Jalopnik: Carbon Fiber

Design Student Creates Carbon Fiber Car Seat For Babies

Matt Hardigree — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:30:00 EST

This carbon fiber child's safety car seat, created by Rory Craig of the Art Center College of Design, is not an official Sparco product but rather a clever prototype. Though we're a bit fatigued with all of the carbon fiber options out there (we're looking at you carbon fiber toilet), this particular model is admittedly well-designed. Meant to appeal to racing enthusiasts, the carbon fiber isn't even the best part. The child seat adjusts from an infant seat to a toddler model to a booster seat, which allows the buyer to save some of the money they just forked over for a safety device made of an outrageously expensive material. Craig is trying to pitch the idea to Sparco and has fictitiously named it the "Sparco Wingman" in order to grab their attention. We think they should do it, if only to encourage Lewis Hamilton and his Pussycat Dolls girlfriend to make sexy fast babies. A closer look at the functionality below the jump.

For more on this carbon fiber seat check out CarbonFiberGear.com]

HRE Creates First Production Carbon Fiber Wheel Set

Matt Hardigree — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 11:00:00 EST

You can now add wheels to the list of random car parts (mirrors, spoilers and toilets) made of carbon fiber and attached to exotic cars and Honda Civics. These wheels, featuring an outer rim made of carbon fiber and a regular wheel face with magnesium hub, are the work of HRE/Dymag and debuted at SEMA last week as the first production carbon fiber wheels. How much for a set of these bad boys?

If you've got the need or desire for 19" and 20" wheels you can pick up a set for somewhere between $2,500 and $4,000 per wheel (somewhere around $10,000 to $16,000 for a set of four). They go on sale in January and with a weight of only 21 pounds it's a great way to shave some pounds for, you know, a mere $16,000. [Source: Carbon FIber Gear]

Seibon Dry-Look Carbon Fiber Makes Godzilla Look Cheap

Mark Arnold — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 12:00:00 EDT

Uh-oh, more folks messing with Godzilla. At first we liked the way the dry carbon fiber hood and trunk on this Nissan GT-R looked compared to the more popular glossy stuff. But the more we stare at it, the more we think it looks kinda cheap. We're reminded of guys driving around in Honda Civic coupes with carbon fiber hoods that were once glossy but have since faded in the sun. That's not good considering these parts from Seibon are so new they're not even out yet. Perhaps it's just that the rest of the car doesn't match the dry carbon fiber?

If they'd made the rest of the car flat black it would match better. Or perhaps they should have removed the rear wing. Do you think it would look better with normal "wet" carbon fiber, or is there a way to salvage the "dry" look? [via GTRblog]

Repeat: Do Not Mess With The Nissan GT-R

Travis Hudson — Thu, 08 May 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Despite the owner's manual for the Nissan GT-R strictly forbidding it, a Japanese company has gone ahead and released a carbon fiber kit for Godzilla himself, defying everything Nissan stands for this with vehicle. Arios is the company behind this mess. Despite it not being a giant wing or massive fender flairs, the inclusion of carbon fiber front and sideskirts is enough to make every Nissan designer crap their pants, simultaneously. Along with the kit, Arios offers to swap the new GT-R front emblem with the older one from the Skyline GT-R KPCG10. Please. [WCF]

Bugatti EB110 SS In Naked Carbon Fiber Laughs At Your Veyron

Mark Arnold — Mon, 05 May 2008 18:00:00 EDT

While the current hypercar mega-star, the Bugatti Veyron, may be a very impressive piece of machinery, the kids today often forget all about its predecessor. Yes, we're talking about the good ol' EB110, from the decade that brought us the Ferrari F50, Porsche 911 GT1, and McLaren F1. Since then, we've moved onwards and upwards— or have we? While a modern hypercar wafts along with a cozy cabin and an excess reserve of power, the definitive essence of the '90s was that of an unforgiving hardcore attitude. Case in point, this naked Bugatti EB110 Super Sport.

You can forget all about those silly Sang Noir, Pur Sang, or Hermes editon Veyrons. You want a special edition? Have your EB110 GT turned into a Super Sport by Dauer, and you'll up the power of that 3.5-liter V12 from 560 HP up to 650 HP. Sure, you may get 1001 HP from that W16 in a Veyron, but at nearly 4200 pounds, a light car it is not. By comparison, the EB110 SS weighs about 1000 pounds less than that, partially thanks to 330 pounds of weight shed from the GT model. Yet, this still has all the mechanical whiz-bang components like quad-turbos and all-wheel-drive. So while this may be the only unpainted example in existence, if you're lucky enough to get your hands on one of the 30 other units you'll likely be in for an experience much more raw and involving than anything the cocoon of a Veyron can offer.
[via supercars.net]

2009 Corvette ZR1 Raptured, Leaves Behind Carefully Labeled Carbon Fiber Clothes

Ben Wojdyla — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:00:00 EDT

Here's a pretty slick wall display from Plasan, the supplier of the carbon fiber parts for the 2009 Corvette ZR1. Instead of just stacking their stuff on the floor and making a path for people to walk through, like we do in the home office, they decided to utilize the wonders of vertical storage and even went all the way with a clever labeling scheme. Here we find out the weights of all the carbon fiber bits they supply for the mega-Vette.

Jalopnik Drives Hybrid Technologies Lithium-Powered Super Car

Ben Wojdyla — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 09:00:00 EDT

Hardigree and I drove our respective red supercars at roughly the same time yesterday. While he went for the flashy Audi R8 V12 LeMans TDI Prototype and was escorted through traffic like a Russian Oil Baron by a phalanx of Audi Q7s, I hopped into the Hybrid Technologies Lithium Powered Super Car with the guy who built it. There was no top, so I enjoyed the welcome good weather—at last!—in NYC. OK, maybe the name needs a little work, but the car itself was a hoot to drive.

"Yeah, go slow over this cable tray cause the nose is so low, but in the tunnel why don't you punch it and see what it can do"—those were the orders of the cars' keeper gave. Though styling is not necessarily the car's strong point, its simplicity and performance are respectable. The car starts with a tubular space frame and adds a 78 kW direct drive, a three-phase brushless A/C motor powered by 10 maintenance-free lithium ion battery packs. Those batteries will charge by way of 120V power in 8-10 hours and run for 100 miles on a charge. All of that is shrouded under a completely carbon-fiber body, which encases leather-clad seating. The whole shebang weighs in at 2300 lbs. and considering electric motors make max torque at zero RPM, this thing scoots pretty well. 0-60 will pass in about 5 seconds, and the car has a top speed around 120 mph.

Now that the formalities are out of the way, we're ready to go out on a limb and say this is a better concept car than Die-Hardigree-with-a-Vengence's obnoxious Audi. Lets look at it objectively. The Audi's glorious V12 turbo diesel has been neutered and runs at a mere 250 HP; the electric car runs wide open with full power off the line. The Audi is constructed of soft, malleable aluminum; the electric car is fabricated of a race-car style tube frame and delicious crunchy carbon fiber. The seats are firm but nonadjustable, a clever strategy to simplify operation and cut a substantial amount of waeight compared to the leather ensconced, powered Audi helms. Whereas weight like that forces the audi to add baloney like power steering and power brakes, the little pop top is all direct connect. the steering is heavy as are the brakes, but that just makes you feel like Juan Fangio in his '57 win at Monaco. Sure it's simple and unrefined, but that means it's also simple and unrefined. The utter lack of pretension and the delightfully direct nature of the car was refreshing. Topping it off, we folded in behind the mob squad surrounding the Audi while in traffic, and we were the ones who got the natives asking about it. Clearly, the electric emerges triumphant. [Hybrid Technologies]

Caparo T1 adopts F1 style crumple zone

Wes Siler — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:30:00 EST

Now this is our kind of safety package, not an overly enthusiastic traction controls system or side-curtain airbag in site. The Caparo T1 relies instead on a Formula 1 style carbon fiber an aluminum honeycomb tub surrounded by a crumple zone made from the same material. Carbon is again employed in the nose, which models itself on the crushable items found on the front of F1 cars. Retardation is supplied by AP racing 14-inch disks all round, with 6 piston calipers at the front, 4 at the rear, capable of hauling the car down from 100mph in under 3 seconds. To ensure that drivers are able to make the most of the T1's incredible handling and braking abilities, Caparo run a mandatory -yes that means everyone - training course for potential customers.

"Even though the T1 is exceptionally light at around 570kg depending on specification, the very high speeds it is capable of mean that conventional road car safety systems can not manage the extreme levels of kinetic energy that could be involved in a crash," explains vehicle co-designer Ben Scott-Geddes. "To solve this, we have incorporated many of the safety systems proven in Formula One, where drivers regularly walk away from horrific accidents that would be fatal in normal road cars."

We'd love to see more mainstream manufacturers adopt a similar, cost-no-object approach to safety. In the average road car, unless you're extremely lucky, you're going kaput at anything over about 50mph.

Caparo

McLaren F1

Jonny Lieberman — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 12:00:00 EST

For the last several weeks we've been sticking with the classics. Cars like the Facel Vega HK500, Mercedes-Benz 300 SL and the all-conquering Bugatti Royale — vehicles that aren't so much pure fantasy as they are automotive high water marks. This week we're turning our attention to a modern classic, and the more things change... Back when Farago first launched our little Fantasy Garage, there was no question than an F1 would (someday) grace our car hole. The McLaren F1 should actually be synonymous inside every pistonhead's head with the word "Fantasy." In point of fact, it very well might be the greatest supercar ever made. Which may be why the Sultan of Brunei owns eight of 'em. Have a look.

Like most important ideas, the McLaren F1 was conceived on the back of a napkin. While waiting for a plane, designer and chief engineer Gordon Murray proposed the idea of building the very best, ultimate, super duper driver's car ever to McLaren's CEO Ron Dennis. Ron bit. The idea wasn't new or earth shaking: stick lots of power into a light vehicle to give (horribly wealthy) enthusiasts the ride of a lifetime. Carroll Shelby had been doing exactly that for years. However, what did make the turf move was the execution that is best described as flawless. No, better than flawless. The F1 is supercar 2.0.

What's so special? Well, actually, everything - but we'll break it down for you, starting with the amazing engine. From the start, Murray specified that the engine had to be normally aspirated. Forced induction, while creating gobs and gobs of power, does have a few downsides. One issue is that as complexity increases reliability correspondingly decreases. Certainly not a deal breaker but if your goal is to create the greatest driver's car in history, time spent in the shop is bad. But the other problem with super and turbochargers is that when they are spinning, the driver has less control over the engine as an additional layer of buffering is inserted between the mill and the driver's right foot. Not cool, said Gordon Murray.

Murray shopped around for an engine, initially trying with Honda and then Isuzu. Honda was a real possibility, as their engines had been powering McLaren's Formula 1 cars for some time. Honda eventually backed away and McLaren decided that as nifty as Isuzu's 3.5-liter V12 would be, they needed to go with a manufacturer that had racing cred. Enter BMW and their M Division. Who better to build you an engine? Murray specified an output of 550 hp and a weight of 250 kilogram (550 pounds). The boffins of Bimmer handed him back a 585 pound, 6.1-liter all-aluminum V12 mill with DOHC and variable timing for all 48 valves that cranked 627 horses and 480 ft-lb. of torque. Murray took it.

Obviously, a customized M70 is a pretty spectacular motor. But, if your aim is to produce the very best driver's car in the world then it is going to take much more than big power.

The McLaren F1 was the very first production car to feature a carbon fiber monocoque chassis that was derived from McLaren's successful race cars. In case you are wondering, the word monocoque is French for "single shell." What that means in car terms is that the vehicle's body actually supports some of the stress load, rather than building a truss and then covering it with non-load bearing skin. That's right; it's a fancy French way of saying "unibody." But building it from then hyper exotic carbon fiber was a major breakthrough, as this gave the F1 an unparalleled power-to-weight ratio. How unparalleled? The F1 debuted in 1994 with a power-to-weight ration of 501 hp/ton. When the Ferrari Enzo debuted in 2002, it achieved "only" 434 hp/ton. It took the maniac Bugatti Veyron with its 530 hp/ton to best the F1 (just for fun, the SSC Ultimate Aero TT boasts a ludicrous power-to-weight ratio of 1003 hp/ton).

If you haven't figured it out by now, the McLaren F1 is fast. Actually, calling the F1 "fast" is like calling Mariusz Pudzianowski "strong." So, let's revise that to read the McLaren F1 is insane. 0-60 happens in 3.2 seconds. 0-100 in 6.3. The quarter mile is dispatched with in 11.1 seconds at 138 mph. 0-150 takes just 12.8 seconds, and 0-200 mph happens in 28 seconds flat. But of course, the F1 isn't done yet, not hardly. On a long enough straight the McLaren F1 hits 240 mph. In 1994! And that's just the "regular" version.

Disregarding the 7 prototypes, McLaren built just 100 F1s. 72 "normal" cars and 28 modified racers. 5 LM or "LeMans" cars were constructed. The F1 LMs were over 100 pounds lighter (the standard F1 weighed in at a Lotus-like 2513 pounds). The LMs also had their engines tweaked to the tune of 680 hp. A new transaxle meant that the top speed was down to just 231 mph, but it could hit 100 mph in just 5.9 seconds, a world record. The F1 LM could also go 0-100-0 mph in 8.5 seconds, also a world record. All the LMs were painted Papaya orange except for the two sold to the Sultan of Brunei which are painted black and spaz.

As McLaren was indeed a race car maker, 28 F1 GTR races cars were built, one of which won the 1995 24 Hours of LeMans. A whopping 2 homologation F1 GT cars were built. They were essentially wingless, road going versions of the long-tailed, third generation GTRs. Interestingly, most of the GTRs once retired were converted to street use by adding mufflers and removing air-restrictors.

And we could ramble on all day long. The F1 was one of the first production cars to make use of downforce as a performance aid. The engine produces so much heat that gold foil from the Space Shuttle is used to shield the engine compartment. It generates over 1.3 Gs of lateral acceleration. The driver sits in the middle while his wife and mistress are seated behind him on either side. Nearly a decade and a half after it debuted, the F1 is the fourth fastest car in the world. It's got flippin' matched luggage that fits smartly into hidden side compartments. But all you really need to know before voting yes or no is that the McLaren F1 held the undisputed title of fastest production car in the world for twelve years. That's longer than any other car ever has. Oh snap! One more thing, the F1 had a real gearbox complete with a clutch. No stinkin' flappy paddles. Happy voting.

Tiff Needell Comparing the McLaren F1 to the Ferrari Enzo

[The Jalopnik Fantasy Garage appears every Wednesday. Readers vote the cars in or out. The idea is that we'll have 50 cars in our Fantasy Garage, the world's greatest mechanic and endless wads of cash. Would you like to nominate a car for the Fantasy Garage? Write tips@jalopnik.com with the subject line "Fantasy."]

How To Wrap Your Car Mirrors In Carbon Fiber

Ray Wert — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 10:45:00 EST

So we noticed at SEMA this year that carbon fiber has become the new matte black. And if you remember, as we learned from SEMA last year, matte black is the new black. Now, because of a desire for the "carbon fiber look" — lovers of tuners of all shapes, colors and chrome appendages are taking the time-honored tradition of finding ways to lighten their cars — and throwing them out the window. Most of us already know that instead of fabricating new carbon-fiber parts, many lovers of the over-pimped are merely wrapping their pre-existing car parts in carbon-fiber. Yay, 1.25 times the weight, and 1.25 times less performance. Anyway — if you happen to be one of the ~~silly people~~ interested, the folks over at VolvoSpeed have put together a little "How-To" on wrapping your car parts in carbon-fiber. Although it may seem like we're aiding and abetting, we've gone and galleried 'em up below in the hopes of showing the little ones what not to do with their side mirrors. You know — for the kids. Don't follow along with the step-by-step instructions under each one of the pictures.
[via VolvoSpeed]

SEMA 2007: ENDLESS APPLICATION POTENTIAL!

Mike Bumbeck — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 14:45:00 EDT

Carbonetic is an offshoot of Across, which produces carbon-carbon composites using a patented method. The translation is that since they can make nearly anything out of carbon-carbon, they can also produce a series of clutches, limited slip differentials, and brake pads using the same stuff. What impressed us the most was the multiplate clutch setup. The usually heavy steel floater center plate discs in carbon-carbon weigh almost nothing. Picking one up makes for a hand does not believe the eye kind of thing. Carbonetic also has a line of single plate street clutches using sprung hubs and carbon composite for the under 500 horsepower cars out in the garage or driveway. [Carbonetic]

Pagani Reveals New Zonda R Renderings

Jonny Lieberman — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 12:15:16 EDT

Because the old Zonda wasn't bat guano enough, right? This sucker seems to have been born from the same design chic that hatched the Countach 5000QV. That is to say, "Josepi, if you find any flat surfaces, put a scoop in 'em. Also, definitely needs more wing." Apparently more power (up to 750 horses) and carbon fiber, too. The new track-focused Zonda is longer and wider than the "regular" Zonda. In fact, the two cars will only share 10% of their parts. We just like how it looks a tiny bit like an Audi R10, because we so love the Audi R10. We'll supposedly be seeing this particular track-car next spring at the Geneva Auto Show. [Motor Authority]

Turn Your Heap into an Evo MR!

Davey G. Johnson — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 21:00:00 EDT

By and large we're not big fans of adding carbon-fiber gewgaws and doohickies to vehicles that honestly don't need them. But for readers of Max Power, it seems to be a pretty common pastime. Witness this fine example of CF-accesorization — a vortex generator a la Mitsu's AWD road-torcher that can be fitted to your ride. We can't wait to see our first Aveo so equipped. [Monster Modz via Max Power]

Bad News For Rich Guys: Cost Of Carbon Fiber Quadruples

Jonny Lieberman — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 14:30:00 EDT

Hey Blake, you might want to hold off on your order for the new Lamborghini Murcielago Superveloce. Looks like Boeing and Airbus are snapping up all the super lightweight resin they can get their hands on. The price per pound for the good stuff has mushroomed from $5 to $20. There is a certain irony to this story. As you may know, the filthy rich the world over are using private aircraft more and more. Yet commercial planes are still able to piss them off. We think its a pity, not for the rich, but for the you and mes, as a mega-lightweight econobox with fantastic mileage would be 99 times better than a dirty old hybrid. Stupid Adam Smith. – Jonny Lieberman

Aircraft orders put carbon fiber prices in steep climb [USA Today]

More Carbon Fiber in the Future?

Davey G. Johnson — Mon, 06 Mar 2006 14:53:04 EST

The whiz kids down in Oak Ridge, TN, at a lab originally established to enrich and extract the uranium 235 used to incinerate/ irradiate Hiroshima, is working with a consortium of auto manufacturers on ways to make carbon fiber cheaper, and thus a more viable option for everyday vehicle construction. Currently, commercial-grade carbon fiber's running around 8 bucks a pound; the goal is to drop the price by three to five dollars and make it easier to work with on a large scale.

Carbon fiber cars could put US on highway to efficiency [Physorg]

Related:
I Travel At Extreme Speed: The Koenigsegg CCX [Internal]

USA Today on the Carbon Fiber Boom

Mike Spinelli — Tue, 26 Jul 2005 11:21:42 EDT

If 1967's "The Graduate" were remade in 2005, Benjamin Braddock would probably drive a Scion instead of an Alfa Duetto (natch), and the poolside career advice he recieved would have encompassed two words instead of one: "carbon fiber," not "plastics." These days, carbon-fiber — which costs nearly 10 times more than steel — is the ultimate prestige accessory. Carmakers like Porsche and Ferrari and BMW (M6 roof, pictured) have been using the megabucks material to lighten up their supercars, and aftermarket suppliers are selling truckloads of expensive carbon-fiber doodads like hoods and body panels. What's next for this space-age material, other than $500 day-glo interior trim?

Carbon fiber sparkles with diamondlike appeal [USA Today]