Mexican Media Brands
Toyota Plans Aluminum-Intensive Bodies for Lexus Models
Toyota Motor Corp. is preparing to switch from steel to lighter-weight aluminum exterior body panels for its Lexus luxury cars beginning in 2017, according to The Nikkei, which cites no sources.
#aluminum
Share
Toyota Motor Corp. is preparing to switch from steel to lighter-weight aluminum exterior body panels for its Lexus luxury cars beginning in 2017, according to The Nikkei, which cites no sources.
Lexus will shift to aluminum hoods, doors and fenders as current models are redesigned, the Tokyo-based newspaper says. It reports that Toyota is targeting an average weight saving of 100 kg (220 lbs) per vehicle.
Toyota already uses some aluminum panels in Lexus vehicles and its Prius hybrid sedans.
The carmaker plans to spend several billion yen (roughly $35 million) to set up aluminum stamping operations outside Nagoya and elsewhere, according to The Nikkei. It says Toyota hopes to partly offset the cost of aluminum roughly three times the price of steel through high-volume purchases and parts standardization.
RELATED CONTENT
-
Creating a Low-Cost Chassis Architecture
The engineers at Zenos Cars have combined recycled carbon fiber, drinking straws and aluminum to create a chassis for a low-volume sports car.
-
Lotus Is Light
Although there aren’t a huge number of Lotus vehicles rolling around in the U.S.—according to Left-Lane.com, in 2015 Lotus sold 80 cars in the U.S., a number so low that there is not much that puts it into context (e.g., there were 1,009 Lamborghinis sold in the U.S.)—but small numbers is something that the Hethel, U.K.-based sports car manufacturer is working toward—at least when it is comes to lowering the mass of its products.
-
Range Rover Sport SVR Sets Low(ish) Speed Record
This is an interesting record: a Range Rover Sport SVR, which can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 4.3 seconds and has a top speed of 174 mph, was recently driven by Ho-Pin Tung, a Chinese-Dutch driver for the Panasonic Jaguar Racing team, on a road in the Hunan Province in China, and set a new record of an average speed of 42.8 mph.