Development of FRP Rear Axle Components

The various stages of development for a composite rear axle will be illustrated. Starting with the verification of the industrial applicability of fibre-reinforced plastics (FRP) in the automobile and the substitution of individual components, a design concept for an integrated composite rear axle will be explained.

A description will be given of the design, manufacture and testing of CFRP spring links made by hand laminating process, filament winding and thermoforming of long fibre-reinforced thermoplastics.

The following development stage is the design of a leaf spring link which combines the load bearing function of the spring link with the spring-loaded property of a helical spring.

A first design concept for an FRP rear axle will be presented.