An Introduction

Since the popular advent of motoring at the beginning of the 20th Century, the race to create cars which are faster, safer, more economical and affordable has given material scientists no end of work to meet all of the industry's expectations. The inclusion of ever more exotic materials and efficient manufacturing techniques have given us mass-market access to automobiles with performance and safety which until only recently was found solely on race cars. As we transition from the age of the internal combustion engine and into one of hybrid and electrical propulsion, new materials will be created and new purposes for existing ones will be found to meet the requirements of advancing technologies.