Application of Stainless Steel in Crash Structures of Vehicles

Besides their corrosion resistance the outstanding mechanical properties, especially their high strength and their excellent forming capabilites, qualify stainless steel materials for the use in crash structures of vehicles. In the paper the lightweight potential of vehicle crash structures due to the use of stainless steel is demonstrated. Therefore the mechanical properties of stainless steel are described. Then an analysis of the weight reduction of the side members and the crossmember due to the use of stainless steel of a caravan vehicle is presented. The study considers a high speed crash and a pedestrian protection loadcase.