Published May 29, 2012
By Philippe Crowe
Ford’s new 2013 Fusion will be available this fall. In the name of recycling, every Fusion built will carry some unexpected materials beneath its body, like denim material equivalent to slightly more than two average-sized pairs of blue jeans; 38.9 clear plastic 16-ounce recycled bottles; and bout 31,250 soybeans.
Noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) control is held to world-class standards in the all-new Ford Fusion with post-industrial, recycled cotton used as sound-absorbing material. In every Fusion, the denim equivalent of slightly more than two pairs of average-sized American blue jeans helps to nullify unwanted road, wind and powertrain noise.
Fusion’s North American cloth seat surfaces are made with 100 percent Repreve yarn, which is a hybrid of post-industrial and post-consumer waste (or materials once utilized for industry purposes; and materials used by everyday consumers respectively). Cloth-seat Fusion models contain the equivalent of 38.9 recycled, clear 16-ounce plastic bottles.
Post-consumer plastic water and soda bottles are collected, chopped, ground, melted and reformulated into chips. These chips are then extruded and textured into fiber. The fibers are then used in the creation of fabric, then dyed, finished and rolled for shipment.
Excess fabric from each procedure in the process is recycled back into the system to further eliminate waste.
The foam used in seat cushions, seat backs and head restraints is a soy-based sustainable material, with the equivalent of approximately 31,250 soybeans.
Ford first used soy-based foam in the Ford Mustang in 2007. Today, Ford uses soy foam on every vehicle built in North America. Ford’s use of soy foam has reduced petroleum production by more than 5 million pounds and carbon dioxide emissions by more than 20 million pounds annually.
Every 2013 Fusion utilizes plastic made from recycled car battery casings. These post-consumer materials were otherwise destined for a landfill. This plastic may be found in fender splash shields and other underbody components. Annually, these applications on the Fusion will utilize close to 2 million pounds of recycled plastic.
