Carbon fiber getting cheaper?

[SVOboy]

Well, this is a good thing, eh?

As automakers scramble to find ways to reduce the fuel consumption of vehicles, mass reduction is one of the main target areas. Over the last three decades, cars and trucks have gotten substantially heavier for a variety of reasons. Ever-increasing safety and emissions regulations have meant the addition of hardware like numerous airbags, improved structures and, of course, the emissions hardware. Cars have also picked up all manner of technology like power everything, nav systems, satellite radio assorted other gear. Unfortunately, eliminating hardware is problematic for both regulatory and marketing reasons.

The obvious solution is to use lighter weight materials. Numerous manufacturers have dabbled in use of aluminum to various degrees ranging from hoods and trunklids to full structures. However, aluminum is both more expensive and not as strong as steel. The strength issue has been addressed by improved finite element analysis tools that allow structural optimization. One material that has huge potential for weight savings without sacrificing strength is carbon fiber. Carbon fiber has been used in race cars for over two decades due to the fact that it has strength comparable to steel at one-fifth of the weight. Unfortunately it costs 30 times as much as steel. Toray Industries Inc., Teijin Ltd. and Mitsubishi Rayon Co, the three Japanese companies that dominate 70 percent of the carbon fiber market, are trying to crank up production volumes and develop new processes to cut costs. Currently only one percent of carbon fiber output is used for automotive applications and most of that goes to higher performance cars like the Nissan GT-R and the new Corvette ZR1. If carbon fiber could be widely used, it's estimated that the weight of cars could be cut in half.

The combination of slashing the molding times for carbon components and rising steel prices are both coming together to promote the lightweight material. There are still a lot of issues to address, but carbon could play a much bigger part in the future of cars.

Not much really said, but soon, I imagine? I know at least that the tech is changing in the bike industry for the cheaper: http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/05...on-be-slashed/

[c0da]

Wish I could afford to get the carbon fiber hood and trunk for my car. Although it would become a thief magnet if I ever did that...

[SVOboy]

Paint it,

[c0da]

Won't the plugs on the hood give it away? Or do they make a hook like the stock hood has?

[SVOboy]

I guess they would, but that's the issue with aftermarket carbon hoods, they're too weak to hold on the damn latch, I'm not really a fan since it saves about 10 pounds when you could save that ten pounds somewhere else more easily.

[c0da]

But when you've already stripped the car, put lighter wheels, deleted the sideview mirrors, and all that's left are those... what do you do? lol

[SVOboy]

Shrug your shoulders and not obsess over that last .1 mpg which is about the difference a degree centrigrade would make,

[c0da]

In the back of your mind, you know you still want it.

[SVOboy]

Nah, I put the interior back in my car.

[johnpr]

yay, i want to produce some stuff with cf and this might make it feasable