Top News

Automobile Desk: There’s a common misconception that road vehicles are built solely on steel, aluminum, and plastic. But the reality is far more interesting. Today’s modern cars are made using extremely precious and rare metals. Although these metals are present in minute quantities, they play a crucial role in making a car safe, efficient, and high-tech. This is why even after being scrapped, a junk car can fetch a significant price.

When it comes to the most expensive parts used in a car, the catalytic converter in the exhaust system tops the list. This tiny component contains some of the world’s most precious metals, such as platinum, palladium, and rhodium. Their primary function is to chemically convert toxic fumes and hazardous gases emitted from the engine into less harmful ones. Without these metals, vehicles would never meet environmental standards.

​Spark plugs must be in good condition to keep the engine running consistently and deliver optimal fuel efficiency. While ordinary cars use copper plugs, premium and luxury vehicles use platinum and iridium. These metals can withstand extreme temperatures of thousands of degrees without damage. Thanks to iridium and platinum, spark plugs deliver excellent performance for years without failing, saving on frequent maintenance costs.

​What makes modern cars smart is their Engine Control Unit (ECU), also known as the car’s “brain.” The circuit boards and microchips of this electronic brain are coated with real gold and silver. Gold and silver are considered excellent conductors of electricity and are corrosion-resistant. This is why the car’s computer continues to function without interruption even in high humidity or extreme heat.

Furthermore, gold, silver, and copper are also used in the connectors for luxury features such as touchscreen infotainment, GPS navigation, premium music systems, and 360-degree cameras. These metals accelerate signal and power flow, ensuring instant response with a single click on the touchscreen.

These metals also play a direct role in saving your life from a safety perspective. In an emergency, the circuits in the car’s airbags, anti-lock braking system (ABS) and radar-based ADAS sensors also function with the help of gold and silver. Whenever an accident-like situation arises, these metals transmit the signals from the sensors to the airbags without any delay, due to which the airbags open in a hundredth of a second. In short, the real strength and value of a car lies not only in its body, but in these precious elements hidden within it.