Plastics Make Lighter, More Compact Engines

01 October 2003

The new Porsche Cayenne, representing the car maker's first entry into
the growing sports utility vehicle market, is powered by a lightweight,
compact yet powerful V8 engine, featuring components made from nylon. The
air intake manifold and rocker covers were developed jointly by Porsche,
automotive components supplier Mahle and DuPont, and feature the use of
glass-reinforced Zytel, a DuPont nylon resin.

The air intake manifold components are made from a special grade of 30%
glass reinforced Zytel nylon resin that is resistant to hydrolysis and
hot oil, as well as being very heat stable. Meanwhile, a 35% glass
reinforced grade of Zytel for the rocker covers ensures maximum rigidity,
good oil resistance and dimensional stability. Mahle's rocker cover
construction includes an internal ribbed structure, which reduces
vibration; this, combined with Zytel's own acoustic properties, helps to
minimise noise emission from this section of the engine.

DuPont

Mahle Filtersysteme