Aluminum and Alternative Powertrains

Today’s consumers have many concerns about their vehicles including the environmental “footprint” the car is leaving behind. Automotive aluminum continues to produce environmentally-friendly cars because its lightweight quality results in fewer greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming. These qualities not only benefit gasoline-fueled vehicles, they help improve the advantages of alternative powertrains like hybrids and diesels.

Electric Vehicle

The Aluminum Association, in conjunction with Ricardo, recently conducted a study that highlights the cost benefits of aluminum use in plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles and evaluates the impact of vehicle weight reduction on electric vehicle performance, range and battery size.

Key Research Takeaways:

• Aluminum use in electric vehicles can yield a savings of up to $3,000 per vehicle.
• The driving range of the vehicles could be improved approximately equal to the mass saved.  That is, reduce the mass of the vehicle 20 percent, go 20 percent father. One example vehicle had the range extended from 80 to 97 miles.
• Regenerative braking could recover about 65 percent of the energy associated with the vehicle’s momentum irrespective of the vehicle weight. But this is only about 15-20 percent of the total energy expended.

For more details, please read the executive summary of the electric vehicle study.

Hybrid and Diesel Powertrains

While average hybrid and diesel powertrains provide improved fuel economy for today’s cars and trucks, it also adds increased initial cost to the consumer. Compared to gasoline engines with equivalent performance levels, these advanced powertrains have various payback periods to the consumer of up to several years. With that in mind, the Aluminum Association (with the help of IBIS Associates) conducted a study analyzing the current cost penalties associated with both hybrids and diesels to determine what could be gained by replacing their heavier steel bodies with low-weight, high-strength auto aluminum.  The study found that by reducing the weight of the vehicle, the horsepower and torque requirements can be correspondingly reduced, leading to a lighter, more affordable powertrain and vehicle that pays the consumer back quicker as a result of improved fuel economy and fewer trips to filling stations.

Key Research Takeaways:

• Consumers will be “paid back” faster at the fuel pump if automakers opt to reduce vehicle weight with next-generation hybrids and diesels through greater use of auto aluminum, compared to the payback time associated with the added costs of today’s heavier hybrids and diesels.

• When compared to existing gasoline-powered vehicles, there are impressive fuel economy gains of 46 percent in diesel-powered vehicles and 51 percent in hybrid-powered vehicles complemented by aluminum structures.
• Aluminum-structured hybrids receive a 13.5 percent increase in fuel economy over a steel-bodied hybrid. Similarly, the aluminum-bodied diesel saw a 13.1 percent improvement in fuel economy when compared to the steel-bodied diesel vehicle.

Generally, all new fuel-saving technologies come with an added cost and an aluminum vehicle platform on its own costs more than a current platform. However, by reducing the horsepower and torque requirements of the new powertrain, the overall costs almost balance out. The increased cost of the aluminum platform is nearly equalized by the decreased cost of the powertrain and other components. For example, a smaller fuel tank is required for the same driving range. The fuel savings gained offsets the additional cost of the platform and powertrain within one to four years.

Please read the executive summary of the automotive aluminum and green technology study for more details.