JPH02296578A - Front body construction of automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To increase the support rigidity of a suspension tower for a front frame by fitting a reinforcement part to the lower part of a front frame in such a way that the reinforcement part has a base part located approximately at the central position of the suspension tower and expands toward a dash panel. CONSTITUTION:In an automobile of what is called front midship type having a drive shaft 7 arranged forward of an engine crankshaft and used for driving a front wheel, a suspension tower 13 is provided at the side end of a body corresponding to the drive shaft 7. This suspension tower 13 is connected to the lengthwise intermediate part of a front frame 3 with the rear end thereof connected to a dash panel 2 and extending back and front. Furthermore, a reinforcement part 41 of approximately rectangular form in profile is integrally fitted to the lower surface of the front frame 3 in such a way that the reinforcement part 41 has a base part (front end) is located on the center line (m) of the suspension tower 13 and expands toward the dash panel 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to the front body structure of an automobile, and more specifically to a so-called front midship type vehicle body in which a drive shaft is arranged in front of the engine crankshaft. It's about structure.

(Prior Art) Generally, in the front body structure of an automobile, there is an FF type vehicle in which the engine is mounted on the vehicle so that its crankshaft is located forward of the drive shaft for driving the wheels. (Refer to Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 162173/1983), and in this FF type vehicle,
A suspension tower is disposed at the end on the vehicle body side to which the drive shaft corresponds, and the rear end position of the approximately intermediate portion is connected to the suspension tower, and the rear end is connected to the dash panel. A front frame is provided that extends in the front-rear direction. In this case, the suspension tower is connected to the rear end position of the front frame, which is located close to the dash panel and whose rigidity is increased by the dash panel, so that the support rigidity of the suspension tower to the vehicle body is ensured. There is.

In addition, a front body structure of a car that is different from the one described above is that the engine is mounted on the vehicle so that its crankshaft is located behind the drive shaft, and the engine's gravity is centered in the center of the vehicle rather than the drive shaft. There is a front midship type vehicle located on the side. According to this front midship type vehicle, the weight of the vehicle can be distributed approximately equally between the front and rear, and good handling stability can be obtained.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) By the way, recently, the above-mentioned (FF type vehicle)
There is a demand for a front midship type vehicle. In this case, since the engine crankshaft is located as close to the center of the vehicle as possible than the drive shaft, the drive shaft is disposed forward and away from the dash panel.

Therefore, it is FF and front. In midship type vehicles, the suspension tower that corresponds to the drive shaft is offset forward from a position close to the dash panel, and the suspension tower is located approximately in the middle of the front frame where the rigidity cannot be increased by the dash panel. The suspension tower is supported (connected) at a portion that is weak in terms of rigidity and strength, and the support rigidity and strength of the suspension tower to the front frame is low.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to increase the support rigidity of the suspension tower to the vehicle body in a front-wheel drive, front midship type vehicle.

(Means for Solving the Problem) In order to achieve the above object, the solving means of the present invention provides a front body structure of an automobile in which a drive shaft for driving wheels is arranged in front of the crankshaft of the engine. Assumed. A suspension tower is disposed at the end of the vehicle body corresponding to the drive shaft, and a substantially middle portion thereof is connected to the suspension tower, and a rear end thereof is connected to a dash panel so that the end of the vehicle body is connected in the longitudinal direction. A front frame extending to the front frame is provided. Further, a reinforcing portion is provided at a lower portion of the front frame, the base end of which is located approximately at the center of the suspension tower, and which becomes wider toward the dash panel.

(Function) With the above configuration, in the present invention, the base end of the lower part of the front frame extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body side end is located at approximately the center of the suspension tower, and becomes wider as it approaches the dash panel. Since the reinforcement part is provided, even if the suspension tower is offset forward from the position close to the dash panel due to the front Q midship of FF vehicles, it can be used in the approximately middle part of the front frame, which is weak in terms of rigidity and strength. is effectively strengthened by the reinforcing portion, and the reduction in supporting rigidity of the suspension tower with respect to the front frame is compensated for by the reinforcing portion.

(Example) Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

2 and 3 show the front body structure of an automobile according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which 1 is an engine compartment, 2 is a dash panel forming the rear wall of the engine compartment 1, and 3 is a side end of the vehicle body. are front frames each having a closed cross-sectional shape extending in the front-rear direction, and the rear end portions of each front frame 3 are connected to both side end portions of the dash panel 2. A power plant 5 consisting of a horizontally mounted engine and transmission with a crankshaft 4 extending in the vehicle width direction is disposed in the engine room 1. In front of the crankshaft 4, front wheels 6 (wheels) A drive shaft 7 for driving is provided.

Outside of the front frame 3 in the vehicle width direction (end of the vehicle body)
A wheel house 12 integrally formed with a wheel apron 11 is joined to the wheel apron 11. Above drive shaft 7
A suspension tower 13 that supports a suspension (not shown) is erected at the central portion of the wheel house 12 in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, which is the end portion on the vehicle body side where the wheel house 12 is located.

The suspension tower 13 has its upper edge 13a joined to the upper surface of the closed cross-section structure formed together with the wheel apron reinforcement Ilb at the upper end edge 11a of the wheel apron 11. A shroud lower 14, a suspension front cross member 15, and a suspension rear cross member 16 are respectively installed on each of the front frames 3, which extend in the vehicle width direction from the front of the vehicle body. Further, the shroud lower 14 is a member that forms the front end of the vehicle body frame together with the shroud upper 17 located above the shroud lower 14, and both members 14.17
A shroud panel 18 for supporting a radiator, a headlamp, etc. (not shown) is attached between them.

As shown in FIG. 5, the suspension front cross member 15 has a center portion 15a located at the center in the vehicle width direction, and an outer end connected to both ends of the center portion 15a and further extending in the vehicle width direction. and a side portion 15b that is coupled to each of the front frames 3. The center portion 15a is formed by joining an L-shaped upper panel 15c and a lower panel 15d, and has an inverted-shaped closed cross-sectional space therein. Therefore, the center portion 15a
A small space extending in the width direction of the vehicle is formed below the
The small space serves as a rack accommodating portion 15e. Furthermore, horizontal portions 15g are formed at both left and right ends of the center portion 15a, and extend toward the rear of the vehicle body via vertical portions 15f bent downwards. A support bracket 22 is attached by means of bolts or the like.

Further, on the upper surface of the center portion 15a, as shown in FIG.
A first mount bracket 15h for supporting the power plant 5 is attached.

The first mount bracket 15h has an elastic body such as rubber interposed therein, and elastically supports the power plant 5 by the elastic body.

On the other hand, each side portion 15b is welded to both ends of the center portion 15a, is curved upward toward the front frame 3, and has its upper end portion welded to the lower end surface of the front frame 3.

Furthermore, the suspension rear cross member 16 is disposed near the rear end of the front frame 3, and its center portion is curved upward to expand the space within the engine room 1. Further, similar to the suspension front cross member 15, this suspension rear cross member 16 has supporting brackets 22 for a suspension lower arm 21 projecting from both left and right ends thereof, and a second mount bracket 16a is attached to the upper surface. Furthermore, the suspension front cross member 15 and the suspension rear cross member 16
A center member 31 extending in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body is installed between the two. The center member 31 is a member whose central portion is bent downward, and the welded portion thereof is close to the mounting position of the first and second mount brackets 15h and 16a, so that the power plant 5 The aim is to improve the support rigidity of the Further, the suspension lower arm 2 of each of the suspension cross members 15 and 16 is
The bifurcated inner ends of suspension lower arms 21 are attached to each of the support brackets 22 so as to be swingable in the vertical direction of the vehicle body, and the front wheels 6 and a suspension (not shown) are connected by the suspension lower arms 21.

As shown in FIG. 1, the suspension tower 13 is mounted on the lower surface (lower part) of the front frame 3.
A reinforcing portion 41 having a substantially triangular shape in side view is integrally provided, the base end (front end) of which is located on the center line m of the suspension tower 13, which is approximately the middle portion of the suspension tower 13, and which becomes wider toward the dash panel 2. It is being In this case, the rack member 43 of the rack and pinion mechanism, which will be described later, is arranged near the front part of the drive shaft 7, and therefore the reinforcing part 41 can improve the shape in side view without causing interference with the rack member 43. This makes it possible to increase the size.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, 42 is a steering shaft having a steering wheel (not shown) attached to its upper end, and the lower end of the steering shaft 42 extends back and forth below the power plant 5. , its tip is connected to a rack and pinion mechanism. The rack and pinion mechanism includes a rack and a rack member 43 that accommodates and supports the rack inside. The rack member 43 is attached to the suspension front cross member 1.
5 is disposed in the rack accommodating portion 15e.

Therefore, the L-shaped suspension front cross member 15 is positioned above and in front of the rack member 43. The left and right ends of the rack member 43 are connected to the front wheel 6 via a tie rod 44 and a knuckle arm (not shown), and the rack in the rack member 43 controls the rotation of the steering shaft 42 as the steering wheel is rotated. This is converted into movement of the tie rod 44 in the vehicle width direction, and the movement is configured to steer the front wheels 6 via the knuckle arm.

Therefore, in the above embodiment, the power plant 5 is mounted between the two front frames 3 so that the crankshaft 4 is located on the rear side of the drive shaft 7 for driving the wheels 6. The vehicle is a front midship type vehicle in which the center of gravity of the engine is located closer to the center of the vehicle than the drive shaft 7, and the weight of the vehicle can be distributed approximately equally between the front and rear, resulting in good handling stability.

In that case, a suspension tower 13 is provided on the lower surface (lower part) of the front frame 3 extending in the front-rear direction at the end of the vehicle body.
The base end is located on the center line m (approximately the center position of the suspension tower 13), and the reinforcement widens as it approaches the dash panel 2 without causing interference with the rack member 43 near the front part of the drive shaft 7. Since the section 41 is integrally formed, even if the suspension tower 13 is offset forward from the position adjacent to the dash panel 2 as FF vehicles become front midships, the front frame 3 is weak in terms of rigidity and strength. The approximately middle portion of the is effectively reinforced by the reinforcing portion 41,
The support rigidity of the suspension tower 13 to the front frame 3 can be reinforced by the reinforcing portion 41 .

Further, since the rack member 43 is accommodated in the rack accommodating portion 15e of the suspension front cross member 15, the installation space thereof can be reduced, and the installation space for supplementary items is not restricted. Moreover, rack member 1
In front of 9 is the suspension front cross member 1.
Since a part of the rack member 5 is disposed, the impact load does not directly act on the rack member in the event of a vehicle collision, and the rack member has a protective function.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the front frame 3 and the reinforcement part 41
Although the front frame and the reinforcing portion are integrally formed, the front frame and the reinforcing portion may be formed separately, and the two may be integrally formed by joining or the like. In this case, in addition to obtaining the same functions and effects as those of the above-mentioned embodiments, it is also possible to simplify the manufacturing of the front frame and the reinforcing portion.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the front body structure of a vehicle according to the present invention, the base end of the suspension tower is located approximately at the center position, and the reinforcing portion that becomes wider toward the dash panel is attached to the front frame. Because it is located at the bottom, even if the suspension tower is offset forward as FF vehicles become front midships, the approximately middle part of the front frame, which is weak in terms of rigidity and strength, can be effectively strengthened by the reinforcement part. Therefore, the support rigidity of the suspension tower to the front frame can be reinforced by the reinforcing portion.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a sectional view taken along the line IL in FIG. 3, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line ■-■ in FIG. Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the car body structure; Figure 4 is a plan view of the area around the engine room;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of the end of the front frame. 2... Dash panel 3... Front frame 4... Crankshaft 5... Power plant 6... Front wheel 7... Drive shaft 12... Wheel house 13... Suspension tower 41...・Reinforcement part

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In a front body structure of an automobile in which a drive shaft for driving the wheels is arranged in front of the engine crankshaft, a suspension tower is arranged at the end of the vehicle body side where the drive shaft corresponds. A front frame is provided which extends in the front and back direction, and the suspension tower is connected to a substantially intermediate portion in the front and back direction, and the rear end is connected to the dash panel and extends in the front and rear direction. 1. A front body structure for an automobile, characterized in that a reinforcing portion is provided, the base end of which is located approximately at the center of the tower, and which becomes wider as it approaches the dash panel.