Plastic Fantastic For Future Cars

[SlickHolden]

http://www.drive.com.au/editorial/ar...?id=11377&vf=1

The Age
Wednesday April 12 2006

The local automotive industry is keeping an eye on developments, reports ANDREW HEASLEY.





Just like BMW's high-performance M6 coupe, future generations of cars in Australian showrooms could be wearing high-tech plastic body panels.

The material, which can either be painted with duco or pre-impregnated with coloured pigment, is said to be 40 per cent lighter and more scratch resistant than painted steel panels.

BMW trumpets the use of exterior plastics and composite materials in its M6, saying it lightens the car for a greater power-to-weight ratio for better performance. There is also the association with formula one racing cars, which wear non-steel panels.

Pushing the plastics barrow locally is GE Plastics, a division of the GE global empire that stretches from jet engines to financial services.

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"We've been in talks with the local manufacturers," GE Plastics marketing manager Steve Mrowka confirms.

Presentations about plastic panels have also been made to Ford Performance Vehicles and Holden Special Vehicles, he says. Should these manufacturers decide to use them, it would help them differentiate their products from Ford's XR and Holden's SS performance variants further, he says.

GE plastics are widely used in local car production for common trim items. In addition to plastics for exterior panels, GE plans to push plastics into the structure of the cars. Mr Mrowka says one of the local car makers will launch a car this year that has an innovative front-end module (the structure to which headlights and some suspension components are mounted) that's part plastic, part steel, developed in conjunction with Bluescope Steel. The spare tyre well in the car's boot will be made entirely from plastic.

Mr Mrowka is sworn to secrecy about which car it will be. Holden is scheduled to launch the Commodore in August and Toyota its locally made Camry and Aurion in the last quarter of the year.

GE has approached Ford with a proposal for a plastic tailgate for the Territory soft-roader to reduce the weight, Mr Mrowka says. Ford won't confirm whether a plastic tail gate is being considered.

The plastic resin used in panel production is more expensive as a raw material but the finished panel can be up to 30 per cent cheaper than the same item made of painted steel, when the cost of the whole production cycle is taken into account, he said.

The raw material, in the form of plastic pellets, is heated and injected into panel moulds under high pressure.

One type of plastic, which GE calls Noryl GTX, produces a panel that is impregnated with material that is electrically conductive, which assists in spray painting. An electric current is sent through the panel in the spray booth, which helps attract the atomised paint droplets to the surface.

An alternative plastic technology involves sandwiching two types of plastic together: an outer skin that is colour impregnated (which doesn't require painting, called Lexan), backed by a sturdier plastic for strength (called Xenoy). This type of panel offers a superior finish in lustre, evenness and scratch resistance compared to painted panels, GE says.

And therein lies a problem, for now. The fault-free finish of these panels show up the relative imperfections of painted steel areas on a car - such as the orange-peel effect.

GE also acknowledges that there are no suppliers locally that are tooled up for producing plastic panels. However, the company is keen to introduce the technology to local manufacturers and is contemplating partnering a local supplier to be first to market.

Holden, for one, is keeping an open mind on the subject. "There are some (areas) in modern car design . . .where flexible composite materials make perfect sense, e.g. bumper bars," says Holden spokesman Jason Laird. "There are other (areas) where, if it has nothing to do with the structural rigidity, then it could also make sense. As technology advances, that broadens the potential application for using non-steel based materials.

"We're always looking for ways to improve our vehicles. And if a synthetic material was to prove superior to steel in a particular application certainly we'd look at it. But there are things that need considering: it needs to be suitable for the purpose. The underlying issue still needs to be customer acceptance. The car buyer has proved over the years that the transition to accepting a new way of doing things can sometimes be slow."

Wonder if this is a short term weight fix it? Drop 40-70kg and have the same power output but better performance.
Wonder how many Aussie built cars will have it.

[Rockefella]

Originally Posted by Article

BMW trumpets the use of exterior plastics and composite materials in its M6, saying it lightens the car for a greater power-to-weight ratio for better performance. There is also the association with formula one racing cars, which wear non-steel panels.

LMFAO. Carbon Fibre is not the same thing as plastic, although I know what they're trying to say.

[2ndclasscitizen]

I spose it'll make em cheaper and easier to fix, just put a new panel on. Though cars mightn't actually get any lighter, as I imagine crash structures will have to strengthened and increased to compnesate for the lack of protection from the plastic panels

[SlickHolden]

Maybe it's a good idea as a bonnet for crashes, If someone hits there head on one of them bonnets maybe it can take the force out of it,
And body kits will be a good thing.

[fpv_gtho]

I can imagine Ford are in the best position to benefit from this as theyre still some 2 year from launch of Orion, and many things are left to be finalised. Holden could still implement certain panels for the ute, wagon and VE2 i suppose.

[SlickHolden]

Still i wonder is there any chance something might make it into the SS as they really wouldn't comment on Holden.

[Matra et Alpine]

aHem ...... Matra been doing it for Renault for decades

It used to be good for a laugh with new owners to go over and lean on their panel till it bellied-in ..... pops straight back out as soon as you took the weight off

[fpv_gtho]

Originally Posted by SlickHolden

Still i wonder is there any chance something might make it into the SS as they really wouldn't comment on Holden.

They hint at HSV more likely to do it than Holden. The SS is supposed to be representative of a Commodore and as such it would be crazy to drift from that look. HSV carrying a different name though would benefit from drifting from Holden and the Commodore, and likewise with Ford, FPV and the Falcon

[SlickHolden]

I got a good clip of some Phoon and GT and a XR8 and a third car i cant see doing a little fast stabs one i was shocked at how the Phoon was done by what looks like a Xr8 but that was at speeds the phoon might have got it if they went on further.

[fpv_gtho]

Yeah saw the clip...my guess was XR6T and GT-P giving it some and someone in a GT enjoying the show. Cant see what the 2nd XR at the start was though.

[SlickHolden]

so maybe 2 FPV's and Xr's?

[luminaeus]

And to think, Saturn just gave up doing this, haha.

[Falcon500]

Welcome to UCP

UIts good to see your adding rto the forums but please take note at the dates of threads as reviving old threads with very little often raises the ire of other forum users

I look foreward to seeing more posts from you.