Material issue

Automakers apply advanced materials to stem the rising tide of weight from increasing safety and convenience features.

It is a familiar story for veteran industry observers: an all-new model debuts that is bigger and more feature-laden than the model it replaces, in response to customer demand and changing government requirements. Typically, the new model is also heavier than the outgoing model.

But after a couple iterations of this pattern, cars have gotten much heavier. Meanwhile, rising global demand for oil has pushed fuel prices to apparently permanently higher levels. Now, manufacturers are applying advanced lightweight materials in an effort to lighten their latest models while also addressing ever more stringent crash safety requirements.