ArvinMeritor is going a little greener with its new coating on Gabriel struts.
It now will use Aquence™, which is an organic polymeric emulsion coating that is chemically deposited on the steel surface of Gabriel struts. The struts will be manufactured in the company’s Queretaro, Mexico, facility.
The new coating gives better coverage for more durability, according to Lisa Bahash, general manager, Global Chassis Aftermarket, Light Vehicle Systems, ArvinMeritor.
It also helps out in terms of efficiency, as coats are applied one time, which eliminates reworking and reduces costs, and also saves on energy. Unlike coating processes that require a charge to deposit the coating, the process to be used — autodeposition — only requires immersion into the coating bath to uniformly cover the entire tubular design of shocks and struts.
The new shocks will be seen in the aftermarket in 2009.
