An Analysis of Automobile Weight and Its Reduction by Aluminum Substitution

It is well known that the weights of different vehicle components or subsystems are not independent of one another. In this paper an analysis of existing vehicle designs is used as a basis for the development of influence coefficients which relate a weight change in an automobile component to the total vehicle weight change that could result. It is found, for example, that a ten pound decrease in the weight of a body part could lead to a total vehicle weight reduction of 14 pounds, assuming that other vehicle components are redesigned to account for the smaller load they need to support.

As an application of the use of the influence coefficients, a study is made of the potential weight reduction that could be achieved by substitution of aluminum for steel in selected vehicle components.