Wednesday 4th June 2014

Ford launches Lightweight Concept

1,195kg Fusion does what it says on the tin!

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We all know that low mass is the key to great efficiency, with myriad dynamic benefits as a direct corollary also. The virtuous cycle of a low kerbweight has been extolled for a long time now with particular focus recently given increasingly stringent emissions targets.

Ford says approach is 'holistic'

This Lightweight Concept is Ford's latest offering. Based on a 2013 Fusion (or Mondeo as you would buy it here), a huge percentage of the components have been 'lightweighted' to take over 300kg from the kerbweight. Iron brake discs are swapped for aluminium, the oil pan is a carbon composite, the wheels are carbon fibre, the springs are now composite instead of steel... the list goes on.

Now a sub-1,200kg Mondeo won't be offered in your local Ford showroom anytime soon (indeed where is the normal next Mondeo?) but it does preview an interesting future for efficient cars without hybrid assistance. This concept is powered by the 1.0-litre Ecoboost triple, which we've already seen do a fine job in Fiestas and Focuses of a similar kerbweight. And if this is what can be done with a Mondeo, imagine the benefits of 'lightweighting' on smaller Fords. At present the Fiesta ST is 1,163kg and capable of 47mpg officially. How good would it be under a tonne?

Big car, small weight

But before excitement peaks too soon, it's worth bearing in mind the tech seen on the Lightweight Concept is very costly. But with advances in carbon construction recently (see BMW using remnants CFRP in the i3 and i8's structure), it's certainly becoming more viable. Ford has already taken 700lbs (317kg) out of the F-150 (not as challenging, granted) using 'aloominum' and such like so let's see what comes next.

 

See the Lightweight Concept video here.

 

[Video source: WCF]

[theJT]

Good thing it's light weight. Stopping quickly on tires that thin could be... interesting... otherwise.

[Mark Wibble]

Wow, you managed the whole article without mentioning the virtues of having a light car and a MASSIVE engine rather than a small one!

[renaultgeek]

Aluminium discs aren't going to last long are they?

[FD3Si]

Waiiiiit...

renaultgeek said:

Aluminium discs aren't going to last long are they?

This! Doesn't it go quite melty quite quickly?!
Disclaimer: A Metallurgist I am not.
Does it also have Balsa springs?

[Gilhooligan]

theJT said:

Good thing it's light weight. Stopping quickly on tires that thin could be... interesting... otherwise.

Less traction, but less mass to stop.

[wst]

God the wheels on that thing look skinny. But being lighter, it doesn't need as much rubber on the ground I guess.

I wish they'd got a Ford F150 Lightening pun in there.

[GTEYE]

And why exactly has the new Mondeo taken so long to go on sale in Europe?

Perhaps it will be facelifted before it actually goes on sale. If I recall correctly, the Fusion has been out in the US for nearly a couple of years...

[MogulBoy]

All good stuff. Of course a lighter car would need less rubber on the road... P.S. it's a theory I have seen espoused on here that modern cars are generally over tyred, not just in terms of diameter and shallow side walls for marketing driven/styling reasons but in width as today's relatively heavy but ABS/ESP equipped cars carry a lot of momentum when they step outside the envelope of the safety net offered by these systems and therefore, the only tool that is left to slow an out of control car down to minimise the effects of an (otherwise unavoidable) impact is to ensure that there is plenty of rubber in contact with ground as the retardation of a spinning car will be that much greater, regardless of whatever inputs are being made by the systems/driver.

[Kong]

renaultgeek said:

Aluminium discs aren't going to last long are they?

Doesn't the Prius have these?

[loudlashadjuster]

Good work, Ford.

We need to see a move away from massively over-tyred cars. They add weight in exactly the wrong place. My car has a frankly ridiculous 255-section rear tyre to complement its only-slightly-less-ridiculous 225-section front, and all to rein in the mighty 167hp the engine puts out? Puh-leeze.

A Lotus Esprit Turbo SE had narrower tyres FFS!

theJT said:

Good thing it's light weight. Stopping quickly on tires that thin could be... interesting... otherwise.

I see no real reason why a 2014 Mondeo-sized car weighing 1.4 tonnes needs anything more than the 195-section tyre that managed to stop a 1.4 tonne 520i perfectly well 25 years ago with less advanced compounds and more rudimentary electronics.

[gck303]

Kong said:

renaultgeek said:

Aluminium discs aren't going to last long are they?

Doesn't the Prius have these?

No.

I have just replaced the brakes in my Prius and the new ones have a slight rust coating. Which suggest that they are made from steel.

[z06tim]

gck303 said:

Kong said:

renaultgeek said:

Aluminium discs aren't going to last long are they?

Doesn't the Prius have these?

No.

I have just replaced the brakes in my Prius and the new ones have a slight rust coating. Which suggest that they are made from steel.

Series 1 Elise had an aluminium based disc:

http://elise-faq.info/index.php?title=Brakes

[Tim16V]

Good point raised above - where is the new Mondeo anyway?

No mention of it anywhere - even some of the mags didn't have it as the next big thing for 2014.

The 'old' one looks really dated now.

[gck303]

FD3Si said:

Waiiiiit...

renaultgeek said:

Aluminium discs aren't going to last long are they?

This! Doesn't it go quite melty quite quickly?!
Disclaimer: A Metallurgist I am not.
Does it also have Balsa springs?

Yes, pure aluminum turns into a liquid around 660 degrees celcius. Steel glows red at 900.

Of course, it could be an aluminum alloy with an increased melting point. Say 50:50 iron/aluminum which would melt around 1500.

[Lowtimer]

Kong said:

renaultgeek said:

Aluminium discs aren't going to last long are they?

Doesn't the Prius have these?

Definitely not! Calipers, yes.

Aluminium is not a great choice for brake discs. What we really need for ordinary cars is teeny-weeny carbon-ceramics. They would be very light, long-lasting, and not cover everything with black dust.

Edited by Lowtimer on Wednesday 4th June 12:44

[anonymous-user]

PH said:

We all know that low mass is the key to great efficiency

Er, it isn't...........


But other than that, nice article ;-)

[wooooody]

gck303 said:

Yes, aluminum turns into a liquid around 660 degrees celcius. Steel glows red at 900.

Of course, it could be an aluminum alloy with an increased melting point....

See above. It was done on the S1 elise 19 years ago.

[kambites]

Lack of mass is the (or at least a) key to great economy without great efficiency.

[BoRED S2upid]

Cars have been getting fatter and heavier for decades this concept is still heavy bring back the AXGT (800kg) or Pug 205GTI (850KG) now those are lightweight add the ecoboost engine to something as light as those and see what you get.

[r11co]

So, Lada were years ahead of their time using aluminium brake drums.