Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave-ROR
Aluminum is about 1/3rd the weight of steel btw. If you use a structure under the CF (of whatever variant) the CF will be heavier.
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Such a general statement about weight difference is not valid for this purpose. A hood(and any part for that matter) is designed specifically for the material. Metal thickness, load points, structure, etc. are all taken into account when the part is designed. If you were to switch a hood from steel to aluminum, you don't just switch the material and call it a day. The whole part is redesigned.
Here is an example of a cost analysis between steel and aluminum. They say there is about a 40% difference in weight(sorry I was off a little) after all the inner structure is trimmed away.
The purpose of CFRP is that the structure is built-in. There is no externally added structure as many times happens with CF.