Are Automobiles and Parts Made in China Safe From COVID-19?

By Marc J. Rauch
Exec. Vice President/Co-Publisher
THE AUTO CHANNEL

Based on reports that the Chinese virus can live on hard surfaces for several days, a concern has grown that vehicles and auto parts manufactured in China might be carrying COVID-19. See:

• https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/coronaviruses-how-long-can-they-survive-on-surfaces

• https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200317-covid-19-how-long-does-the-coronavirus-last-on-surfaces

• https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/cleaning-disinfection.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fcommunity%2Fhome%2Fcleaning-disinfection.html

• https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/live-updates-coronavirus-covid-19#1

• https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/animals.html

However, a report from Reuters states that "The Food and Drug Administration this week said it has no evidence that COVID-19 has been transmitted from imported goods, but the situation remains “dynamic” and the agency said it will assess and update guidance as needed."

The Reuters' report also states that "An analysis of 22 earlier studies of similar coronaviruses, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) published online this month in the Journal of Hospital Infection, concluded that human coronaviruses can remain infectious on inanimate surfaces for up to nine days at room temperature. However, they can quickly be rendered inactive using common disinfectants, and may also dissipate at higher temperatures..." The complete Reuters story can be found at:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-surfaces-explainer/explainer-how-long-can-coronavirus-survive-on-surfaces-idUSKCN20M3BK.

Consequently, it seems the best precaution is to carry sanitizer with you and wipe everything down. Of course, in this day it's hard to come by commercial liquid sanitizers. Because of this, I have started to make my own from 200 proof (100%) ethanol mixed with aloe vera gel.