A new survey just released from Wards Auto and DuPont revealed that automotive designers and engineers are beginning to laser-focus their attention to lighter weight materials for their future car designs.
Study after study has concluded that one of the best ways to reduce fuel emissions and increase fuel economy is to reduce the weight of automobiles by at least 15 percent.
In the past few years, automakers have been hit with increasingly stringent fuel emissions and economy regulations that have spurred an uptick in not only lighter weight frames and wheels, but also innovations in fuel-cell technology and hybrid engines.
And Nissan continues to be a leader in the green car game. Back in January at the Detroit Auto Show, Nissan debuted its ultra-high-strength, lightweight steel that the automaker hopes to be using in at least a quarter of all-new vehicles by 2017.
This lighter steel, according to Nissan General Manager for Body Engineering, Shinsuke Suzuki, will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 5 percent without losing the strength and durability of traditional steel models.
"In order to comply with these regulations, we are working hard to reduce weight," Suzuki said. "This is increasingly urgent."
So far Nissan has cut 73 pounds from their Altima and a whopping 176 pounds from their Nissan Leaf electric car.
It's a terrific feat of engineering, and one can only wait for the day when we'll see all cars using Nissan's innovative steel technology, which would ensure that our automobiles are the best and greenest they can be.