New Materials for lightweight Trucks

Many materials have emerged from the aerospace and defense industries that may have a significant impact on commercial vehicles in the future. Some of these new materials were investigated for their application on Class 8 trucks. The most promising materials were applied to prototype parts and installed on a test truck as part of a lightweight development program.

Most of these materials have unique characteristics that require a more complex and rigorous design process than the equivalent design with a conventional material. The major obstacles to be overcome are the high cost of the raw material and the development of automated fabrication methods.