Future Innovations in Automotive Design
Because public transportation in most of America has become congested in crowded roadways and stop-and-go traffic, the recreational automotive enjoyment once desired by drivers has since become obsolete. As automobiles replaced equestrian means of travel, making horseback riding merely a hobby, some experts forecast a future overhaul in global transportation, making automotive travel strictly a hobby for the enthusiast (“Welcome” 17). However, with an automotive aftermarket nearing the landmark of a thirty billion dollar industry, enthusiasts still have a stronghold in one of America’s largest domestic markets, the automotive industry, and no immediate replacement for automobiles is expected (Gilroy). If automobiles are not to be replaced, they must be improved every year to meet the needs and wants of the consumer. National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence-certified Joe Hayes believes that concerns of fossil fuel longevity make fuel efficiency and innovative technology associated with alternative fuels the leading seller of most automotive platforms today. Since automobiles are currently the number one source of transportation in America, future innovations can be forecasted to assimilate into the market, making road travel fast, safe, reliable, and affordable to the average American.
The power of automobiles has greatly increased in recent time, accelerating top dragsters to speeds exceeding three hundred twenty-five miles per hour in less than five seconds (Arneson 144). The average operator of an automobile will never need the extreme performance of dragsters, but the evident display of speed in the sport of drag racing funds a multi-billion dollar industry that is always a step ahead of what the public will receive on the showroom floors. When asked if he believes automobiles are following a trend to become more fuel efficient and less powerful, Joe Hayes insists, “In the past, that is the way things worked; power was always a trade off for efficiency, but not so much these days. I think the automakers are learning that better efficiency not only needs more power, but also better gas mileage.” Hayes believes that automotive efficiency is more important than speed, safety, or reliability alone.
Fuel-efficient automobiles are affordable to the general public, and there will always be a segment of the market seeking fast vehicles. Fast automobiles also need to perform on the streets in America, and the performance braking, steering, and suspension products hold the second-largest share, $7.27 billion, in the automotive aftermarket industry (Gilroy). Another key component to efficiency and speed is aerodynamic design. R. H. Barnard emphasizes, “Energy efficiency can be improved with low drag, and low levels of wind noise improve passenger comfort.”
Passenger comfort, however, is negligible if the automobile is not safe for public use. To ensure standards of safety are met, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration regulates requirements for vehicles to be sold in America. Passenger motor vehicles undergo inspections to test braking and suspension systems and tire and wheel assemblies. In addition to the strict regulations imposed on the mechanical construction of automobiles, safety standards for an average male, average female, three-year-old child, nine-month-old child, six-month-old infant, and newborn infant are imposed in the form of front and side impact tests (“Title”). In the United Kingdom, similar tests are performed, and Marco Ferarri of Corus Group suggests, “Britain’s car owners value the safety features of their cars. They think drivers and vulnerable road users will be even safer in this century. Experts agree, but ascribe future influence upon safety more to local authority planners than to car designers. They see legislation, telematics, and environmental issues as having more influence on safety.”
Legislation, telematics, and environmental issues also have a major impact on automotive reliability. Many states demand vehicle emissions testing in return for government funding of roads systems. To receive federal grants for highway funding, many states require automotive exhaust emissions testing (“Title”). The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also requires a minimum fuel economy for automobiles, as stated in Title forty-nine, Parts five hundred thirty-one through five hundred thirty-three. Automotive reliability is defined by longer servicing interims and more practical uses. Joe Hayes endorses alternative fuels for reliable and cost-effective means of powering automobiles.
The alternative fuels currently being tested and refined are ethanol, methanol, compressed natural gas, bio-diesel, electricity, and hydrogen. Mike Allen, contributor to Popular Mechanics, has performed an analysis on which of these fuels will best suit the needs of Americans. Ethanol is grain alcohol mixed with gasoline at an eighty-five percent alcohol to fifteen percent gasoline mixture known as “E85.” Though E85 itself is not expensive to manufacture, the components needed to make this fuel work with automobiles are quite expensive. Similar to ethanol, methanol is wood alcohol mixed with gasoline at an eighty-five percent alcohol to fifteen percent gasoline mixture known as “M85,” and both methanol and ethanol share similar outlooks. (Allen).
A different form of fuel, natural gas, is actually compressed natural gas (CNG). Compressed natural gas is what is used in heating homes, and is much less expensive than the gasoline currently used to fuel automobiles. CNG is not used today because its benefits are short term, and the cost to distribute it would far exceed its value. Like petrol-based fuels, CNG is non-renewable, and like any fuel, a refill station will be needed for public use. The cost to build a compressed natural gas infrastructure for distribution is too high to consider for use in America’s highway system (Allen).
Aside from alcohols and natural gases, other natural sources for fuel are available. Bio-diesel fuels are completely renewable, and they are extracted from vegetable oils and chicken fat. Again the cost of bio-diesel fuel makes it a cloudy form of alternative fuel. A single gallon of bio-diesel costs over six dollars to make, but if the demand for this fuel increases, the price will decrease, making it a hopeful alternative fuel in the future (Allen).
The two most hopeful alternative fuels are electricity and hydrogen. For reliable electric vehicles to make their way to the market, a longer lasting, more powerful battery pack must be invented, and lower production costs will be needed to create and transport the energy (Allen). DuPont has created a new Advanced Automotive Electrical & Electronics department driven to design electric-powered vehicles as a means of alternative fuel. The outlook for electric power is hopeful in the future as the technological costs associated with its production decrease. Also, many automakers have collaborated with DuPont for the development of the new electric technology (“Advanced”).
Only General Motors has used hydrogen as a means of fuel since the German airships during World War I. The reason hydrogen is immediately ruled out of contention with other alternative fuels is its highly explosive reaction to pressure changes. Hydrogen is also very expensive. It currently costs $1.20 to travel twenty miles on a hydrogen fuel cell. Hydrogen must be the future fuel in the long term, however, since it is the only fully renewable resource in abundance to power the globe. (Allen).
Many experts believe petrol-based fuels are the best fuel for now, electricity is the best fuel in the near future, and hydrogen is the ultimate fuel in the far future; the Center for Auto Research, David E. Cole argues, “If gasoline prices get too high and we look at other fuels- like hydrogen- you can expect that oil-producing nations will reduce our fuel costs. They want to continue to pump oil out, pump dollars in, and then could see the hydrogen economy as a threat” (qtd. in Allen). Joe Hayes agrees with Cole, and also maintains, “The whole bio-diesel thing is big now- and alcohol-based fuels- but I really think they will be too costly to manufacture on a large scale; so electric vehicles [will be the vehicle power in the near future].”
Like the fuels of the future, the automobile itself must be affordable to the general public. Marco Ferrari believes regional production and demographic marketing will guide the automotive industry in the very near future. Drivers in the South tend to enjoy the automobile more because of less traffic congestion, while drivers in the densely populated cities get very little enjoyment out of an automobile ride. Families tend to purchase vehicles because of the safety and accommodating features available. Younger drivers tend to sway towards sporty cars that are fun to drive, but they have less money to invest in an automobile. With insight into the marketing of the automotive industry, automakers can build vehicles that they know will sell, which means the automakers produce less waste; this in turn correlates to more production efficiency and lower costs across the board (Ferarri).
The future of the automotive industry is defined by innovations in automotive design. Automotive travel is the number one source of transportation in America, and the consumer directs the future of the automotive market. The average consumer rates automobiles on attributed speed, safety, reliability, and affordability, and many drivers are more than just drivers; they are enthusiasts. The automotive aftermarket is reaching a thirty billion dollar industry, and with no immediate alternative fuel, no immediate changes to lower this figure are evident (Gilroy).
Works Cited
“Advanced Automotive Electrical & Electronics (AAEE).” DuPont. 2006. 17 Sept. 2006 .
Allen, Mike. “How Far Can You Drive on a Bushel of Corn?” Popular Mechanics May 2006. 17 Sept. 2006 .
Arneson, Erik. John Force: The Straight Story of Drag Racing’s 300-MPH Superstar. St. Paul: Motorbooks, 2006. 144.
Barnard, R. H. “Aerodynamic Considerations.” Car Design Online. 2006. Car Design Online. 14 Sept. 2006 .
Ferarri, Marco. “2020 Vision.” Corus Group. Dec. 1999. Corus Automotive. 16 Sept. 2006 .
Gilroy, Amy. “SEMA Cites 7.7% Gain in Auto Performance, Accessories.” Consumer Electronics 3 May 2004. MasterFILE Premier. Galileo. 18 Sept. 2006 < http:// www.galileo.usg.edu >.
Hayes, Joseph. Telephone interview. 19 Sept. 2006.
“Title 49, Codes of Federal Regulations.” National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 2006. Department of Transportation. 17 Sept. 2006 .
“Welcome to the Track-Day Era.” AutoWeek 2 Feb. 2006: 17-17. MasterFILE Premier. Galileo. 18 Sept. 2006 < http://www.galileo.usg.edu >.