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Not sure if this requires the vehicle to be "on".
1) The C7 marks the first use of a “shape memory alloy wire” in a production vehicle.
To save weight (approximately 1.1 pounds) and reduce complexity, the new Corvette uses a smart material wire to operate a cabin vent in the cargo area that required a motorized actuator on previous models. Triggered by the opening of the hatch, heat generated by an electrical current similar to that of a interior courtesy lamp is used to contract a wire, thereby moving a lever that opens the vent, letting air escape to reduce cabin pressure and make shutting the lid easier. Once the hatch is closed, the current cuts off, the wire returns to its original shape, and a return spring closes the vent to maintain cabin temperature.
GM has earned 247 patents for smart materials such as this over five years of research and development, and it figures there are approximately 200 motorized systems in the typical vehicle that could be replaced with smart materials. Typically made of copper-aluminum-nickel or nickel-titanium, smart materials can change their shape, strength, and/or stiffness when acted upon by heat, stress, a magnetic field, or voltage, and return to their original shape when the trigger is deactivated.
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