[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/latest-news\/too-much-plastic-in-modern-cars\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/latest-news\/too-much-plastic-in-modern-cars\/","headline":"Too Much Plastic In Modern Cars?","name":"Too Much Plastic In Modern Cars?","description":"What is a car made of? Your first instinct may be to say metal, but that\u2019s not quite as true as it used to be… Modern-day motors are as riddled with plastic as they ever have been and not all of us are convinced that this is a good thing. Manufacturers may argue this is great for keeping costs low, improving safety and reducing weight but no matter what they say, we generally don\u2019t associate plastic with quality. Despite this, […]","datePublished":"2018-11-27","dateModified":"2018-11-27","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/author\/isabelle-lawrence\/#Person","name":"Isabelle Lawrence","url":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/author\/isabelle-lawrence\/","identifier":30,"description":"Max Wheeler is a leading motoring journalist and classic car specialist at Smart Motoring, renowned for his sharp insight and infectious passion for all things automotive. With years of experience covering motoring news, supercars, and the enduring legacy of classic cars, Max brings stories to life with style and authority. Whether it\u2019s the roar of a Lamborghini, the elegance of an Aston Martin DB5, or the cultural impact of vintage motoring icons, he delivers expert commentary that inspires enthusiasts and collectors alike. Dedicated to celebrating the heritage and future of driving, Max Wheeler is your trusted voice for classic car news and beyond.","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8d331506e3c530b5ec4930c30a01ed8cc29b0537227573ae5da98f559e681401?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8d331506e3c530b5ec4930c30a01ed8cc29b0537227573ae5da98f559e681401?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Smart Motoring","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/smart-motoring_news_logo_g-e1765846726493.webp","url":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/smart-motoring_news_logo_g-e1765846726493.webp","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Mini-Cooper-2018-feature.jpg","url":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Mini-Cooper-2018-feature.jpg","height":520,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/latest-news\/too-much-plastic-in-modern-cars\/","about":["BLOG","Cars","LATEST CAR NEWS"],"wordCount":791,"keywords":["Benefits of plastic in cars","Cons of plastic in cars","Too Much Plastic In Modern Cars"],"articleBody":"What is a car made of? Your first instinct may be to say metal, but that\u2019s not quite as true as it used to be…Modern-day motors are as riddled with plastic as they ever have been and not all of us are convinced that this is a good thing. Manufacturers may argue this is great for keeping costs low, improving safety and reducing weight but no matter what they say, we generally don\u2019t associate plastic with quality. Despite this, here we all are driving around in our plastic-fantastic automobiles! So it\u2019s time to pause for a minute and ask ourselves, have modern cars become too plastic?Plastic grilles and fake air intakesWe can\u2019t deny the many advantages of plastic over metal but we can say that virtually all modern cars feature a grille made of the cheap material. It doesn\u2019t matter if you own a Ford Fiesta or a Mercedes-AMG C63, chances are your grille is mostly, if not all, plastic. Even if it looks like chrome, it\u2019s likely just plastic wrapped in fake chrome.At the end of the day, it doesn\u2019t make much difference to most of us but there\u2019s always that feeling in the back of your mind that your car, which you paid thousands of pounds for, deserves more than a plastic face.A little less excusable are the fake air intakes which seem to be pointlessly stuck onto the front of our cars. BMW are particularly guilty of this, Audi and Mercedes are also repeat offenders and the current Honda Civic is a perfect example of stuck-on, non-functional fake air intakes. Is this what car styling has evolved to?Plastic trimIn most cases, you look at a car\u2019s bumper or trim and you wouldn\u2019t be able to tell whether it\u2019s plastic, metal or even fine china. That\u2019s because the part is painted to the same finish that the rest of the car is. Unfortunately, some car manufacturers think it\u2019s ok to \u201cshow off\u201d their plastic bumpers by leaving them in their defining matte grey form.This can be seen on many cars such as the Kia Sportage, Range Rover Evoque and the Mercedes GLA, just to name a few. Do you wish they made plastic less obvious or are you contempt with grey plastic trim?Interiors that scratch easyPlastics have been prominent in interiors for decades but that doesn\u2019t mean we like them. Not only can they look rather drab but they\u2019re usually as scratch resistant as a camera lens. The infamous \u201cpiano black\u201d finish (gloss black plastic) not only leaves your interior looking like a fingerprint-covered crime scene, but is also soft enough to be scratched by a soft tissue blowing in the wind. After just one year\u2019s use, your car\u2019s plastic will make any potential buyers think that the car was owned by Edward Scissorhands himself.I may end up eating my words here but even fake carbon fibre is an improvement upon matte or gloss finish plastic!Plastic in supercarsUsing plastic in sports cars may make a tremendous amount of sense due to the lightweight nature of the material but when your whip costs more than the average house, I\u2019m sure you don\u2019t want the bumpers, grilles and body panels to be made of it (and you certainly don\u2019t want to be seeing it in the interior). Name any supercar of the last 10 years and you\u2019ll be hard-pressed to find one without a fully plastic grille at the least.To add to the insult, if you damage these plastic pieces they\u2019ll end up costing more than a Ford Ka to replace or repair. Whether it\u2019s a multi-million pound Ferrari or an ultra-powerful McLaren, it doesn\u2019t matter if it looks like it was carved by the gods themselves, the fact is it\u2019s just as plastic as the toy model version.Benefits of plastic in carsSome of us may miss the \u201cgood old days\u201d of when cars were apparently forged of hard, dwarven steel in the depths of an erupting volcano. Well surprisingly, this never happened. Plastics are not all that different and in many ways, are far superior.They don\u2019t rust (which is a very significant advantage), they don\u2019t weigh nearly as much, they\u2019re softer and safer and they don\u2019t cost as much.This leaves us with our modern, plastic-clad cars running more efficiently, costing less and being safer in accidents. So other than the appearance, we don\u2019t really have much to complain about!What are your thoughts on plastic in cars? Let us know in the comments"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Latest News","item":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/latest-news\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Too Much Plastic In Modern Cars?","item":"https:\/\/smart-motoring.com\/latest-news\/too-much-plastic-in-modern-cars\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]