Every parent needs to see the photo of this water bottle.

If you needed another perfect example of why kids and hot cars don’t mix, this is it.

A Sydney mum has taken to Facebook to warn fellow parents about the dangers of leaving children and pets in cars this summer.

Her visual aid? A plastic drink bottle which had been sitting in her front seat for six hours.

If this photo doesn’t prove how devastatingly hot cars get this time of year, we don’t know what will.

The mum-of-two shared the image with the caption “On the left is a water bottle. On the right is the same kind of water bottle left on the front seat of my car from 9am till 3pm today. Literally melted.”

“Hot weather. Kids and dogs. You know what I’m talking about. Stay safe.”

It’s not the first PSA about leaving kids in cars to go viral. Celebrity Chef Matt Moran has cooked lamb steak in his car to demonstrate how the mercury levels inside vehicles are comparable to that of an oven.

And just last week, Rebecca Judd posted a photo of her four-year-old son, Oscar, with the same message.

With a 41 degree scorcher in Melbourne today and hot weather expected across most of Australia, please #neverleavekidsincars Its sad that we even have to remind people ???? Stay safe Aussies.

A photo posted by Rebecca Judd (@becjudd) on Jan 12, 2016 at 1:15pm PST

Despite attempts to raise awareness, it’s still estimated emergency services are called to rescue over 5000 Australian children trapped in sweltering cars annually.

In Victoria, penalties for leaving a child unattended in a car include a $3690 fine or up to six months’ jail.

Given we are now in the hottest period of the year, the hashtag #NeverLeaveKidsInCars, an initiative of the Victorian Government, is more important than ever.

You can watch the #NeverLeaveKidsInCars campaign below.

Have you ever discovered something has melted in your hot car?