A Novelis idea — take the steel out of cars

Steel appears set to lose its market dominance as the preferred metal for car manufacturing, especially in the luxury segment, surrendering its pride of place to aluminium.

Novelis, the world leader in aluminium rolled sheets and cans and a subsidiary of Hindalco, has announced that its material is featured extensively in the newly launched 2012 Mercedes-Benz SL — the first full-production vehicle from Mercedes with a structure designed in aluminium.

This is the first time a car has got an all-aluminium body, though carmakers have long used the metal for some dedicated applications.

“It has been happening for some time in pockets, but this paves the way for a gradual shift in preferring aluminium over steel, as it offers greater fuel efficiency,” said Abdul Majeed, leader – automotive practice, PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Novelis said the new all-aluminium body reduces the weight of the vehicle by around 140 kg.

“Novelis aluminium is used in the doors, hood, and various structural applications including the transmission tunnel, for which Novelis supplies a new three-piece tailored welded blank,” said the company’s note.

This specialised aluminium product is called Ac-300, which was designed specifically for use in automotive structural applications, it said.

That poses a challenge for makers of auto-grade steel.
To be sure, Tata Steel and JSW Steel are in the process of expanding their brownfield capacities and setting up mega greenfield plants, with an eye on the growing auto segment.

In fact, in the next 12-18 months, India’s steel capacity is set to expand by almost 15 million tonne per annum (mtpa), most of which is coming up in the flat steel category, largely used for automotive and white goods.

But steelmakers need not lose sleep over this just yet, say experts.