Carbon Fiber

Shaving pounds off of new vehicles is essential to meeting upcoming fuel economy standards, and the best way to reduce weight without compromising strength is via the use of advanced materials. Carbon fiber, for example, is both light and incredibly strong; the downside to carbon fiber is that...

BMW is revolutionizing the way it builds its cars in an effort to converge with increasing environmental consciousness as well as ever-tightening emissions regulations coming into action across the globe. We’ve already started to see this with its range of fuel-saving EfficientDynamics...

One of the most beneficial ways to improve the gas mileage of a car is to make it lighter, usually though the use of lighter construction materials. Not only will this save fuel but it has the potential to improve handling and braking performance as well. The only downside is that lighter materials...

BMW today announced it has taken a 15.16 percent stake in SGL Carbon SE, a leading manufacturer of carbon fiber and carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP). This move should surprise no one, as BMW has been closely partnered with SGL for several years now, but it does put a point on the near future...

The battle of lightweight materials is becoming one of many players. Companies like Mazda are striving to cut down weight with clever use of high-strength steels. Lotus has always gone the way of plastic composite bodies. Even magnesium has been suggested for reducing weight. Ferrari and McLaren...

Lamborghini has pioneered the use of carbon fiber in an entirely new direction, launching a line of travel bags for the affluent commuter.

The new wave of super-performance sports cars is going carbon fiber monocoque, including the McLaren MP4-12C and, of course, the Lamborghini Aventador. The result, as seen in these rolling chassis photos from Pebble Beach's concept lawn, is a whole lotta carbon fiber going on beneath the surface...

List of materials commonly associated with supercar construction: Carbon fiber, aluminum, fur, titanium, gold... Hang on, fur? Sounds ludicrous, but automotive designer Da Feng's latest supercar creation The Flake makes use of bodywork that acts in a fur-like manner to enhance aerodynamic...

BMW is aiming to become of the first manufacturers to begin high-volume production of carbon fiber car parts. The first part-carbon cars could be seen as soon as 2013. The cost and production time of carbon fiber has been reduced considerably over the last few years. The all-carbon McLaren MP4-12C...

A new process, called "forged composites," may revolutionize how carbon fiber parts are manufactured and used.

The world of automotive branded merchandise impresses and amuses in equal measure. For every sleek Porsche Design fountain pen, there's a Ferrari teddy bear to redress the balance. Now is the turn of the Mercedes-Benz AMG brand to offer a range of suitably high-tech merchandise for both business...

BMW used a special M Night event in Germany to reveal its new M3 Carbon Racing Technology (CRT) sedan just days before the 2011 Nurburgring 24 Hours endurance race, which took place this past weekend and in which BMW’s own M3 GT race car managed to finish in second place overall. We’ve...

Audi Sport has won the 24 Hours of Le Mans at the La Sarthe circuit in Northern France in one of the closest races in many years, but were it not for the strength and safety of the R18 TDI sports prototype, the weekend could have been very different. Less than an hour into the race, star driver...

Remember the awesome four-rotor Mazda 787B race car that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans 20 years ago and is now set to run the famous French circuit during a demonstration ahead of this weekend’s 24 hour race? Well, it turns out that the 787B’s appearance this weekend won't be the last...

Chinese M3 fans sure are a lucky bunch. Not only did they receive the previous BMW M3 Tiger Matte Edition, but now they get yet another special edition M3, the new BMW M3 Carbon Edition. As its name suggests, the latest car gets a number of carbon fiber components and accessories, most of which are...

Another day, another material that could lead to lighter vehicles of the future. The latest candidate? Magnesium. Magnesium componentry in cars is nothing new of course. Magnesium alloy wheels are popular in the motorsport world where light weight and impressive strength are paramount. Now...

A reputable dealership specializing in exclusive supercars and luxury models and based in San Diego, California has listed the Lamborghini Sesto Elemento as “incoming inventory”. This is the clearest indication yet that the stunning supercar will in fact be built, and backs up previous...

It’s official. The Porsche 918 Spyder, a plug-in hybrid supercar that so far has only been shown in concept form, is available for order and has been priced at $845,000 (not including destination and taxes). Porsche is only planning to build 918 examples of its stunning supercar so interested...

Carbon fiber is great. It's had applications across a whole spectrum of sports and technology and allows the construction of objects that are stronger and lighter than the equivalent metal object, and - lets face it - it looks pretty cool too. We may even see it becoming used in widespread car...

Carbon fiber is enjoying something of a birthday this year. With the release of the 2011 McLaren MP4-12C supercar, McLaren celebrates thirty years since they developed the first carbon fiber monocoque chassis, used in their 1981 Formula 1 racing car. They were then the first to develop a carbon...