How Hot Is Too Hot When It Comes to Leaving Things Behind in Your Car?

When I hear Californians moan about the heat once the thermometer surpasses the 80-degree mark, I always laugh. Why? Because unless you have lived in Phoenix in the dead of summer, you have no idea what true heat is.

I'm talking slightly frying-an-egg-on the hood-of-a-car heat in mid-July or heat that is so intense the airport closes down because the airplanes cannot land on the tarmac because their landing gear might sink.

From late May until November, the heat index is so high in Arizona that residents find themselves routinely going from their air-conditioned home to their air-conditioned car to their air-conditioned office. At the end the day, they do it all over again but in reverse order.

I used to have do all of my grocery shopping late at night or after the sun went down so the items wouldn't melt simply going from the grocery store to the trunk of my car.

Another thing I do not miss is having to wrap a cloth or rag around my hand before reaching to open any door that had a metal doorknob.

Fortunately, Laguna Niguel doesn't get that hot because it is close to the ocean. However, being a Midwest gal, I do crank the A/C up in mid-August.

But please bear in mind that just because it isn't in the 90s outside, or in the triple digits, you still have to be careful about leaving things behind in your car.

Over the years of living in Arizona and California, I have learned a few lessons about exactly what I can't leave behind.

Never Leave These Things Behind in the Car

1. Don't leave a child or a pet in the car for even a moment, even if the temperature outside seems temperate.

Dr. Debra Adams, a Laguna Niguel-based veterinarian, says that "a dog’s normal body temperature is 100 to 102.5 degrees Fahrenheit, and any time the body temperature is higher than 105 degrees Fahrenheit, a true emergency exists," she said. "Heatstroke generally occurs in hot summer weather when dogs are left with inadequate ventilation in hot vehicles."

A study from Stanford University Medical Center found, for example, that on a relatively cool (70 degees Fahrenheit) day, the temperature within a vehicle can increase 40 degrees within an hour.

2. Never leave a VHS tape or music tape (yes, there are still some of us who have these) in the car when it is more than 80 degrees Fahrenheit outdoors.

3. Unless you want your Starbucks iced coffee to become water, don't leave it behind for more than 10 minutes. Ice melts at 33 degrees Fahrenheit, 1 degree Celsius.

4. Never, ever, leave a tube of lipstick or any cosmetics for that matter in the car when the temperature is above 75 degrees Fahrenheit outside. I've learned this the hard way when I once reached for a tube of red lipstick in my glove box. Don't ask.

5. Ice cream, frozen yogurt or any cold dessert left behind is asking for trouble unless you prefer a form of liquid dessert.

6. Cheese can melt quickly depending on its consistency. It can quickly show signs of perspiration and turn gooey—even without nuking it in the microwave—if left behind in the car on a hot day.

Incidentally, if you do want to try to fry an egg on the hood of a car, it will work—but it won't be fried through and through. When I tried it, the outside temperature was around 117 degrees, and the hood of my black car was probably well over the 200-degree mark. According to the American Egg Board, eggs need to be heated to a temperature between 144 degrees and 158 degrees to be cooked.

Luckily, however, when I did try to fry the egg, it was not while living in Laguna Niguel.