If you’re the sort of person who means it when you say, “I’m not mad at you, I’m mad at the dirt!”, I suggest you stop reading here and click over to Buzzfeed or Reddit or whatever your favorite source of soothing cat gifs may be.
That’s because Volvo has launched a social campaign encouraging motorists to forego washing their cars — not just for a week, but for a full month:
Volvo Cars today announced #DrivingDirty – a movement focused on water conservation in the midst of California’s current drought. Inspired by the efforts of Steve Hinkle, President and GM of Volvo San Diego, Volvo is asking Californians and their neighbors to stop washing their cars for one month – potentially saving 18 million* gallons of water throughout the state.
Hinkle has been contributing to water conservation efforts for some time now, offering customers a voucher for a sustainable, recycled water carwash if they forgo their wash at his dealership.
In the spirit of #DrivingDirty, Volvo wants to take these efforts one step further. For the duration of the movement, Hinkle’s dealership won’t use any water to clean the cars on his lot, opting instead for a waterless car cleaning solution. Volvo estimates that Hinkle’s efforts alone have the potential to save more than 108,000 gallons of water.
Too much to ask? Can’t deal with all the dust and debris on your daily driver?
Never fear: in this day and age, you have plenty of eco-friendly options. A growing number of washes around the country use water-saving techniques — check out a site like WaterSavers to find one near you.