2007 Hyundai QarmaQ Concept
If you thought “plastic” was only used as an adjective to describe the interiorsof inexpensive automobiles, or the material that toys and models are made from, be prepared for a big shock. At this year's Geneva Auto Show, Korea's largest automaker, Hyundai, unveiled a car that's mostly made from plastic. Just as Rinspeed teamed up with Bayer MaterialScience for its wild and wacky concepts, Hyundai has found a development partner for its latest concept, GE Plastics. GE supplied a plethora of highly advanced plastics that affect every last detail of the concept and believe it or not, it's the plastics that make the QarmaQ (not a typo) what it is; how it drives, how efficient it is, and how safe it is to be hit by – no joke.
What was initially to be called the HED-4, the QarmaQ is the product ofa two-door sports car crossed with an... um... crossover utility vehicle. Supposedly the styling is a hint at what the next generation Tiburon will look like, which is a good start. The front end of the QarmaQ has the same kind of angular, chunky headlamps as in the Accent hatchback, though the wide, six-sided grille – a styling feature that's popping up on a fair number of concepts – is like the VW IROC concept, but with a spar running straight through the center. Perhaps the coolest design feature is the C-shaped side windows, which uniquely drop below the car's beltline and continue running along the floor of the interior. Hyundai says that this delivers helicopter-like visibility, but we're wondering how safe this design is. Sure as Hyundai has stressed, Lexan is strong, but without the usual array of metal beams to protect passengers, we question how well it would withhold a T-Bone impact.
Beyond the Lexan inserts in the doors, the Alpine White switches to gray, which highlights the roof and the curvature of the rear fenders. It's an unusual twist on two-toned paint schemes, which usually divide the car at the window line or at the belt-line. Because the exterior and the interior bodywork are made from plastics, Hyundai and GE were able to keep the color schemes consistent. The dashboard's clean look is delivered from an extra-high gloss plastic, giving additional depth. Though leather and other more conventional materials are used in some areas of the interior, the seat inserts are made of high-tech silicone that's been treated with a special topcoat that reportedly gives it the feel of nubuck or leather. Matching the roof and fenders for color coordination, these inserts are teal.
The use of Lexan plastics throughout the vehicle shaved the curb weight of the car by 63 lbs, and the overall use of plastics makes the car 132 lbs lighter.
The QarmaQ is powered by a 2.0-liter inline-four turbodiesel engine that's capable of meeting the upcoming Euro5 emissions standards.
And then there's the issue of its environmental impact. Hyundai and GE have done theirpart by using recycled materials. The plastics used in the body were made from pop bottles and other recyclables; Hyundai says approximately 900 of them escaped the landfill and ended up as a part of the QarmaQ's body. The plastics also have another environmental benefit in that they don't need to be painted with lacquers and solvents that are detrimental to the environment, as dyes can be injected into the plastic when the body panels are being molded giving the car its color. Furthermore, as the color is a part of the material itself, stone chips and metal-revealing scratches are a thing of the past.
On another note, the Europeans are taking pedestrian safety as seriously as occupant safety these days, being that the governing body of all things motoring, the FIA, has tightened regulations regarding pedestrian crash test ratings. Regarded by stylists as the destroyer of beautiful automotive design, auto manufactures have come up with aclever way of maintaining low, swooping noses. Jaguar, for instance, couldn't compromise the design of its XK sports car, and have installed an under-hood airbag which props the hood up if a pedestrian impact is detected. The QarmaQ's pedestrian protection system doesn't involve any mechanical or electrical components, nor as its shape suggests have Hyundai's stylists taken the well-treaded path of a rounded nose and high, bulging hood. Pedestrian safety lies in the fact that the front bumper, grille and hood are made from a special thermoplastic resin called Xenoy iQ. It's half the thickness of traditional materials, and offers far better energy absorption than anything currently in use. What's more is that this elastic material is soft enough to cushion the impact of car on person, yet still remain strong enough to deflect collisions with objects.
If you're not at all interested in the kind of advancements made in thermoplasticsand other plastic-related materials, you may as well fast forward through the next bits right to the end. GE's extensive research and development has come up with some pretty advanced plastics, especially when considering a special glazing technique that gives plastic the ability to function as electrical medians and modules. For instance, the panoramic sunroof panel doubles as both an antenna for the on-board telematics, like the sat-nav and the stereo, plus it also has built-in ambiance lighting for the interior. Likewise, these properties allow the tailgate to house the brake lights, rear wiper, defroster and sonar park assist all in one contained unit. GE's plastics also have built-in temperature sensors that control the defrosting and defogging of the mirrors, not to mention monitor the temperature of the cabin to ensure that the temperature displayed on the climate control is actually the temperature in the car (i.e. 26 degrees is exactly 26 degrees).
There's a good chance that the QarmaQ isn't anything like what was going through your mind when the words plastic and car were put side by side at the beginning of this article. It certainly wasn't the case for me. It's hard to say what elements of the QarmaQ will end up in production; perhaps, as we mentioned, it' will be certain styling cues, or maybe the idea of a two-door crossover. More realistically, however, it will be the technologies that GE has developed that will end up on future vehicles, starting with cars debuting in 2008 thru 2014. There's potential for the elastic front end entering production sooner than later for its cost efficiency, and safety. Whatever the case, the QarmaQ shows that more plastic in a car can be a good thing.