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Towards a lightweight future |
01/11/2011
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| Aluminium is stepping out of the shadows of steel to become the material of choice for vehicle makers as they strive to make their products lighter, more efficient and more environmentally friendly. By Daniel Jubera, Novelis director sales and marketing automotive Europe |
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2011 Pentastar is Chrysler's new do-it-all V6 |
15/12/2010
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| Designed to support turbocharging, direct injection, MDS, and even Multi-Air, Chrysler's new V6 launches a new era of powertrain simplicity for the re-emergent automaker. |
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How Jaguar lightens up the XJ |
30/11/2010
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| Fitting sunroofs to cars may be a long-established area of manufacturing capability, but for the Jaguar XJ sedan’s Webasto opening panoramic roof it is almost a balletic performance. |
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BMW’s 2013 EV is pioneering carbon-fiber design, process technologies |
19/07/2010
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| By committing to a carbon-fiber body for its 2013 MegaCity electric vehicle, BMW is driving design, process, and materials technologies that will help push the strong, lightweight composite closer to the automotive mainstream, according to an expert in lightweight material applications. |
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Ford moves to single engine coolant for worldwide use |
21/05/2010
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| Ford is consolidating the three totally different antifreeze coolant formulas currently deployed. The multiyear changeover plan requires some re-engineering of cooling systems and phase-out of some engines. |
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Ball-and-socket fastener allows trim demounting |
01/09/2007
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| A new type of fastener based on the well-known BigHead design allows trim and panels to be demounted. A ball-and-socket construction is the key innovation of the Poppit fastener. |
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‘Instant grab’ hot-melts ease assembly |
01/03/2007
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| In a new formulation of hot melt technology, the instant green strength of pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) has been combined with the performance of a cross-linked silicone assembly sealant, writes Roger Bishop. |
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Organic layer bonds into metal surfaces |
01/09/2006
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| A patent-pending mechanical lapping process creates an organic layer that bonds into the metal surface through mechanical reaction, writes Roger Bishop. |
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Chemists advance high strength composites |
01/02/2006
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| There is a growing trend to use dilution technology as a cost-effective route for technically demanding injection moulded applications. This technology reduces the quantity of compounded material used by diluting a concentrated long glass fibre compound with reactor polypropylene (PP) at the
... Read more |
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Flexible PVC foam tapes |
01/02/2006
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| Scapa has launched two high temperature PVC foam tapes coated on one side with an aggressive, pressure-sensitive adhesive. They are designed for NVH and water sealing applications in the automotive industry. |
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Coating breakthrough cuts VOCs and CO2 |
01/04/2005
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| Toyota, Daihatsu and Kansai Paint claim to have developed a water-borne coating technology that reduces emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) by 70 per cent and carbon dioxide by 15 per cent compared with traditional coating processes. |
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Anti squeak coating reaches a new low |
01/04/2005
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| A new coating said to be a viable alternative to silicone-based products used on weather seals is claimed to offer new levels of noise reduction and freeze-release properties. |
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Sunshine heals clearcoat scratches |
01/04/2005
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| Researchers at Bayer MaterialScience have developed an automotive coating that uses the warmth of the summer sun to heal the fine abrasions and scratches that result from hand or car wash cleaning, writes Roger Bishop. They simply disappear, according to a recent technical note. |
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SL delivers giant realistic parts |
01/03/2005
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| When Plastic Omnium came up with the concept of fixing headlights onto a bumper module instead of the vehicle — first seen at the 2003 IAA Show in Frankfurt — the company then had to move quickly to prove its concept to vehicle-makers by manufacturing convincing prototypes. |
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Secondary sun-baking strengthens aluminium |
01/01/2005
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| Scientists have found that if the high temperature ageing process used to strengthen aluminium components is interrupted and the material allowed to undergo secondary ageing at ambient temperature, it becomes 20 per cent tougher. |
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Making gear-shifting a tactile experience |
01/11/2004
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| Dura Automotive Systems is using a special moulding process involving the sequential injection of plastics with widely varying properties to develop gearknobs with optimised properties of tactile feedback, stability and wear resistance. |
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