Copper 0 - Aluminum 2
Hello dear Wonderers,
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There is something quite substantial changing in the cars we are driving. An increasing number of manufacturers are swapping out good old copper wiring for aluminum. Aluminum, the stuff that holds your coke or your beer? Yes, that light-weight and super recyclable material is making its way into our vehicles. Some big names like BMW and Ferrari are leading the way.
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Let's start with the obvious question, why? There is a good reason we have been using copper all this time, it's just better at conducting electricity to the right place. At only about 60% of the conductivity you need more aluminum to reach the same result. While that might be true, aluminum holds a big advantage over copper. Even with the extra material needed, it is still considerably lighter for the same performance. And weight matters for a player like Ferrari. Replacing the copper in the wiring harness has allowed them to shed 20% of the weight of the cabling. In sportscars every kilogram they can shed is a win for handling and performance.
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Keeping weight down is always a good thing, not just for sporty rides. What you don't have to carry around over the lifetime of the car is a win for your checkbook and the environment. But is it really worth the switching effort for the likes of Tesla, BMW or Stellantis? The answer would be a resounding yes! The copper market is facing a perfect storm. On the one hand demand is rapidly increasing due to the buildout of the green electrified economy. On the other side of the equation, increasing the production from new and old mines and building out the corresponding supply chain is hard and especially slow work. The ideal scenario for the copper price to spike and a huge gap to open up between the two material sources. The price of aluminum is now only about one fourth the price of copper. Even if you need a bit more of the stuff to get the job done, you can understand why manufacturers are falling all over each other to make the jump.
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Autoevolution article
Grtz
Pieter
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