The Impact of Worn Shocks on Vehicle Handling and Stability

The intent of this research is to understand the effects worn dampers have on vehicle stability and safety through dynamic model simulation. Dampers, an integral component of a vehicle's suspension system, play an important role in isolating road disturbances from the driver by controlling the motions of the sprung and unsprung masses. This paper will show that a decrease in damping leads to excessive body motions and a potentially unstable vehicle.

The concept of poor damping affecting vehicle stability is well established through linear models. The next step is to extend this concept for non-linear models. This is accomplished through creating a vehicle simulation model and executing several driving maneuvers with various damper characteristics. The damper models used in this study are based on splines representing peak force versus velocity relationships. The results of the simulation models show that dampers with increased wear increase the magnitudes of vehicle handling-related variables. These increases are detrimental to the handling and safety of the vehicle. Results of the ADAMS simulation are presented and discussed.