Aluminum is the big winner in this year’s ranking of the “10 Best Engines” by Ward's Automotive Group. Eight of the 10 engines recognized by Ward’s are made of aluminum, each with aluminum head. Aluminum’s lightweight, high-strength and corrosion resistant properties make it attractive for a variety of auto applications including engine manufacturing as automakers are increasingly looking to improve fuel economy while maintaining safety and performance.
“It’s no surprise that nearly all of the engines on Ward’s list are all-aluminum. The auto industry relies more every year on aluminum to improve fuel economy without sacrificing the performance and safety that customers expect,” said Randall Scheps, chairman of The Aluminum Association’s Aluminum Transportation Group and director of ground transportation for Alcoa. “Time and time again, aluminum’s value proposition for engines, components and body panels is recognized by leading automakers, contributing to its nearly 40 years of uninterrupted growth in North America.”
Automakers continue to see the benefits of lightweighting with aluminum, as evidenced by Ford’s recent announcement to include a 5.4-liter all-aluminum engine in the 2011 Shelby GT500. The new engine is 102 pounds lighter than its predecessor’s cast-iron engine, delivering a better power-to-weight ratio, improved fuel economy, acceleration, handling and steering precision. In fact, the use of aluminum in vehicle engines has grown over the past three years. A study commissioned by The Aluminum Association, Inc., last year, and released by Ducker Worldwide, showed that, on a component basis, aluminum use for engine blocks has had the largest increase with penetration reaching nearly 70 percent.
In the same study, worldwide aluminum content was projected to grow up to 28 to 30 billion pounds per year – from the current 16 to 17 billion pounds – through 2020.
Ranking as the world leader in aluminum penetration in vehicles, North America produces more than 50 vehicles that contain more than 10 percent aluminum content.
