Press

To celebrate 30 years of their plastic bearings, igus has retrofit a car with 56 iglide bearings. These components are in all areas of the car, including the pedals, alternator, window regulators, convertible top, gearshift, and more. 200 million plastic iglide bearings were already installed in cars and trucks last year, and now igus is putting them to the test on a 20 country, 9 month world tour.

Starting this month in India, the car will be shipped across oceans, and then driven around continents, stopping along the way at igus subsidiaries, partners, customers, trade shows, expos, and manus winners, connecting igus worldwide. In late July, the car will make its way to North America, beginning its tour of the US and Canada in Anchorage, Alaska, where it will make its way from ocean to ocean until early October.

High performance polymers for automotive applications

The round-the-world journey will be a test of the iglide plastic bearings installed within the car. iglide bearings are wear resistant due to their tribologically optimized plastic compound, designed to withstand high stresses. Such features support long service life of the vehicle components. iglide bearings are already used in millions of cars produced annually, in surprising applications like moving the seats or in the throttle valves.

Specific features of iglide bearings including resistance to dirt, oil, and chemicals, pressure resistance, and shock absorption make them excellent for use in the chassis, engine compartment, and gearbox. For door hinges and other moving parts, iglide is also a great fit, as they are corrosion-free, self-lubricating, and silent. Low-weight plastic bearings also contribute to light weight automobile construction. This reduces fuel consumption, lessening impact on the environment. iglide bearings are also cost-effective and offer economic solutions for mass production.

iglide bearings are also a solution for countless other industries, including in the medical and food-packaging industries, in agricultural machinery, machine tools, and a wide variety of others. For more information about iglide or the car’s world tour or the benefits of iglide plastic bearings, visit www.iglide.com/30, or visit our blog, with photos from the worldwide adventure and the retrofit process at www.blog.igus.com.

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