A vehicle’s interior and exterior determine passenger in-car experiences, providing comfort, durability, premium features, and a standout appearance. Advanced materials bring both form and function to vehicle operation while meeting safety requirements via a range of innovative and sustainable solutions. New interior designs use low-emission and non-yellowing adhesives while E-mobility is driving exterior designs with lightweight wheels, smart faces, and efficient heating.
of automotive execs
Expect car interiors to become more important to the in-car experience.
*Source: McKinsey & Company "The future of interior in automotive"
key factors
Consumers want convenience, premium features, and advanced Safety.
*Source: Yahoo! Finance Automotive Interior Market Report 2022
of consumers
Rank exteriors as important to car choice.
*Source: Design News "Auto Interior Is the New Exterior"
The automotive industry seeks innovative lightweight technologies and sustainable products that improve vehicle design and performance. High-performance interior adhesives are used for the assembly, installation, and lamination of high-quality automotive components.
- Door system
- Seating system
- Dashboards (instrument panel)
- Steering wheel
- Overhead and headliner
- Carpet and textiles
Henkel’s portfolio of automotive door panel adhesives provides high heat resistance and fast setting bonding and sealing for lamination and decorative trim applications. Non-yellowing formulations are especially useful for edge-wrapping light-colored fabrics, as well as ideal for laminating semi-transparent substrates. Areas include armrest, door bolsters, and door beltline areas.
Comfort and durability are key when it comes to seating systems. Car interior fabric adhesives are used to bond cushions and upholstery to various composite substrates. Henkel’s expansive range of automotive vinyl adhesives remain flexible while providing a strong bond between different substrates, and do not become brittle over time.
Henkel offers high heat resistant automotive panel adhesives for lamination and decorative bonding that offers high elasticity characteristics to allow temperature induced substrate movement without compromising bond integrity. Typical applications for Henkel’s automotive panel bonding adhesives include center consoles, instrument clusters, and glove compartments.
High-elasticity adhesives offer superb performance for a variety of steering wheel applications. Flocking kits are used to increase grip and friction on the steering wheel.
Both the overhead and headliner areas require high heat-resistant materials to withstand prolonged exposure to direct sunlight. Henkel’s spray adhesive solutions are fast-setting and provide high heat resistance. These products are suitable for bonding felt and insulation mats for sound insulation and attaching plastic and metal parts.
Adhesive solutions for carpet and textiles require low VOC, low fogging, and long open times. Henkel’s interior trim materials and vinyl adhesives are typically used for bonding carpets or textile to metal or composite materials on load floors and seat backs and other car interiors, as well as using carpet adhesives on felt and insulation mats for sound insulation.
- Exterior modules
- Roof systems
- Glass
- Lighting
- Other exterior solutions
Henkel provides an extensive range of high-quality exterior automotive adhesives, sealants, and automotive weatherstrip-coatings for exterior applications that are specially designed for a variety of substrates. Our automotive exterior trim adhesive materials offer strong and quick adhesion and cold temperature flexibility for long lasting and reliable bonding.
Henkel offers automotive roof sealant and adhesive solutions that meet all safety and lightweighting design requirements for sunroofs, moon roofs, roof panels, and roof rack applications. Our wide range of adhesives for car exteriors offer excellent durability and reliable solutions for increased efficiency and high-quality results.
Henkel offers environmentally friendly, water-based glass encapsulation priming systems that are used for encapsulation of automotive glasses. Henkel’s direct glazing adhesives are used by automotive OEMs and are OEM-approved for the automotive aftermarket.
Henkel’s automotive headlight (headlamp) adhesives are used to produce more than 150,000 headlamps per day. From headlight housing sealants that offer improved adhesion and weather protection, to tail lamps and headlight bonding products used in various light source assemblies, including light bulbs, halogen, Xenon, LED, and laser.
Henkel offers an extensive range of exterior solutions that are suitable for a range of applications including, weatherstrip coatings for seals, adhesives and molding compounds for door handles, exterior pillar, rear garnish trim, trimline, side moldings, exterior side mirrors, diffusors. As a global leader of sealants and adhesives, Henkel has the optimal solution to meet your specific needs.
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