GM: Aluminum truck beds are stupid. Ours will be carbon fiber!

[oldtamiyaphile]

Originally Posted by hayden55

The stuff they are using will be identical to the type of "Carbon fiber" Ford used on the gt350. Its basically a lightweight plastic/carbon composite mix that is lighter than plastic but still as resilient to fracturing and looks just like normal plastic composites...
If you look closely at the plastic looking radiator cover with webbing. Thats the "Carbon fiber" I'm talking about. Basically becomes lighter than fiberglass, cheap to manufacturer and paint, and isn't as damn fragile as some of these impregnated composite weave body panels.

If you've got a car from the last decade, you've already got a stack of what is basically the same material, except using fibreglass as the reinforcement rather than carbon fibre.

Carbon fibre plastic like this came out nearly two decades ago. OEMs are often a bit slow on the uptake as we all know.

[Xist]

I wish I had seen this a year ago when it came out. I do not know if anyone considers the Ridgeline to be a truck, but it holds up to GM's "test" at least as well:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayOhO3D_90Y

[Stubby79]

Originally Posted by Xist

I wish I had seen this a year ago when it came out. I do not know if anyone considers the Ridgeline to be a truck, but it holds up to GM's "test" at least as well:

Whoa! Those guys move fast! They should come work for me!!

[slowmover]

The Ridgeline is pretty well the Odyssey underneath; I’m told. I’d be happy to have one where essential gear cannot be carried in a passenger compartment.

[Xist]

Jalopnik had an article about all of the storage spaces were hidden away in some new truck. Many of the comments were "That is going to creak intolerably. My [year truck] creaks horribly without all of those extra joints."

I cannot imagine all of those storage spaces combined being a significant fraction of the size of the Ridgeline trunk, which, if it creaked, it would only be one source, which you should never hear.

However, sooner or later, you will want something out of your trunk, but you will have a full load in the bed.

[Xist]

Hi, I'm Troy McClure! You might remember me from the last time I beat this dead horse!

It seems like the only thing that is working right for me right now is YouTube. After watching some poor twenty year-olds complaining about the police stopping them in their Ferraris, Lamborghinis, etc., I found this video. It is very annoying. The music is at 11, but the clips from the Ford showing how weak the aluminum GM are were especially quiet, so I needed to adjust the volume several times. They make various points, but the most relevant one was that the empty toolbox they dropped into the GM looked heavy and only flipped onto its side when dropped. The toolbox they dropped into the Ford looked light and rolled a couple of times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TblyH-6F2Hc

Have a great night everyone!

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by Xist

They make various points, but the most relevant one was that the empty toolbox they dropped into the GM looked heavy and only flipped onto its side when dropped. The toolbox they dropped into the Ford looked light and rolled a couple of times.

Even more relevant would be what contractors who use the trucks for work are saying about their aluminum beds. Are the forums full of people complaining of their ruined beds, or was this a non-issue all along?

[gone-ot]

GM vs. Ford analogy: "Our SIX is better than their HALF-DOZEN!"