Zara Khan
Independent Researcher
India
Abstract
The rapid evolution of automotive engineering in the early twenty-first century has driven the search for lightweight materials capable of enhancing vehicle performance, fuel efficiency, and crashworthiness. This manuscript reviews the state-of-the-art composite materials—principally carbon-fiber-reinforced polymers (CFRP), glass-fiber-reinforced polymers (GFRP), aluminum-matrix composites (AMC), and magnesium-matrix composites (MMC)—as applied to chassis design up to 2018. A series of case studies illustrates successful industrial implementations in sports cars, mass-market sedans, and off-road vehicles. Methodologies encompass materials selection criteria, manufacturing processes such as resin transfer molding (RTM) and autoclave curing, and finite element analysis (FEA) for structural validation. Results demonstrate weight reductions of 20–40% relative to steel chassis, with comparable or superior stiffness and crash energy absorption. The conclusion synthesizes findings, highlights remaining challenges in cost and repairability, and outlines future research directions within the pre-2018 technological landscape.
Keywords
Lightweight composite materials, automotive chassis, CFRP, AMC, RTM
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