The automobile remains at the top of the list of recycled consumer products with the average recycling rate being close to 98 percent for more than ten years. A recent survey indicated that more and more North Americans are beginning to understand that the number one recycled product in commerce today is the automobile.
Steel is the engine that drives automotive recycling.
Most cars reaching the end of their useful lives comprise approximately two-thirds steel and iron, with virtually 100 percent being recycled back into new iron and steel products. The recent study, conducted by the Steel Recycling Institute, indicated that approximately one out of five consumers now recognize the automobile as North America's most recycled product, almost doubling from a previous survey in 1997. In 1998, more than 13.2 million tons of steel were recycled from automobiles. That's enough steel to build more than 12.1 million new, standard-size family vehicles. Much of the recovered steel is recycled into high strength steel sheet, the fastest growing light-weight material in the automotive industry.