JFE Steel Corp. has developed a ferritic stainless steel, JFE-SX1l, with the corrosion resistance and formability required for automobile fuel tanks and other fuel system applications. The new ferritic stainless steel has demonstrated sufficient corrosion resistance for fuel tank materials in the common external corrosion tests (15-year/150,000-mile durability) performed by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) in conjunction with the Strategic Alliance for Steel Fuel Tanks (SASFT) for the selection of steel materials used in fuel tanks. In February 2003, the SASFT common corrosion test results and a prototype fuel tank produced with JFE-SX1 by Horie Metal Co. were presented at two international conferences held in Detroit. This was the first time that the new fuel tank material was displayed to the public, and the prototype fuel tank generated wide interest from automakers and parts manufacturers.
