ABSTRACT
The automotive industry is faced with an unprecedented challenge, to produce lighter
vehicles with less fuel consumption and pollution without sacrificing internal roominess
and passenger safety. Therefore , new materials other than steel are being considered .
This study presents the usage of composite materials instead of steel in certain parts
(main rail, bumper, hood, fenders, wheel housing and doors) of the vehicle to improve
its performance by studying of vehicle crashworthiness (frontal and offset impact). A
finite element model of a 1994 Chevrolet C-1500 pick-up truck was modified and used
for this purpose with the aid of the multi-purpose finite element code LS-DYNA . The
results showed that, the usage of composite materials in vehicle frame (or all parts
together) gives higher percentage of weight reduction and higher percentage of
absorbed energy , than in the case of steel .