A car's weight and tire resistance are responsible for 70% of emissions, Modern Plastics Worldwide reports. With Europe enforcing regulations to cut 40 grams of carbon dioxide emissions per vehicle by 2012, what's the industry to do? Lose weight and rely more on plastics, so says the article. Processors note a trend of plastics moving closer to the motor with heat-resistant materials and inching further out to exterior body panels. One processing executive explains the need for three plastics in auto making: "PC for transparency, nylon for strength and heat resistance, and PP to fill in the rest."

The preceeding was featured in a recent DIRECTU2 The world of Plastics & Resins