Lexan plastic the body of the future

[Whitmore]

I dont know if any of you are familar with Lexan plastics but it is very tough and also light, I understand that it can be molded in color so scratches wont be as bad of issue compared to steal, I read that it is a 40% better insulator than glass . I watched 60 minutes last week and the goverment is starting to get down on auto makers about weight, mpg, and emmissions again or still.

I think that Lexan plastics is part of the answer for weight and strength for the future of autos. In the early 70,s I toured a new jail facility while in high school and got an eye opener towards Lexan, they had a door that was lexan and the sheriff told us it was a high security unit, our class running back said he could run thru it so the sheriff said knock yourself out and thats exactly what happened hehehehe. I dont know what cost is but prolly more than steel panels. Curious to know what you think about Lexan.



Cheers, Kevin

 

[Rman]

strong stuff i know that. From what i gather it's expensive, perhaps if more was invested in development on a larger scale it may come down though. It would be neat to have it on passenger vehicles, is it scratch resistant for windshields though?

 

[illflem]

Lexon is used in more than just cars and jail doors. Friend of mine built a home in an area where the soil was classified as high percolation. The county required his septic leach lines be less than 6'' deep so as to not contaminate the ground water. The only place to put the line was in the dirt road to his house. He used Lexon panels made especially for covering drain fields, been driving large trucks, tractors and cars over it for five years without a problem.

 

[Steve M]

The windshield on my Harley is Lexan. It's started to develope some stress cracks around the mounting strips but with 12 years on it I can't complain. I wouldn't want it for a windshield on the truck. Not as good as glass yet.

 

[rbattelle]

To be honest, I'd love them to start making body panels out of lexan or something. I live in an area where rust can eat through a steel body panel faster than mold through cheese.

 

[Bill Lins]

The only problems with polycarbonates ("Lexan") are cost, stress-cracking with age, scratch resistance (low), and UV resistance (like most plastics, poor).

 

[Deezul1]

Its tough stuff. A long time ago I tested some by cutting a piece 10" long and 1 " wide and then clamping it in a vice and beating a 90deg bend in with a 2lb hammer, it looked beat on but no cracks at all

 

[lschultz]

I wonder. If the windshield of the 95 I totaled out on a tree in 98 would of been made out of Lexan if I would be more than I am now?

 

[amsoilman]

Fighter Jets such as the F-16 have lexan canopy's, and they are very strong. However, they are very pricey! They also scratch.



Wayne

amsoilman

 

[bmoeller]

Don't the Saturn cars have composite body panels?



John Deere is no longer using steel body panels on their combines for several years. It is called Harvest Form. Made from corn/beans. The sheilds around moving parts are still steel.

 

[AGrubbs]

One problem I can see with lexan, will be the smart ars kid with a can of contact cleaner looking for trouble.

If the lexan has any stress in the sheet, and you hit it with a cold spray of the stuff, it will spiderweb. :{



The 1/4 inch stuff is very prone to this. . 1/2 stuff takes a little more work to get it to start. But who would want 1/2 thick body parts? It would weigh more than steel ones!