Although convertibles have long been recognized as specialty vehicles, when automobiles first hit the roads about a century ago, they were all convertibles. Vinyl grew to enjoy dominance of the convertible top market until acrylic fabrics were introduced in the late 1970s. Over time, quality improvements were made these tops to where today acrylic-faced cloth material accounts for a majority of the traditional passenger-car convertible market. Besides style, one reason for a shift toward a cloth top is because of anti-PVC initiatives. Acrylics have been improved to better hold colour and resist weather and ultraviolet exposure. An acrylic top can be configured in a number of different ways to achieve both performance and price goals. Another Variation that can be added to either vinyl or cloth is more layers for sound absorption so the car will be quieter when travelling at high speed on a highway. The reason for growth in acrylic fabric for automotive and other commercial uses is its resistance to colour fading in sunlight, excellent appearance and styling improvements that have been made over the last two decades. The acrylic fibres and processing of fibres have been improved to provide an exterior fabric with long colour fastness in UV and superior service life on a convertible. Most of fabric tops are destined for the upper middle and high-end sectors of the car market. The average life is more than 10 years. Plain, twill and other weaves are used for different styling purposes. The basic colour is still black, but each automaker has a different series, and each has at least two to three different shades often in beige, dark green, navy, or grey. The biggest threat to this market is the hardtop convertible. This is a more expensive and complicated top, but precludes fabric altogether.
Vinyl gives way to acrylic in covering convertible top market
Vinyl bereitet den Weg für den Einsatz von Acryl bei Kabriolettverdecken
T3 Technical Textile Technology ; 2 , 1 ; 56-58
2003
3 Seiten, 2 Bilder
Article (Journal)
English
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