Future Ford Explorers, Expeditions Could Wear All-Aluminium Bodies
As previously reported by TTAC earlier this year, future Ford Explorers and Expeditions could one day wear aluminium bodies.
Edmunds reports the SUVs could easily go aluminium should Ford decided to do so based on the higher base prices of both vehicles being able to sustain the higher cost of the metal. The Explorer and Expedition could see improved fuel economy from the several hundreds of pounds lost as a result.
Alongside aluminium, Ford also aims to improve the engines, transmissions and aerodynamics in their lineup as the automaker seeks to reduce CO2 emissions annually by 4 percent to meet ever-stringent global standards.
The earliest an all-aluminium Explorer or Expedition could come is 2018, as the U.S. metals industry is stepping up aluminium production in anticipation of more Ford products extensively using the lightweight metal.
Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.
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What a lovely porch on that house.
Works for me. If it's good enough for the F-150, it's good enough for the car-based vehicles. However, those vehicles probably don't have profit-margins that are as large as those of the F-150, and so Ford will need to make the technology cheaper.
I'm no industry guy like a lot of you but it would seem to me that if we had fewer pig-assed vehicles like this, we wouldn't need to be talking about using aluminum to, I assume, drop their pork factor so they can meet upcoming fuel efficiency standards. Maybe this is a blessing in disguise though. Hopefully the inevitable design and construction flaws coupled with higher prices will bring the SUV/CUV craze to an end.
Let the peeling paint and corrosion begin!!