Porsche Taycan Introduces First All‑Plastic Brake Pedal, Reducing Weight by 50%

The Porsche Taycan is the first production electric sports car to feature an all‑plastic brake pedal. Built with a composite structure, the component is 50 % lighter than its steel counterpart, boosting efficiency and handling.

In a partnership with Lanxess High Performance Materials (U.S. office, Pittsburgh, PA), the pedal was manufactured by BOGE Elastmetall (U.S. office, Novi, MI), a global leader in vibration technology and automotive plastics applications.

“The structural component meets the demanding load requirements thanks to the tailor‑made fiber‑layer construction of a Tepex nylon 6 insert and additional local tape reinforcement,” explains Klaus Vonberg, lightweight‑design expert at HPM’s Tepex Automotive Group. “Extensive automation allows us to produce this geometrically complex, safety‑critical part efficiently and at scale.”

The Tepex Dynalite semi‑finished product is a thermoplastic matrix reinforced with continuous glass‑fiber fabric. For the Taycan’s pedal, the matrix is nylon 6, incorporating unidirectional fiber layers and 45°‑oriented fabric layers on the two outer surfaces. These inner layers deliver the tensile and bending strength required for a safety‑critical component.

Tapes—thin plastic strips embedding high‑strength continuous fiber rovings in a thermoplastic matrix—reinforce the pedal’s bottom side. Because the tapes and the Tepex insert share compatible matrices, they can be laser‑welded directly onto the insert. This produces tailor‑made laminates that follow load paths precisely and match the component’s mechanical demands. The 45° outer layers, combined with the laser‑welded tapes, provide exceptional torsional strength.

Daniel Häffelin of BOGE Elastmetall’s Innovation Center notes, “The custom fiber‑layer structure and the integration of organic sheets and tapes have allowed us to further reduce pedal weight while maintaining the high mechanical performance required for a safety‑critical part.” Four distinct all‑plastic brake‑pedal designs are now in mass production, each optimized for different torsional directions.

Manufacturing follows an automated hybrid‑molding process that delivers short cycle times suitable for large‑scale production. The workflow begins with optical alignment of the tapes, followed by their placement on the Tepex insert for laser welding. The assembly is then thermoformed and back‑molded with nylon 66 using injection molding.

Vonberg highlights new opportunities for thermoplastic composites with tailored fiber orientation in electric vehicles. “Tepex inserts can be used in front‑end systems, bumper beams, electrical module brackets, trunks, battery housings, and structural trims in the underbody to protect the battery,” he says.