A Mondeo that weighs like a Fiesta

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Ford has presented, in collaboration with the United States Department of Energy, a lightweight vehicle prototype applied to a current model.

It is a concept built on a Ford Mondeo -Fusion in America-, which they have fine-tuned as far as possible in order to reduce its weight as much as they could. Externally it does not differ from a traditional Mondeo; only the vinyl graphics and its narrow tyres hint that this is not a “normal” car.

Despite its appearance, we are talking about a Mondeo that, on the scales, registers a weight of just 1,195 kg, a reduction of 365 kg compared with the equivalent current model. This very significant reduction results, above all, in greater efficiency of its 1.0 Ecoboost engine, which also undergoes some modifications for the occasion. In this case, the engine uses aluminium to a greater extent, also employing other materials such as carbon fibre.

The weight reduction reaches every corner of the car. One example is the glass, which is now made with different chemical substances that allow it to retain the qualities of any glass while shaving off a few grams. In fact, the rear window is not even glass at all, but is made of polycarbonate.

In the chassis and bodywork of this prototype we can find lighter metals, with extensive use of aluminium. Composites are also used in several parts of the car, such as the seats and the front end.

The tyres are extremely narrow -in the style of those on the BMW i3- measuring 155/75, along with ultralight alloy wheels. To give an example of the lightening methods followed in creating the concept, the brake discs are not solid steel, but are made primarily of aluminium. Coated with stainless steel, a very notable saving is achieved on such a “simple” component.

Although this prototype is a tangible reality, it is still too early for these solutions -or most of them- to be applied to production vehicles in the near future, since the price would soar. Nevertheless, everything points to the future of efficiency, and of private vehicles in general, moving in this direction.

Source Ford