Bumper sticker
Encyclopedia
Label
A label is a piece of paper, polymer, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or article, on which is printed a legend, information concerning the product, addresses, etc. A label may also be printed directly on the container or article....
or sticker with a message, intended to be attached to the bumper of an automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
and to be read by the occupants of other vehicles - although they are often stuck onto other objects. Most bumper stickers are about 30 cm by 8 cm (12 in by 3 in) and are often made of PVC
Polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride, commonly abbreviated PVC, is a thermoplastic polymer. It is a vinyl polymer constructed of repeating vinyl groups having one hydrogen replaced by chloride. Polyvinyl chloride is the third most widely produced plastic, after polyethylene and polypropylene. PVC is widely used in...
.
Purpose
Bumper stickers can be commercial, religious, secular, humorous, or in support of a sports team or other organization. They may promote or oppose a particular philosophical or political position. Bumper stickers are a popular way of showing support for a candidate for a government seat and become more common during election years.One variety of bumper sticker is the country tag. This is typically used for cars crossing international borders, and is overseen by the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
as the Distinguishing Signs of Vehicles in International Traffic, being authorized by the UN's Geneva Convention on Road Traffic (1949) and Vienna Convention on Road Traffic
Vienna Convention on Road Traffic
The Vienna Convention on Road Traffic is an international treaty designed to facilitate international road traffic and to increase road safety by standardising the uniform traffic rules among the contracting parties...
(1968). Often the country code is displayed on the license plate itself.
These have (usually in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) been spun off into tags indicating a country with which the driver affiliates, or more humorously to indicate things like a region (OBX
Outer Banks
The Outer Banks is a 200-mile long string of narrow barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina, beginning in the southeastern corner of Virginia Beach on the east coast of the United States....
), political party (GOP), etc.
People who opt to exhibit their individuality through these decals may take part in more acts of road rage
Road rage
Road rage is an aggressive or angry behavior by a driver of an automobile or other motor vehicle. Such behavior might include rude gestures, verbal insults, deliberately driving in an unsafe or threatening manner, or making threats. Road rage can lead to altercations, assaults, and collisions...
. Colorado State University
Colorado State University
Colorado State University is a public research university located in Fort Collins, Colorado. The university is the state's land grant university, and the flagship university of the Colorado State University System.The enrollment is approximately 29,932 students, including resident and...
social psychologist, William Szlemko, found that aggressive driving is linked to the number of markers a person has on his/her car, regardless of the messages portrayed.
Application and removal
Due to the movement of the vehicle and changing weather conditions, the sticker needs to adhere well to the bumper surface. However, there are some "easy to remove" bumper stickers and magnetic bumper stickers. Bumper stickers can be removed with penetrating oilPenetrating oil
Penetrating oil, also known as penetrating fluid, is very low-viscosity oil. It can be used to free rusted mechanical parts so that they can be removed, because it can penetrate into the narrow space between the threads of two parts. It can also be used as a general-purpose lubricant, a cleaner,...
or a heat gun
Heat gun
A heat gun is a device used to emit a stream of hot air. They are superficially similar in shape and construction to a hair dryer, though they run at much higher temperatures...
. Home remedies also include using common household items, such as WD-40
WD-40
WD-40 is the trademark name of a United States-made water-displacing spray. It was developed in 1953 by Norm Larsen, founder of the Rocket Chemical Company, San Diego, California. It was originally designed to repel water and prevent corrosion, and later was found to have numerous household...
or paint thinner
Paint thinner
A paint thinner is a solvent used to thin oil-based paints or clean up after their use, although all such solvents have other uses. Commercially, "paint thinner" is usually a name for mineral spirits.Products used as paint thinners include:*Mineral spirits...
.
History
Bumper stickers could not predate the introduction of the automobile bumper; the Ford Model TFord Model T
The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Henry Ford's Ford Motor Company from September 1908 to May 1927...
lacked bumpers to which bumper stickers could be conveniently attached, but the Ford Model A, introduced in 1927, had them. One online source http://www.bumprstickrz.com/bumperstickerhistory.html credits the current bumper sticker to Forest P. Gill, a silkscreen printer from Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
. http://www.kansascity.com/238/story/581859-p2.html
The first bumper stickers appeared shortly before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
; they were flag-like, and attached to the bumper by wires. Gill replaced the wire attachments with pressure sensitive adhesive
Adhesive
An adhesive, or glue, is a mixture in a liquid or semi-liquid state that adheres or bonds items together. Adhesives may come from either natural or synthetic sources. The types of materials that can be bonded are vast but they are especially useful for bonding thin materials...
, and as a result bumper stickers became more widespread and practical.
The first widespread use of the advertising bumper sticker might have been the ubiquitous "See Rock City
Rock City
Rock City is a roadside attraction near Chattanooga, Tennessee, on Lookout Mountain in Lookout Mountain, Georgia, located near Ruby Falls. It is well-known for the many barn advertisements throughout the Southeast and Midwest United States that have the slogan "See Rock City" painted on barn roofs...
" signs, touting a tourist attraction atop Lookout Mountain, Tennessee
Lookout Mountain, Tennessee
Lookout Mountain is a town in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 1,832 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Chattanooga, TN–GA Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Lookout Mountain is located at...
. In the 1940s, visitors to the site had a sticker applied to their car, which duplicated the famous signs painted on the roofs of barns throughout the southeastern USA. Rock City staff would circulate through the parking lot, applying the promotional sticker to every car. Although called "stickers", these bumper signs were really lightweight, screen-printed cardboard. They were attached by means of thin aluminum strips, running through the end of the sign and wrapping around the bumper.
Around the world
On some vehicles, some stickers are like trophy signs of WWII aeroplanes, either of locations visited or actions completed.
They have also been extensively applied to rear windows as well, where legislative measures have not banned such use. For instance in Sweden that is the normal place to put them and the bumper sticker is actually called "bakrutedekal" (rear window decal).
More recently, bumper stickers have become a route for advertising and a few companies offer to match car owners to advertisers willing to pay for the ad.
In Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, one of the most popular songs of all time is Shirat Hasticker
Shirat Hasticker
Shirat Hasticker , known as "The Sticker Song" in English, is a song recorded by Israeli hip-hop group Hadag Nahash.In 2003, the popular Israeli hip-hop group Hadag Nahash released the CD 'Chomer Mekomi' , which was an instant hit among the Israeli public. However, the most famous song by far was...
("The Sticker Song") by Hadag Nachash, a song composed entirely of bumper sticker slogans.
See also
- Bumper (automobile)
- CarAutomobileAn automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
- StickerStickerA sticker is a type of a piece of paper or plastic, adhesive, sticky on one side, and usually with a design on the other. They can be used for decoration, depending on the situation. They can come in many different shapes, sizes and colours and are put on things such as lunchboxes, in children's...