Fiberglass is used extensively in automobile industry too.

Its light weight and the resistance to elements make fiberglass bodies suitable for vehicles. Some companies are making some of their cars entirely with fiberglass bodies. During the past decade the fiberglass bodies have become popular for cars due to their low weight. As companies are inclined to make their vehicles more fuel thrifty, fiberglass car bodies have got more and more popular. The overall weight of cars could be reduced dramatically with the use of fiberglass bodies. However, as the majority of cars are not made for fuel efficiency, use of fiberglass for automobile bodies is limited. A lot of vehicle body parts however are made of fiber glass. Many manufacturers add fiberglass parts to places where protection of water is necessary. It is much cheaper than using steel plates protected with coatings of synthetic material. Aftermarket fiberglass car bodies are available for many models of cars these days. Fiberglass truck bodies and canopies have got popular during recent times due to their light weight. They save fuel and are very low in cost. They could be painted just as steel bodies and are equally or more durable. Some of the fiberglass bodies for tucks are made using a combination of synthetic material to make them attractive and durable. One of the instances where bodies for automobiles are made exclusively out of fiberglass is the production of dune buggies. These are recreational vehicles used for driving in sand dunes where you get fine sand. These fiberglass auto bodies need to be very light weight to make them suitable for the sandy terrain. Fiber glass is the only material that could provide the light weight and the strength to being sturdy enough to make a car body of this sort. As such the fiberglass bodies have become very popular in this sector. During the past few years the manufacture of vehicle body kits out of fiber glass has become very popular. Due to the ability of molding into different shapes fiber glass proves itself as the perfect material for such molded products.

Aluminum Alloys for Body Panels Automobile body panels consist of a double structure with an outer panel and an inner panel. For the outer panels, higher strength materials are especially required to provide sufficient denting resistance. For the inner panels, higher deep drawing capacity materials are especially required to allow the manufacture of more complex shapes. In other words, different properties are required for the outer and inner panels, as shown in Table 2.3. Research and development of aluminum body panels began in the 1970s. Aluminum alloys for body panels developed in different ways in Europe, North America, and Japan because of the different requirements of the automobile manufacturers. In Japan, higher formability alloys were required from the automobile manufacturers. Therefore, special 5xxx series Al-Mg alloys, such as AA5022 and AA5023, were developed first. On the other hand, high strength alloys after paint baking were required in Europe and North America. Consequently, 2xxx series Al-Cu-Mg alloys, such as AA2036, and 6xxx series Al-Mg-Si-(Cu) alloys, such as AA6016, AA6111, and AA6022,

were developed. The mechanism of paint bake-hardening of 6xxx series alloys is due to precipitation hardening of Mg 2 Si or a Cu-containing derivative. Figure 2.2 shows the transition of aluminum alloys for body panels.

Consequently, new structures and materials are required for building the ideal car body that can absorb the collision energy in a short span and with a constant reaction force. To meet the requirements for improved safety, thicker steel sheets or additional reinforcements are usually applied, which leads to a heavier body-in-white. Therefore, it is necessary to improve crash safety while at the same time lightening vehicles for better environmental performance. From the viewpoint of materials, both dynamic strength and static strength are important in designing parts for greater crash safety. As defined in
FIGURE 1.13 Concept of crash safety. FIGURE 1.14 Relationship between static strength and dynamic