Performance of Thermoplastic Polyolefins in Automotive Roof-Pillar Covers Involved with Interior Head Impact and Roof-Rail or Side Air-Bag Deployment

In order to meet the stringent requirements of the FMVSS 201U head-impact safety standards, automobile manufacturers, Tier-1 system providers, and their material suppliers must balance a number of critical factors. These factors include: interface with air-bag deployment; ease of processing; molded-in color; low gloss; good low-temperature impact performance; absence of buzz, squeak and rattle (BSR); and recyclability.

This paper examines the performance against these factors of two thermoplastic polyolefins (TPOs). These two TPOs are compared with traditional interior resins such as engineering alloys, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), and polypropylene (PP).