Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) introduced the latest version of its Ford GT supercar at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this year, saying it would be available late next year. When it arrives, the windshield will be made from Gorilla Glass for Automotive from Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW).
The car will be the first production vehicle to use Gorilla Glass, and in an announcement Tuesday Corning said that the new glass saves 12 pounds of vehicle weight. In addition to the windshield, Ford is also using Gorilla Glass for the rear window and as an acoustic separation wall in the bulkhead.
Not only is the glass lighter, Corning claims that it is stronger than conventional windshield glass as well:
Pound for pound, Gorilla Glass for Automotive can achieve more than five times the strength of standard window glass. This strength helps protect the windshield and make it thinner and lighter, while also providing outstanding optical advantages.
In its announcement, Ford noted the advantages of lighter glass:
The reduced weight of the windshield, engine cover and bulkhead glass on Ford GT positively impacts acceleration, fuel economy and braking performance. Perhaps most important is the benefit on handling – removing the weight of glass high in the construction of the vehicle lowers the center of gravity and contributes to the car’s outstanding agility.
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Corning first introduced Gorilla Glass in 2007, and it is used as the glass cover on mobile phones and tablets from 40 different makers. The company said it is “featured” on 4.5 billion mobile devices. Neither Ford nor Corning claims that Gorilla Glass is unbreakable, but Ford’s tests showed that the new glass “successfully withstood thousands of hours of durability testing.”
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