What Is Car Frame? Types, Design & Maintenance Cost

The vehicle frame called the chassis, is the supporting structure of any vehicle where all components are connected. It is like our skeleton. Until the 1930s, cars had structural frames separated from their bodies. The construction design is called body on frame. In this post, we will cover details of the car frame. So let’s get started with an introduction to car frames and features.

What Is a Car Frame?

• The car frame is like the skeleton of the vehicle that provides support to all components of the car and manages weight.
• The frame is a building block of the chassis and works as a loading-bearing component and easily distributes the weight of the car and cargo.

• The main function of this structure is to support the engine, body, transmission, and internal fittings.
• In the 1960s, the frame design was used for passenger cars and made a combination of the body with the frame in one unit.
• The main features of materials used for making frames are strength and durable nature. Different materials come with different features for frame design.
• The steel frame comes with strength and rigidity and is used for heavy-duty vehicles. While aluminum frames have low weight, their use is based on vehicles requirements.

Car Frame Functions

• The main workings of vehicles are as follows.
• It is used for handling static and dynamic loads without any deflection or distortion.
• The frame of the car handles car body weight, cargo loads, and also passenger weights.
• It also helps to transmit vertical and torsional twisting through moving on uneven surfaces.
• It also manages transverse lateral forces resulting from road conditions, steering of vehicles, and side wind.
• It also controls the torque of the engine and transmission.
• It also handles the abrupt effect of collisions.

Construction of Car Frames

Steel

• Steel is an important material used for car frames since it provides strength, low cost, and durable nature. The changes in technologies also help to make strong designs in light grades and are good options for vehicle construction.
• Steel is not only used for car frames but also as part of different components such as wheels, chassis, and engine components.
• Its main feature is that it can easily handle the effect of collisions, which increases vehicle safety. There are different types of steel used that are.

Carbon Steel:

• It is a commonly used type of steel since it has a low cost and is easy to access. It provides a good balance for durability and low cost and is used for mass-market vehicles.

Alloy Steel:

• This steel comes with chromium, nickel, and manganese, increasing the features of carbon steel by providing a good strength-to-weight ratio and high resistance to corrosion.

Aluminum

• The low-weight nature of aluminum also makes it important for different vehicle designs and helps to increase field efficiency and easy handling. Compared to steel, aluminum is a frequent component for different vehicle frames, especially for high-end and electric vehicles, and it provides good weight reduction features.
• The main features of this material are that it has a highgh energy absorption capacity and resistance to corrosion, and the working life of components of the vehicle.
• Aluminum is used in different parts of the car frame and other components, such as.

Full-body frames:

The complete frame of lightweight vehicles, such as sports and electric cars, is made with aluminum.

Structural reinforcements:

• It is also used for pillars, crossbeams, and affected parts to provide safety with low-weight features.

Chassis components:

• Wheels, brake components, and suspension components use aluminum to provide high efficiency.

Magnesium

• Magnesium is also a low-weight material used for automobiles. It is 33 percent lower weight than aluminum and 75 percent lower weight as compared to steel.
• Either it is low weight but comes with some limitations such as

Lower tensile strength:

• Then steel and aluminum-magnesium are more affected by deformation in case of stress applications.

Higher thermal expansion:

• In case of high-temperature conditions, magnesium is expended more and affects stability for high-performance applications.

Brittleness:

• It comes with low fatigue and creep strength and is not good for high load-bearing components without reinforcements.

Chassis vs. Frame

• The chassis is part of the skeleton of the car that supports the weight of the car. While the car frame is the rest part of the car that is fitted on the chassis. It is like our body’s muscle and skin.

Types of Car Frames

Backbone

• The backbone car frame is like the backbone and comes with a complete vehicle at a single assembly. It is an H-like design and comes with a tube that makes a connection with both end points of the frame.
• This type of design provides good ground clearance features. This type of car frame is best for off-road and heavy vehicles such as trucks.
• • The DeLorean DMC-12 comes with a backbone car frame. The backbone chassis also has some limitations. It does not take sides to properly affect collision, so it needs more protection.
• The main feature of the backbone frame is that it protects sensitive components of the drive shaft through a thicker tube system. So it is used for rugged conditions.

Unibody or Monocoque Frame

• Modern vehicles come with unibody frames. In this frame, the body and car frame are made with each other to provide one unit. Some car bodywork can be supported in single design.
• In unibody design, there are different parts configured, such as the roof, panels, and car floor.
• The main feature of using this frame is its low weight. Its low weight and aerodynamics help to provide good driving and fuel efficiency.
• With low-weight features, they also provide good strength and durability.
• This frame has noiseless working, and its compact design has more space for easily putting our belongings.

Tubular Frame

• This type of frame comes with hollow tubes that help to make a complete design low weight. It is made for vehicles where high performance is needed, such as racing cars and sports cars, where aerodynamics and low weight are important.
• The tubular frame is made of aluminum and steel. Either it is low weight but not compromised on strength.
• The vehicles that provide endurance features are made with tabular frames. Racing cars are made with this design. These frames are best to use but are high cost and need a special type of welding for making a system of tubes that work well in difficult and racetrack conditions.

Ladder Frame

• The design of the ladder frame is like a ladder. It is the oldest but still reliable. This frame is made with the use of 2 long beams at 90 degrees to 2 short beams. These frames are easy to make but are heavyweight. So they are good for the transportation of goods and a larger number of passengers.
• The common vehicles that use ladder frames are trucks, buses, and semis.
• The assembly of these frames is easy and can be replaced and repaired. It is a low-cost option due to different components being configured separately.
• But its limitation is that it is difficult to maneuver corners, so it is not good to use for passenger cars or performance vehicles.

X-frame

• This type of frame was used for full-size US models of General Motors in the 1950s and early 1960s. Where rails from alongside the engine look to the crossing passenger compartment,, each moves to the opposite side of the cross-member at the rear of the vehicles.
• It was selected to reduce the height of vehicles irrespective of increases in the size of transmission and propeller shaft humps since row cover frame rails also.
• Different models come with a differential located not through the customer bar in between the axle and frame but with a ball joint at the top of the differential connected with a socket in the wishbone hinged on the cross member of the frame.

Perimeter frame

• It looks like a ladder frame, but the middle part of the frame rails configured outboard of the front and rear rails routed about passenger footwells reduces the height of the passenger seat and also reduces both the roofline and net vehicle height central gravity, resulting in increased handling and road holding of passenger cars.
• It is a common design for the body on a frame car in the USA, but not for other countries until it becomes common for the unibody. Such as Hudson used this design for the first time on 3rd generation Commodore models in 1948. This frame provides annual model changes and lower cars used in the 1950s for increasing sales without high-cost structural changes.

Car Frame Repair Costs

• There is not a specific value for preparing a car frame. It is based on damage to the car. For removing basic dent cost can be from  $500-$1,000.
• If damage is high, repair costs can be high and based on techniques used for repairing cars. If you have high damage, the frame cost can be about $10,000.