Gorilla Glass is a common feature on most of the high end smart-phones today. How would you react if the same glass featured on a car? Ford is all set to introduce the Corning Gorilla Glass on their highly anticipated 2017 GT supercar. The Gorilla Glass will be used on the front windshield and the rear engine cover.
The Gorilla Glass by Corning is 30% lighter than the conventional glass apart from being scratch resistant, tough and more durable. Officially known as the Corning Gorilla Glass hybrid windscreen, the glass has a thickness of 3-4 mm as compared to the traditional 4-6 mm of thickness. This reduction in the thickness helps in the sizeable reduction of weight and also contributes to enhanced vehicle handling, improved fuel efficiency and reduced risk of glass damage. The Gorilla Glass Hybrid is about 25-50 % thinner and has strength greater than the existing laminate.
Conventional windshields consist of 2 layers of annealed glass stuck with the help of a clear bonding agent while the new hybrid glass uses a multi-layer approach. This approach includes a pane of toughened automotive grade hybrid that acts as the strengthened inner layer whereas the outer layer features an annealed glass. The center features an advanced noise absorbing thermoplastic inter-layer. This results in a 32 % lighter windshield and rear engine cover than its competitors.
Reduction of weight in the windshield, engine cover and bulkhead glass on Ford GT positively impacts acceleration, fuel economy and braking performance. Reduction in weight also helps lower the center of gravity and contributes to the car’s agility. The new technology was tested over stone and in rough road conditions, and had to endure specific projectile, rollover and wind tunnel testing. In addition to the new technology for the glass of the GT, Ford is using a unique glass combination for the bulkhead panel between the passenger cell and engine bay.
Here is a video of the Ford GT that features the Corning Gorilla Glass:
What do you think about this new development by Ford? Will this development make it to other models?
Let us know your views through the comments section.