70% of Galvanized Steel Could be Mandatory in Car Body Structure

Hello,

Automobile sector in India is developing very fast in last few years, thanks to new technologies due to which light weight highly fuel efficient cars are in Market.

Indian Market is very sensitive in case of Costs, manufacturers are keeping structure as light as possible to keep low kerb weight and to return high fuel efficiency.

As per New Proposal under the corrosion prevention rules for motor vehicles, the ministry of road transport and highways could make use of 70% galvanized steel for car body panels mandatory.

The proposal is pertaining to cars under Rs 10 lakh, that are built in India and is based and is based on a study conducted by IIT Mumbai in 2015 about how corrosion affects durability and safety of cars in India. 

Reports suggest that the ministry has directed the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and the International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT) to study the proposal and prepare a report.

Galvanization is the process of applying a protective zinc coating on iron or steel to prevent corrosion. According to a media report, cars built for the domestic market have 30% galvanized steel but in the same models built for export markets the percentage rises to 70%, whereas the global average is 50%.

Now many of you thinking Bro What is Galvanizing ? why it is done ? Practically 50% Indian customers buy their first car at minimum possible price and they want more fuel efficiency, no one cares about safety, strength of car, build quality, emission norms, etc whenever car is launched in India the manufacturers write in bold about cars fuel economy, features, and about gimmick features, no one gives ncap test rating, strength, safety.

Back to the Topic What is Galvanizing and Why it is done ?

Galvanization or galvanizing is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to prevent rusting. The most common method is hot dip galvanizing in which the parts are submerged in a bath of molten zinc.

In the galvanizing process, all surfaces are coated with corrosion-inhibiting zinc.  Coating the steel also adds weight and in certain instances the increased weight can become a factor during shipping and handling. On average, the galvanized coating increases the weight of black steel up to 15% depending on a host of factors, including type of steel, shape, size, steel chemistry, surface conditions (i.e. surface preparation), steel thickness, galvanizing temperature, and other galvanizing process parameters.

Pros 

1.  Galvanizing will definitely increase the corrosion resistance, i.e. it will increase cars avg life and it will be more durable.
2. Better Paint finish. 
3. New research will be there in galvanizing industries to galvanize complicate parts.
4. Job openings/availability in the sector.

Cons 

1. Not all parts are possible to galvanize by traditional hot dipping method.
2. Cost which is sensitive in Indian market, it will be affected. 

My thoughts

1. To prove the car is 70% galvanized the manufacturers will use more thin sheets and put on 70% coating to be in race of fuel economy and manufacturing costs.
2. The big question why Zinc coating only ? will it make cars body stronger ? or is there any mischief to increase business in Galvanizing industry ?
3. Why ARAI is not making any norm for safety structure which will make stronger cars in future.
4. Yes there is fuel crisis and daily rise in prices of fuel for that government, automobile manufacturers should focus on alternative fuel option, not on making light Styrofoam cars and play with the lives of people.
5. Not only car structure is main reason behind the major fatal accidents but Indian roads which are full of patches and potholes no one is looking towards it, uneducated drivers, following rules and regulations etc are many factors behind Fatal cases in car accidents.

In Short Government should make a law which will be "Hammer on mileage seekers, Boon for Safety".

Post your thoughts on this topic below in comment section.