5.

0 MATERIAL RECOMMENDED

The choice of materials for a sports car is the first and the most important factor for
automotive design. There are various types of materials that can be used in the automotive body
and chassis, but the purpose of design is the main challenge here. The most significant criterions
that a material should meet are lightweight, high strength and stiff which determine its
efficiency. Therefore, carbon fiber is the most recommended material to use as a chassis due to
its properties compared to steel alloy and aluminum alloy.

Carbon fiber has high strength to weight ratio (2457 kN.m/kg) that is higher than steel
alloy (254 kN.m/kg) and higher than aluminum alloy (222 kN.m/kg), by mean carbon fiber is
stiffer and yet is the lightest material. To produce a great quality of carbon composites and the
manufacturing methods were a barrier to wide spread use, but all of those have steadily improved
over time to where carbon-fiber can be used not only for sports car chassis, but practically almost
everything in automotive design. Next, carbon fiber has corrosion resistance, which offers
another advantage compared to other materials.

Furthermore, the layers in the fibers are formed by strong covalent bonds. When the
fibers bend they fail at very low strain. In other words, carbon fiber does not bend much before
failing. In addition to its performance benefits, when built correctly it offers superior fatigue
resistance results compared to other materials. Other than that, carbon fiber is a unique material
made from individual carbon strands. When combined with resin to form a composite, it
produces parts that are extremely light and rigid. Carbon parts are lighter and stronger than their
metal counterparts. For that reason, carbon fiber is being used extensively in the sports or race
car industry.

Even though carbon fiber is a wonderful material to be used, it also has its own
weaknesses. Carbon fiber will break or shatter when it’s compressed, pushed beyond its strength
capabilities or exposed to high impact. Machining and holes can also create weak areas that may
increase its likelihood of breaking. Besides, it is also relative costly. Carbon fiber is a high
quality material with a price to match. While prices have dropped significantly in the past five
years, demand has not increased enough to increase the supply substantially. As a result, prices
will likely remain the same for the near future.
Figure 5.1: Carbon fiber tub chassis (foreground) and a complete car (background) of Alfa
Romeo 4C.

Figure 5.2: Each carbon fiber strand is much thinner than a human hair.