Carbon fiber is just one of those things that gets us excited. It’s unbelievably strong, light and has a cool factor that’s off the charts. It’s also no secret that it’s been used in high-end automobiles and racing now for the past 20 years. Audi is a company that is no stranger to the usage of carbon fiber, so it should be of no surprise that they’ve now decided to have a little fun with it. What you are seeing here is a set of skis that was developed by Audi Concept Design Munich in conjunction with the Head sports gear company. The idea was to take ideas from motor sport and winter sports technologies and combine them into what is perhaps the coolest pair of skis ever produced. Read More…
Chrome plating isn’t exactly something you do at home in your garage, since the process involves baths of cyanide, sulfuric acid and some form of chromium (usually chromium trioxide, chromium sulfate or chromium chloride). Never inexpensive, the cost of getting something chrome plated has skyrocketed as more and more restrictions are placed on the chemicals used. Today, when you find a shop that still does chrome plating, chances are that the prices will be astronomical, especially if the shop does first rate work.
So what options do you have for putting a chrome finish on small parts? You can’t just hit them with silver spray paint, because that never looks good. You can try painting them in a different color, but some things just look right in chrome. Besides, if you’re restoring an old car for the show circuit, you don’t exactly want to show judges your interpretation of what the designers had in mind.
Jay Leno gets all the good toys, so leave it to him to find a process that replaces chrome plating for small parts. Marketed by a German company calling themselves Chrome Solutions (www.chromesolutions.de), the process involves four steps. First, the item to be chromed is prepped by sanding and filling in any pits with a suitable material (solder, Bondo, etc.). Next, a base paint is applied via spray gun, as it the item were being painted instead of chromed. When the base paint sets up, a thin metal layer is sprayed on the item, with no regard for runs, orange peel or paint flaws. When this surface cures (shortly after application), a clearcoat is applied to protect the “chromed” surface. The cool part? The clearcoat, which is water based, can be tinted any shade you’d like to enhance the appearance. Make mine black chrome, please.
Originally developed for the mirror industry, the process adapts well to the automotive restoration business. You can’t tell from the video how durable the finished product is, and Leno himself admits that it’s not for use on large surfaces like bumpers. Still, for updating tired parts on a restoration, this may be just the lower cost, environmentally responsible solution that gear heads have been waiting for.
Update: Since I posted this article in July of 2010, there’s been an incredible amount of interest in Chrome Solutions. Unfortunately, the company seems to have gone out of business, since I’ve had no luck in tracking down any further information. The closest competitors I could find are Spray On Chrome and Alsa Corporation; for additional information on the products they produce, please contact the companies directly via the above links.
As an automotive writer, I get to drive a lot of different cars. Some are innovative, well built and deserving of praise; others, not so much. Over the past ten years there seems to be a trend of adding technology for technology’s sake, not because it improves the vehicle or enhances the driving experience. Sometimes, we have to take a step back and admit that what we thought was progress (Flooze, HD DVD, Sony Betamax), really turned out to be a step backwards.
Either the U.S. government is waging a personal war against Toyota or years of cutting corners have finally caught up to them.
A few hours ago the NHTSA announced the launch of an official investigation into complaints received regarding the rapid frame corrosion of relatively late model Toyota Tundra pickup trucks. According to reports, 20 complaints have been lodged so far detailing excessive rust damage and the NHTSA is concerned by the evidence that the rapid deterioration has resulted in fairly serious issues like spare tire separation and brake system defects. Read More…
The House has passed a bill, the Advanced Vehicle Technology Act of 2009, that might just lead to future new cars being made out of plastic. It still has to go through the Senate, but are we contemplating a future where we’re all driving polycarbonate cares with panel gaps larger than the federal deficit? Possibly … the bill calls for nearly $550 million per year in research into fuel-efficient cars and trucks that reduce dependence on petroleum. One of the funded projects is to have the Department of Energy demonstrate the production of “cost-effective lightweight materials such as advanced metal alloys, polymeric composites, and carbon fiber;” that is, plastics. Is the government going to require that your next Ford be an oversized Power Wheels car? More after the jump.
For all of you citrus-loving Prius owners out there, orange is the new green. Yokohama has developed a green, eco-friendly, gas-saving tire made out of oranges. Yup, those spherical objects that make your Orange Julius taste good and prevent scurvy are being recruited to help save the earth from performance driving. They’re called “db Super E-Specs” and they are most notable for replacing 80% of the synthetic, petroleum-based rubber in normal tire with a special compound made out of orange oil. If you really want to buff up on your green credentials, be sure to cover the back of your hybrid with pun-laden stickers that note that the Yokohamas are produced in a zero-emissions factory and have 10% less rolling resistance (we used to call rolling resistance “grip” before it became politically incorrect to have a car that could handle) than a conventional tire. What’s the catch? They cost a bit more, and they’re only made in three sizes that are compatible with several hybrid and compact cars. We assume they’ll stay in niche sizes, as we don’t know many hypermiling Nissan GTR owners.
Bet you wouldn’t have guessed that the US is a world leader in utilizing high-tech processes to produce some of the world’s most advanced steel for use in domestic cars. “Buy American!” ideologues aside, guy-on-the-street polling would probably reveal that most Americans think we get our advanced steel products from some country we either defeated or saved in WWII. Simply not true – if we do one thing right, it’s heavy high-strength metal. (We’ll pause here to let you crank up the Springsteen.) We’re not just talking stainless – the US is leading the way in incorporating such exotic steels, like dual-phase (DP) or transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP), which let domestic automakers build cars that are both safer and more fuel-efficient.
It kind of makes sense that lead is still the primary material used to make wheel balancing weights, as one of the heaviest metals and relatively cheap, but with the countless studies showing how the toxic metal causes severe health and environmental damage, perhaps it would make more sense to ban the stuff and come up with a less deadly alternative. That’s the main point of a new proposal by the E.P.A., which has overturned the previous agency policy of kissing the feet of lead industry lobbyists studying the issue further and is now going to follow the lead of European nations (who are of course way out ahead on this issue) and finally ban it from our roads. You see, the little SOBs keep flying off folks’ wheels, landing in estuaries and such, leading to frogs with 12 legs and an uncanny taste for Taco Bell nacho cheese … that sort of thing.
Perhaps most surprisingly, the groups that use and produce these weights aren’t screaming bloody murder. Maybe they sense that getting on the wrong side of a “lead issue” isn’t the best PR move, after that recent Chinese toy scandal. Steel and zinc are two alternatives that industrial weight manufacturers can switch to with relatively little disruption, although because these metals are lighter, they will lead to thicker and more expensive weights. Even Wal-Mart is voluntarily on board, saying they feel it’s “the right thing to do.” Look, when Wal-Mart signs on to a public health move, you know it’s a done deal. Anyways, bully to politicians, the EPA, and the relevant industries for actually doing the right thing here.
Whatever you think of the current Nurburgring hoopla/controversy, its undeniable that the Radical SR8LM is an unbelievable car. And while a lot of that is simply its bantamweight nature, another reason is the head-explodingly badass Powertec Engineering RPA Macroblock V8 lump nestled under the bodywork. Heavily based on Suzuki’s GSX-R 1300 Hayabusa engine, it’s a seriously developed and extremely lightweight powerplant that is begging to be shoved into anything it might possibly fit into, and possibly some things it won’t (you will get massive RideLust bonus points if you engineer a Macroblock R/C car, even if it is absurdly nonfunctional). But while the insane Mosler-esque visions we’re having of dual-RPA engined CRXs doing 4-wheel burnouts are almost pornographic in nature, the reality of the engine in its Radical SR8LM application is almost as titillating.
Despite their urgency to rid themselves of the under-performing brand, Ford apparently has no qualms helping themselves to Volvo’s wealth of cutting-edge technology. Fresh on the heels of the 2009 Ford Focus’ impressive win with the IIHS, Ford is again making headlines for yet another achievement in the field of automotive safety with the 2011 Ford Fiesta. Read More…
2012 Nissan Rogue SV FWD: RideLust Review
