Recent Applicaitions of Lightweight Technology on China Carbody

The China Lightweight Body Conference was held on September 18th at the Yangzhou of Jiangsu province. This year's body conference refines the technical field classification. So that two conferences on passenger vehicle body and commercial vehicle body were held .

Five vehicle models from DFMC, FAW, AIWAYS, BAIC MOTORS and Great Wall MOTORS attended the carbody conference of passenger vehicle. The participating teams conducted an in-depth interpretation of the vehicle's key data, lightweight and weight data, body design data, material data, process data and vehicle safety data for each model, from the perspective of lightweight design concepts, manufacturing processes and materials, cost control, performance evaluation, etc.

Model 1: Dongfeng Fengshen AEOLUS

Dongfeng Fengshen AEOLUS is a domestic first model based on the CMP platform jointly developed by Dongfeng and PSA. The overall size of the vehicle is 4640mm (length)*1800mm (width)* 1470mm(height), and the wheelbase is 2660mm. The body-in-white weight is 285.6kg. The torsional stiffness is 21591N∙m/deg. And the Light Weight Index is 3.2. The application ratio of high-strength steel reached 68%, and the third-generation high-strength steel TD1080(a kind of third automotive steel) was used for the first time. The HPF was used on 18 safety parts of body structure, including A/B columns, seat beams,side rails, and has developed a Tailor-Rolled Blanks (TRB) for automotive weight reduction. The materials details of the body structure are as follows:

Body material distribution of AEOLUS

Body-in-white of AEOLUS

Model 2: FAW Hongqi HS5

HS5 is the first luxury B-class SUV of the Hongqi brand. The overall size of the vehicle is 4760mm (length), 1907mm (width) and1700mm (height), and the wheel base is 2870mm. The body-in-white weighs 333kg,the torsional stiffness is 25905Nm/°, and the Light Weight Index is 2.75. The high-strength steel application ratio exceeds 60%, which meets the ultimate passive safety while achieving lightweight. At the same time, the design of the plastic front end module and the aluminum alloy front anti-collision beam is further effective in weight reduction. The Hongqi HS5 body material distribution is as follows:

Body material distribution of Hongqi HS5

Body-in-white of Hongqi HS5

Model 3: AIWAYS U5

AIWAYS U5 is the first production car based on MAS(MORE ADAPTABLE STRUCTURE) platform. As a pure electric A+ class SUV, the U5 is 4680mm in length, 1880mm in width and 1680mm in height with a wheelbase of 2800mm. The original patented "sandwich"battery pack has a capacity of 63kWh, a density of 170wh/kg. The maximum cruising range under NEDC (New European Driving Cycle) conditions is 503km +120km. The Light Weight Index of AIWAYS U5 is 2.29, using the "upper steel under the aluminum" structure design. A total of 21 thermoformed parts are used in the whole car. The A-pillar, B-pillar and roof longitudinal beams are all made of 1500MPa hot-stamped steel. The door anti-collision beam is innovatively used 2000MPa hot-stamped steel. The application of light-weight materials in parts is further realized lightweighting, such as extruded aluminum alloy front impact beam, integrated casting aluminum alloy shock absorber tower, vacuum die-cast aluminum alloy beam, longitudinal beam and plastic fender. AIWAYS U5 body materials composition is as follows:

Body material distribution of AIWAYS U5

Body-in-white of AIWAYS U5

Model 4: BAIC MOTORS SENOVA

SENOVA is positioned as an AI smart car. The overall size of the car is 4785mm (length) ,1835mm(width) and 1490mm(height), and the wheelbase is 2780mm. The body-in-white weighs 302.1kg, the static torsional stiffness is 26454N∙m/deg, and the Light Weight Index is 2.61. The body is made of 19 thermoformed steel parts, and the ratio of ultra-high-strength steel is 2.4%. To achieve weight reduction while improving rigidity and safety,structural optimization was carried out in the front and rear longitudinal beams, front and rear shock towers, front floor seat beams, etc. The body materials of SENOVA are as follows:

Body material distribution of SENOV

Body-in-white of SENOVA

Model 5: Great Wall ORA R1

The ORA R1 is a pure electric car that is positioned in the city commute. The overall size of the car is 3,495mm(length)* 1,660mm(width) *1,560mm (height), and the wheelbase is 2,475mm. The battery capacity is 33kwh, the maximum power is 35kw, and the cruising range is 351km. The model has a sturdy mass of 990kg, a torsional stiffness of 15152N∙m/° and a Light Weight Index of 3.2. The proportion of high-strength steel body frame is 66%. DP steel and HSLA steel are used in the energy absorption zone. 1500MPa hot-formed steel and 980MPa ultra-high strength steel are selected in the passenger area. The fender uses an integrated unequal thickness thermoplastic to further reduce weight. In addition, a large number of topological optimization, sawtooth edge design optimization and other structural optimizations are performed on the cover, the top cover beam, the shock absorber, the B-pillar inner plate, and the floor horizontal/longitudinal beam. ORA R1 body materials are as follows:

Body material distribution of ORA R1

Body-in-white of ORA R1