock. Drivers who kept going—because Americans have this pathological need to get to work no matter what—found their engines seizing up like they’d been filled with concrete.
When Your Car Becomes a Very Expensive Paperweight on Wheels
Volcanic ash isn’t ash. It’s glass shards and rock fragments smaller than a human hair, and it’ll sandblast your windshield while simultaneously destroying everything under your hood. The particles are so fine they slip past air filters like they’re not even there, grinding between piston rings and cylinder walls until your engine sounds like a coffee grinder full of marbles.
Here’s the thing: visibility during ashfall can drop to less than ten feet.
During the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption in Iceland—yes, that volcano everyone gave up trying to pronounce—drivers reported that their headlights just bounced back at them, creating a gray wall of nothing. Ash is hydrophobic when dry but turns into cement-like sludge the moment it gets wet, which means your windshield wipers are basically spreading paste across your field of vision. Smart move would be to not drive at all, but we both know that’s not happening.
The Stuff That Turns Your Lungs Into Sandpaper While You Drive
Keep your windows up, obviously. Set your climate control to recirculate—don’t pull in outside air unless you enjoy breathing what’s essentially microscopic razor blades. The 1991 Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines sent people to hospitals with respiratory distress because they thought a little ash couldn’t hurt. Turns out, it absolutely can. Change your cabin air filter afterward, or just buy a new car because it’ll probably be cheaper.
Why Your Insurance Company Is Going to Love This Conversation
If you absolutely must drive—and let’s be honest, “must” is doing heavy lifting here—go slow. Like, embarassingly slow. During the Mount Redoubt eruption in Alaska in 2009, drivers who maintained speeds above 35 mph kicked up ash clouds that damaged vehicles behind them. You’re not just risking your car; you’re creating a rolling disaster zone. Brake gently because ash reduces traction by up to 50 percent on paved roads. Sudden stops? That’s how you end up as someone else’s hood ornament.
Wait—maybe the weirdest part is what ash does to paint jobs.
The Aftermath Nobody Warns You About Until It’s Too Late Anyway
Don’t wash your car immediately. Sounds counterintuitive, but ash mixed with water becomes an abrasive slurry that’ll strip paint faster than professional detailing. Brush off the dry ash first—gently, like you’re defusing a bomb made of your resale value. Air filters, oil filters, fuel filters: replace them all. Mechanics near Mount Ontake in Japan in 2014 reported seeing engines that looked like they’d been attacked with industrial sanders from the inside.
The rubber seals around your doors and windows? Compromised. The air conditioning system? Potentially ruined. Your insurance deductible? Suddenly very relevant. Volcanic ash doesn’t care about your monthly payment plan or that you just detailed the interior last week.
