Why aren't all cars stainless steel?

[RammJaeger]

Not 100% Delorean related, but this week I went to check on the progress on my 1969 Charger that I'm having a bunch of body work done on (replace/repair all the rust, new paint job, etc). The car looked pretty decent on the surface, but once they started grinding away the paint they found a lot of rust, and once they started cutting away the rusty bits they found even more rust. They ended up needing to cut out the entire lower quarter panels and the entire trunk floor. I've attached some pics for reference.

Anyway, this got me thinking - why don't they make all cars out of stainless steel? One of the things I love about my Delorean is that even though its 30 years old, its body can't rust (I know the frame can of course). So why don't they make all cars out of stainless. Is it way more expensive? Is it more difficult to form into shape? Do the "evil" car companies just want our cars to rust away so we buy new ones? What do you guys think?

[Patrick C]

why don't they make all cars out of stainless. Is it way more expensive?

Much more expensive, and much harder to repair stainless bodywork.

[Spittybug]

Do you believe Detroit wants ALL of the cars they make to last as long as a Delorean? $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.

[Rich]

It's a good question.

The answers so far make sense.

And, as you noted the body of the D isn't completely made of stainless steel. More like "made with stainless steel". Its construction can be described as a coated steel frame with a stainless steel-clad fiberglass body shell and stainless steel doors.

There aren't many modern cars that can have all of the fenders and quarter panels removed and replaced without a single cut or weld. Maybe none.

[David T]

It's a good question.

The answers so far make sense.

And, as you noted the body of the D isn't completely made of stainless steel. More like "made with stainless steel". Its construction can be described as a coated steel frame with a stainless steel-clad fiberglass body shell and stainless steel doors.

There aren't many modern cars that can have all of the fenders and quarter panels removed and replaced without a single cut or weld. Maybe none.

The main reasons are cost and weight. Steel parts are a lot cheaper than S/S parts and the tooling is also cheaper. Some of the cost is defrayed because you do not have to paint the parts but color is a very big marketing tool. Shaving weight on cars today is a very big deal. It is the cheapest thing you can do to improve efficiency, increase gas mileage, and lower costs. One reason you are seeing more and more plastic and composite parts being used. Resistance to corrosion is way down on the list of priorities but is desirable. Just not at increased cost. As for making it easier to repair, that is the insurance company's problem. No one seems to care about it when they choose a new vehicle. There is a built-in interest to build a car that will only last for a certain (short) period of time. In many cases the owner gets tired of the car before it wears out anyway.
David Teitelbaum

[Totally 80s]

Also Stainless Steel isn't that great a material for cars. Its hard to keep clean, fingerprints, gets nasty stuff in the grain, gets bad swirl marks if not grained/cleaned perfectly, hard to paint, hard to repair, etc. etc. It's a gimmick, a cool gimmick but a gimmick none the less.

[Bitsyncmaster]

Boy it drives me nuts when people think SS is heavier than cold rolled steel.


Kg/M^3
Stainless Steel 7480 - 8000
Steel 7850

[beernpizzalover]

Not 100% Delorean related, but this week I went to check on the progress on my 1969 Charger that I'm having a bunch of body work done on (replace/repair all the rust, new paint job, etc). The car looked pretty decent on the surface, but once they started grinding away the paint they found a lot of rust, and once they started cutting away the rusty bits they found even more rust. They ended up needing to cut out the entire lower quarter panels and the entire trunk floor. I've attached some pics for reference.

Anyway, this got me thinking - why don't they make all cars out of stainless steel? One of the things I love about my Delorean is that even though its 30 years old, its body can't rust (I know the frame can of course). So why don't they make all cars out of stainless. Is it way more expensive? Is it more difficult to form into shape? Do the "evil" car companies just want our cars to rust away so we buy new ones? What do you guys think?

I believe stainless steel is about five times more expensive than the typical mild steel that most cars are made out of, according to a documentary I watched once. But it's the look of the car itself that makes it so alluring!

[Josh]

I believe stainless steel is about five times more expensive than the typical mild steel that most cars are made out of, according to a documentary I watched once. But it's the look of the car itself that makes it so alluring!

I regularly get parts laser cut. Once I got my delorean I started inquiring about SS pieces. a 4x8 sheet of 316 SS (the delorean uses a cheaper grade of SS) is about 4 times more expensive than mild A36 steel of the same thickness.

[DeMopar]

Not 100% Delorean related, but this week I went to check on the progress on my 1969 Charger that I'm having a bunch of body work done on (replace/repair all the rust, new paint job, etc). The car looked pretty decent on the surface, but once they started grinding away the paint they found a lot of rust, and once they started cutting away the rusty bits they found even more rust. They ended up needing to cut out the entire lower quarter panels and the entire trunk floor. I've attached some pics for reference.

Anyway, this got me thinking - why don't they make all cars out of stainless steel? One of the things I love about my Delorean is that even though its 30 years old, its body can't rust (I know the frame can of course). So why don't they make all cars out of stainless. Is it way more expensive? Is it more difficult to form into shape? Do the "evil" car companies just want our cars to rust away so we buy new ones? What do you guys think?

I think that's a lot of work! But those cars are pretty hot right now. Is your Charger an R/T? What size motor, etc?