The Windsor-built 2017 Chrysler Pacifica minivan leads Fiat Chrysler’s efforts to expand the use of higher-strength steels across its product lineup, the company says.
“Our commitment to improving safety is unwavering,” Mike Dahl, head of vehicle safety and regulatory compliance, said in a statement released Thursday. “We are continually exploring the use of new materials and components that will boost the performance of our vehicles, for the benefit of our customers.”
Compared with body structures of the vehicles they replaced, higher-strength steel content has increased more than 53 per cent in the all-new, mainstream-segment vehicles introduced by FCA U.S. since model year 2012, the company said. “These materials contribute to improved crashworthiness as well as weight reduction, which helps improve fuel efficiency.”
Among the vehicles launched most recently, two have earned top safety ratings from the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: the Fiat 500X small crossover and the Chrysler 200 mid-size sedan. Higher-strength steel content levels in their body structures total 74 per cent and 66 per cent, respectively.
Advanced high-strength steel accounts for 38 per cent of the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica’s body structure — the highest such concentration in any FCA vehicle. The 500X boasts the next-highest level at 28.3 per cent.
Higher-strength steels are lighter than conventional grades, so vehicles may be lighter and have improved fuel efficiency. The Pacifica is 250 pounds lighter than the vehicle it replaced, and more than half of that weight savings is attributed to body structure, FCA said.
http://windsorstar.com/business/loc...-represents-body-engineering-breakthrough-fca
“Our commitment to improving safety is unwavering,” Mike Dahl, head of vehicle safety and regulatory compliance, said in a statement released Thursday. “We are continually exploring the use of new materials and components that will boost the performance of our vehicles, for the benefit of our customers.”
Compared with body structures of the vehicles they replaced, higher-strength steel content has increased more than 53 per cent in the all-new, mainstream-segment vehicles introduced by FCA U.S. since model year 2012, the company said. “These materials contribute to improved crashworthiness as well as weight reduction, which helps improve fuel efficiency.”
Among the vehicles launched most recently, two have earned top safety ratings from the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: the Fiat 500X small crossover and the Chrysler 200 mid-size sedan. Higher-strength steel content levels in their body structures total 74 per cent and 66 per cent, respectively.
Advanced high-strength steel accounts for 38 per cent of the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica’s body structure — the highest such concentration in any FCA vehicle. The 500X boasts the next-highest level at 28.3 per cent.
Higher-strength steels are lighter than conventional grades, so vehicles may be lighter and have improved fuel efficiency. The Pacifica is 250 pounds lighter than the vehicle it replaced, and more than half of that weight savings is attributed to body structure, FCA said.
http://windsorstar.com/business/loc...-represents-body-engineering-breakthrough-fca
