Toyota poised to expand aluminum

Jan. 6, 2015
A recent report indicates that automaker Toyota will greatly expand the use of aluminum in some of its cars over the next several years.

A report in Nikkei Asian Review indicates that automaker Toyota will greatly expand the use of aluminum in some of its cars over the next several years.

According to the report, Toyota will switch to aluminum for the hoods, bumpers, doors, and fenders of its Lexus vehicles when they are refreshed. Currently, Toyota uses aluminum hoods and other parts on its Japanese market Prius, the Scio FR-S, and some Lexus models.

The report in Nikkei stated that "Toyota plans ot invest several billion yen to set up assembly lines exclusively for aluminum parts at a plant outside Nagoya and elsewhere."

Switching to aluminum could reduce the weight of the vehicles by as much as 100kg, and improve fuel efficiency by 1km per liter. Nikkei estimated that the Lexus LS and GS would run between 500 to 700 meters more per liter.

As of this writing, Toyota had failed to respond to inquiries from Automotive Body Repair News about the expanded use of aluminum.

After the report in Nikkei Asian Review, shares of aluminum provider Alco surged 1.92 percent. Nippon Light Metal's valuation jumped 6.6 percent on the news.

In September, Toyota announced that the 2016 Lexus RX 350 crossover would have an aluminum hood and tailgate, and an all-new Camry would have an aluminum hood in 2018. Adding aluminum to those two models represents a step up in the volume of the metal the company would likely purchase.

The aluminum sheet for the Camry hood will likely come from a joint venture between Toyota Tsusho Corp., a trading company affiliated with Toyota Motor Corp., and Kobe Steel to produce more aluminum sheet metal in the U.S. Having a local manufacturer in the U.S. would help Toyota avoid production problems associated with aluminum shortages.

Training and equipment will be key for collision shops trying to prepare for the increase in aluminum in the market, particularly as Ford rolls out the new F-150.

"You have to make sure you have the proper tools in place, have the welding equipment, and make sure the technicians are trained on how to properly use that equipment," says Jason Baratanen, director of industry technical relations at I-CAR. I-CAR worked closely with Ford to develop early training programs for the aluminum-intensive F-150 well in advance of the vehicle's release.

"Some of the OEMs require a segregated area for aluminum repair, so you have to make sure you have the space for that," Baratanen continued. "Look at what types of vehicles are likely to come through you region, understand the market, and prepare for the types of vehicles you are likely to see."

I-CAR also worked with Jaguar and Audi on aluminum repair training, as well as General Motors.

"When Ford made the decision to make the switch to aluminum in the F-150, they reached out to us to develop that program," Bartanen says. "When they announced the truck last year, we followed that up with an announcement of the training that was available, and we taught more than 10,000 students in 2014 alone, all prior to the truck being in production. Ford thought this through really well, and there are shops that will be able to repair that truck the day it hits the street."

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