Weight reduction of vehicles (WRV) has been an ongoing challenge since the beginning of automotive history, but public policy concerns have given it a new importance. Confronted by global warming and other environmental problems, today's automobile industry is intensively involved in R&D aimed at improving fuel economy. This paper explains the changes in the purpose of WRV and its relation to fuel economy. The current state of light metals usage and future work on related materials issues, especially corrosion resistance, are briefly mentioned.
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