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Originally Posted by DGthe3
First off, carbon fibre and fibreglass are not plastics. Jermey Clarkson knows how to entertain, but his technical knowledge is either selective or simply lacking.
Deformation is easier with a sheet of metal than with a polymer. There are several reasons for this. The omnidirectional laticework of polymer materials distributes impact loads over a wider area. The resiliency of the polymers themselves allow it to bend and yield at a microscopic level before returning to their original shape. Metals are fairly weak in compressive loading. They will easily buckle under load and become permanently deformed. Some wrongfully believe aluminum is stronger than steel, because of its strength to weight ratio. In fact its weaker than steel for the same sized piece, its also significantly lighter. They use roughly an equal volume of material that weighs a lot less because the strength of steel is often overkill.
German companys have always been known to deliver precision but rarely able to build something durable.
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Correct me if I am wrong, but aren't Porsche bodies made from steel, aluminum, and magnesium...