At 11:12 AM 12/4/98 -0800, Aaron Christopher Finney wrote: I seem to remember reading about this - perhaps in the "Straight Dope". A quick www.dejanews.com search led me to a Toyota FAQ that confirmed what I remembered. Newer "low rolling resistance" tires don't contain as much carbon black as they once did, which makes them more of an insulator, which means as they turn they're picking up a charge relative to ground. Other articles I saw mentioned this was a problem with AM radio reception, causing sparks as the charge dissipated as you drove, and for toll booth operators you'd touch during a drive. Click and Clack wrote about it at <http://cartalk.cars.com/Columns/CC/CC7147TXT.html> Strangely, I also found an article about the magnetic fields generated by rolling tires: <http://www.microwavenews.com/3-98story4.html> - John