This may be a longshot, but I'm wondering if the Prius puts out any kind of electrical field when running -- or otherwise. I ask because I had several Hi8 videotapes stored in a box that just happened to be about 2 feet from the front, left side of the Pruis where I park in our garage. When I went to review some of the tapes they were blank, whereas a separate tape that had been stored in another location was fine. Foolishness? Wishful thinking? Other? Thanks...
I really doubt that the EMR that the Prius generates is sufficient to erase a video tape. If you want to confirm it was or was not the Prius, try repeating the erasure with another tape. If it is erased, there may be a failure of some electrical part in the Prius. If not, then something else caused the erasure. Again, I really doubt the Prius is the source of the erasure.
My experience has been that degaussing takes a pretty intense magnetic field. However, moisture, temperature and age are pretty destructive of magnetic tapes. Sorry for your loss but magnetic tape were never really considered an archive medium. Bob Wilson
The magnetic field generated by the two synchronous motors of the Prius is unlikely to do much to your tapes... but if you are worried, you can bring compass and see if it goes nuts... If that detects nothing, you can try a magnetic field detector... okay, maybe not...
You don't say where you are, so there is little I can tell you other than the tiny field the Prius emits is not going to erase anything! Think about it people! If the Prius emitted a large EM field that would be wasted energy! The motor generators are pretty much fully shielded to capture any field energy generated. The only "emitted fields" are from the cables, mostly from the battery to the front of the car. The field emitted by that cable is much lower than the earths magnetic field, based on what other "concerned people" have measured. If your garage is very dry, that will evaporate the glue that holds the magnetic powder to the tape. The powder then falls off the tape. Heat will accelerate this process. If you want to use tape for archival purposes you have to store the tapes in a humidity and temperature controlled room. NOT a garage!
If it emits a field, it's not nearly strong enough to interfere with the really loud bass of the guy in the car next to me.
UUhhhhh!!!! Another urban legend! We can start the rumor that a Prius will erase the magnetic strips on ATM and credit cards! That is why they so often fail during a retail purchase. Only by putting them in a thin plastic bags is the evil Prius field neutralized. Bob Wilson
NO way the Prius will carry that much EMF, even with the Perm Magnets in both MG motors. Maybe the residue heat from your Prius ICE can affect the tapes over time too. But yes, do what Evilshin has suggested by confirming it with a compass....this myth has to be busted.
i have a meter and my friend has a meter. we tested the car all over. normal devices in your house such as the radio and microwave put off higher fields... cell phone too.
Not a chance... My personal experience with Hi8 metallic video tapes is that it takes an extremely high magnetic field to erase.. I have a bulk eraser I use routinely on VHS tapes (wipes them totally clean) and that same bulk eraser won't begin to erase a Hi8 video tape.. It will put a little noise on it.. regarding magnetic fields from the prius, high efficiency motors (the prius motors are extremely highly efficient per Oak Ridge National Labs published papers) don't get there and still leak large magnetic fields.. Large magnetic loss would occur only in a very, very poor motor design. Managing magnetic loss is a fundamental element in the design of any transformer, electric motor or any magnetic device that is attempting any reasonable degree of efficiency.
Do you see keyrings and tools flying through the air and sticking to the Prius? No. Heat killed your tapes. Not all tapes were created equal.
