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| Volvo V50 |
Porsche Cayenne | |
At the Great Design in Steel Conference sponsored by the American Iron & Steel Institute and attended by more than 700 people, presenters from Volvo and Porsche gave attendees a look under the hood to see how they applied high strength and advanced high strength steels to the vehicle body structures. We thought you’d like to have a look too. |
Volvo has increased its use of high strength and advanced high strength steel in the body structure because of its lighter weight and its cost effectiveness. It’s use is evident in the XC90’s body structure as shown in the image. High strength steels (Dual Phase, HSLA and el Rephos) make up the majority of the front end and rear structure. The front rails are hydroformed. Of the 13 parts that make up the roof and side structures, seven are Dual Phase 600, with Boron and el Rephos making up the remainder of that structure. The B-Pillar outer was designed in Boron steel to reduce weight and because of its formability for this type of part. The B-Roof bow and the rear seat frame are also made of Boron. |
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The Porsche Cayenne/VW Touareg also aggressively uses high and advanced high strength steels in its body structure. Dual Phase 600 is used for the majority of its front end structure as well as for the rear rails. The real rail features a tailored blank with 2.5 mm thickness in the front of the rail and 2.0 thickness in rear. Trip 700 steel was used for the A and B Pillar to enhance side impact performance. Complex Phase steel was used for the seat cross member giving the structure the rigidity it needed for side impact intrusion prevention while reducing weight. |