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Composite Body-In-White
- Thread starter David Ulo
- Start date
BrianPetersen
Mechanical
How long is a piece of rope?
GregLocock
Automotive
Bodies typically mass about 200 kg or more, for unitary bodies that are homologated for crash etc. I'd guess you could halve that for a composite one for a small car, plus glass (most of my work would use glazed BIW because the glass is a significant shear panel, and mass).
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
BrianPetersen
Mechanical
I don't know what the original poster means by the term "composite BIW". Does this mean a body-in-white made of composite materials (fiberglass? carbon-fiber? all-metal but different types? or what? the only quasi-mass-production example of which I know of is the BMW i3) or is it just a spurious word given that "any hybrid car" implies a mass-production vehicle, of which all practical examples (Toyota Prius, Ford Fusion, Honda Insight, etc) use conventional construction with steel stampings spot-welded together just like any other car?
200 kg is about the right order-of-magnitude number.
I don't have the exact number for any such example.
It will help to know why the original poster needs this number.
200 kg is about the right order-of-magnitude number.
I don't have the exact number for any such example.
It will help to know why the original poster needs this number.
- Thread starter
- #5
BrianPetersen
Mechanical
Since no such thing has been built, the answer in terms of being a production vehicle isn't known. The closest you will find is the BMW i3. Don't know much about those.
- Thread starter
- #7
GregLocock
Automotive
You could try and find the specs for the Lotus SID, which was an Esprit made out of carbon fibre. The body was fully load bearing as it was designed to use subframes and an isolated spine with the powertrain in, although it didn't ever run in that configuration.
I think the enthusiasts at Rocky mountain institute have put some wildly optimistic guesses together for a lightweight car structure. Actually that's probably the path to take, research lightweight car body. Loads of hits.
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
I think the enthusiasts at Rocky mountain institute have put some wildly optimistic guesses together for a lightweight car structure. Actually that's probably the path to take, research lightweight car body. Loads of hits.
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
GregLocock
Automotive
Just found this which says 50%, with the proviso that people seem to be using carbon cabins with metal subframes for the suspension/crash structure, which is the way I'd do it.
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
Cheers
Greg Locock
New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376
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