BMW and Ford set to use Gorilla Glass in cars
Gorilla Glass being used in the car isn’t new as BMW AG was the first car maker to utilize this in the interior panel of the i8 hybrid sports car. Ford Motor Co is all set to use the Gorilla Glass in the windshield and rear window for its upcoming new Ford GT sports car, which will go on sale next year. Ford GT will also feature a Gorilla Glass engine cover.
What makes Gorilla Glass much better than available options?
The earlier windshields were made up of two layers of specifically heat treated annealed glass and it has a plastic layer in between. Therefore, traditional glass formed the spider web pattern when it broke down and the pieces remain stuck to the plastic layer, which helped in preventing injury to passengers. Gorilla Glass meets U.S. safety standards and it happens to tougher than traditional annealed glass, which makes it an ideal choice for cars.
Exceptions from using this glass
Gorilla Glass is great in every manner but it does have some limitations in usage. Ford won’t be using the Gorilla Glass for the side windows of the GT and it will be made of tempered glass. Automakers have to rely on suing the tempered glass on side windows because it can be breaking into pieces when someone has to exit the car in a crash. Having a Gorilla Glass will mean adding a layer of plastic over the glass, which will turn it into unbreakable, which can put people lives in danger during crash. However the business director of Corning’s automotive glass business has stated that they are working on a different version of Gorilla Glass which be used throughout the vehicle.
Everything isn’t in favor of Gorilla Glass
Gorilla Glass has been used in the consumer electronics since 2007 and Corning made its foray in the automotive glass in 2012. In order to meet the stricter fuel economy standards several automakers are looking at various options to reduce weight in cars. Weight happens to be the enemy of the car, which seriously hampers the process of reaching awesome fuel economy in automobiles. Corning Glass does offer help in saving weight but it is quite expensive than the traditional glass. Gorilla glass costs $2 to $4 more per pound in weight than the traditional glass. To summarize Ford will be able to save 12 pounds on GT, which will mean spending $12 to $48, more on the car. An expensive car like GT which comes at price tag of $400,000 can easily absorb this expensive but mainstream car can’t.
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