F2000G360

Seoul 2000 FISITA World Automotive Congress

June 12-15, 2000, Seoul, Korea

The 2nd-generation Audi Space Frame of the A2: A trendsetting allaluminium car body concept in a compact class car
Authors: Wulf Leitermann1) , Jens Christlein2)*
1)
2)

Audi AG, Dept. N/EK-6, 74148 Neckarsulm, Germany

Audi AG, Dept. N/EK-63, 74148 Neckarsulm, Germany

Vehicle concepts of the future will have to satisfy such contradictory requirements as high body rigidity and maximum
safety in all driving situations, coupled with minimum weight. With this in mind, at the 1997 Frankfurt Motor Show Audi
presented the Al2 study vehicle, a car which makes ultra-low fuel consumption possible thanks to its new overall technical
concept based on extremely low-weight ASF techniques and innovative engines, but is a multi-purpose four-door vehicle
despite its compact exterior dimensions. This study model was developed into a production-ready vehicle within a very
short space of time: the Audi A2, which made its dbut at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1999. Only with the aid
of simulation techniques was it possible to bring such a novel body concept to production maturity within such a short
space of time. The following article describes the technical highlights of the ASF body on the Audi A2.

Keywords: Audi Space Frame, Aluminium, Lightweight car body

production in order to reach production rates of up to
300 vehicles per day.

INTRODUCTION
Today's car-based society is having to cope with a growing
number of vehicles on our roads, and also with the
problems that they cause. As a result of the rising amount
of space taken up by vehicles, there is above all an
increasing lack of road and parking space, while the
problem of exhaust emissions and energy consumption
remains. Considering the high number of vehicles on
today's roads, the progress that has been made in the field
of engine development has until now been the best way of
reversing the upward spiral of vehicle weights prompted
by rising comfort, performance and safety requirements.
Audi unveiled its Al2 study vehicle as far back as 1997, as
a proposal on how this spiral could be reversed; one of its
principal features is its aluminium body, a refined version
of the Audi Space Frame ASF principle that made its first
appearance in the Audi A8.

Exploitation of the potential for lightweight design

that is created by the use of further-refined semifinished aluminium products such as castings,
extruded sections and panels.

Attainment of very high standards in respect of

rigidity and crash behaviour ("best in class").

2ND GENERATION ASF

In view of the aforementioned specifications and
objectives and the need to optimize costs, the principle of
the Audi Space Frame structure that was used on the Audi
A8 was refined.

BODY CONCEPT
TARGETS AND SPECIFICATIONS
The following development objectives were drawn up for
the Audi A2:

Space-frame aluminium body with a weight saving of

at least 40 % compared with an equivalent body made
from steel, as the basis on which to create a 3-litre car.

Casting
Extrusion
Sheet

Design configuration such that a high level of

automation can be achieved for body-in-white
Fig. 1:

* Corresponding author. e-mail: jens.christlein@audi.de

1

ASF structure of the Audi A2

Because of the scheduled production volume, the resulting

need to increase the level of automation and the simpler
body concept, the number of component parts compared
with the A8 has been significantly reduced. For example,
on this second-generation ASF the castings no longer
simply have the function of mere connecting nodes; they
have to all intents and purposes become multi-functional
large components. The percentage of straight extruded
sections has been boosted significantly, to avoid complex
2D/3D bending processes as far as possible. The ASF
structure now incorporates only six bent extruded sections
(Fig. 1).

Both the new technology of laser welding and the

established principle of MIG welding, for which a new
area of application was created in the floor assembly's Tjoins for the refined body concept, necessitate a high
degree of component precision. In order to achieve the
required component dimensional tolerances of 0.2 mm,
most of the extruded sections for the floor structure must
be calibrated by means of hydroforming.

The techniques of punch-riveting and MIG welding that

were applied successfully on the A8 remain in use, though
the proportion of MIG-welded seams has been
significantly reduced (Fig. 2). Spot-welding, clinching and
structural bonding have been completely eliminated.
Representing a world first in the automotive industry, laser
welding is now used to produce approx. 30 metres of weld
seams on the aluminium body sections. The MIG-welded
T-fillet joins on extruded sections in the floor assembly are
also new.

The front end of the Audi A2, as was already the case on
the Audi A8, consists of a bolted longitudinal-member
structure, which permits a low insurance type
classification. The front longitudinal member comprises an
extruded section which is stamped in the area where it
joins onto the impact-absorbing elements, to permit
defined collapsing in order to absorb impact energy.

FRONT END

On the Audi A2, the connecting longitudinal member for

the first time consists of two vacuum diecast elements,
which are designed to absorb some of the impact energy.
Both split shells have a varying wall thickness and a ribbed
structure defined according to structural calculations, to
produce defined deformation behaviour. The bolt-on
points of the front axle on the lower shells have been
designed to transmit the deformation energy into the
longitudinal member, and not into the rigid subframe. By
integrating
the
transmission
and
engine-mount
connections, the subframe connections, the mounting point
for the slot-in car jack and the suspension frame mounting
points, these two cast split shells constitute a multifunctional large component.

1st generation ASF

MIG
Punch-riveting
Spotwelds
Clinching

CENTRE FLOOR

70 m
1100
500
179

The H-frame of the floor structure consists of straight

extruded sections joined by means of MIG fillet welding.
The cast nodes still used on the Audi A8 for connecting
purposes are no longer required.

2nd generation ASF

MIG
Punch-riveting
Laser

20 m
1800
30 m

Fig. 3: Floor structure

Fig. 2: Comparison of joining techniques, 1st-generation

/2nd-generation ASF

The high position of the longitudinal and cross-members,

on account of the concept, permits a level floor structure
2

with a raised seating position for the occupants. The result

is a lightweight, high-strength member structure which
satisfies very high standards of rigidity and crash safety
(Fig. 3).

processes were conducted iteratively. The advantage of

this one-piece component is its dimensional accuracy and
the absence of joins which would exhibit locally different
strength characteristics if thermal joining techniques were
used on them, and would require comprehensive finishing
because they are in a visible zone. Both the A and B-posts
are vacuum diecast components into which the mounting
points for hinges and door arresters, seat belts and other
screw connections are integrated.

The arrangement of the cross-members in relation to the

sills looks geometrically straightforward, but very high
standards of component precision and welding technology
are required to weld these components.

In the case of the B-post, there is one casting on the A2 as

opposed to a welded structure comprising 8 individual
parts on the A8.

Burr-free, level trimmed ends of the cross-members are

particularly important to a stable welding process. These
are achieved by means of a special sawing technique. The
profile T-joins were investigated as a welded assembly as
early as the concept phase to establish the welding
sequence and direction, and determine the clamping and
fixing techniques, so as to minimize thermal distortion
during welding of the complete structure. This plays a
major role in ensuring that the entire body of the Audi A2
can be built within a very close tolerance range.

The component's ribbing was defined in close conjunction

with the rigidity and crash strength calculations, and
designed substantially facing the outside in order to use the
ribs to absorb pressure in the event of a lateral collision
and to increase the moment of resistance to bending.
In the upper section, the B-post is fixed to the roof frame
by laser welding, for which process very close tolerances
are required in view of the rigid components and the
minimal welding gap required.

The power flow in the forward structure is transmitted to

the centre floor by additional diagonal longitudinal
members and a central longitudinal structure.
The single-section floor pan in conjunction with a raised
floor panel at the front, in the vicinity of the driver's and
front passenger's seats, created additional storage space for
various auxiliaries and control units. The rear passengers'
legroom and the ergonomic position of the seats were
appreciably enhanced by this low-level floor pan. The size
and complexity of the floor pan and the walls thickness,
which is relatively slight for reasons of strength, could
only be achieved by simulating the deep-drawing process
in parallel with development.

ROOF STRUCTURE
There are two body variants for the roof structure area:
Full-panel roof
Double-spoiler glass roof.
The roof structure for the full-panel roof consists of roof
cross-members at the front and rear with a sheet-metal
shell, and the sheet-metal roof.

REAR END

On the version for the double-spoiler glass roof, there is no

sheet-metal roof panel. The rigidity loss due to the absence
of shear strength in the roof is compensated for by
reinforced roof cross-members. The double-spoiler roof is
bolted to the structure as a complete module, after the
body has been painted.

The rear end, which is again of a relatively simple

structure, and its structure of longitudinal and crossmembers, are connected to the centre floor by means of a
further multi-functional large casting. This "longitudinalmember/sill connecting element" contains the rear-axle
mounts, the spring cap supports, the mounting for the slotin car jack and the suspension frame mounting points.

BODY CALCULATION

The rear floor panels do not merely permit a level loadarea floor; their design means that they are ideal for laserwelding by means of pressure roller.

Computer simulation, with the aid of which vehicle

functions such as crash safety, rigidity and strength can be
optimized well before actual prototypes exist, is a key tool
in the development process. Front-loading, i.e. the use of
CAE tools in the early phase of the product development
process, is of critical importance to the efficient use of
simulation tools. In the concept and early prototype phase
in particular, body calculation is the principal means of
making reliable concept-definition decisions within the
development process. The degree to which simulation
tools are used depends decisively on the degree to which
the calculation process is interlinked with other areas
participating in development work, such as Design,
Testing, Planning and Quality Assurance. To make
optimum use of the available synergy benefits, Audi has
set up the Aluminium Centre at in Neckarsulm, where all
partners involved in the product development process are

The rear impact-absorbing elements permit screw-type

towing eyes.

SIDE-WALL FRAME
This assembly basically comprises the side section, the
side of the roof frame and the castings for the A + B-posts
and tailgate lid hinge mounting. The one-piece deep-drawn
side section forms the outer shell of the side structure.
Manufacturing this deep-drawn element of aluminium
presented the planning and toolmaking specialists with a
major challenge. The design and deep-drawing simulation
3

The rear-end collision to ECE R32 involves a rigid barrier

with an overlap of 100 percent striking a stationary,
unbraked vehicle. In this case, the structure in the
simulation process was designed such that only the rear
section of the vehicle becomes deformed. The passenger
cell and doors remain largely free from deformation.

located closely together, with the result that the flow of

information can be largely optimized.

RIGIDITY
The Audi A2's static torsional rigidity was configured and
optimized by means of calculation. The objective here was
to obtain a standard of lightweight body design that is
significantly better than the norm on this class of vehicle.

To this end, there is a stable matrix of longitudinal and

lateral members in the floor area, and the forces in the roof
zone are supported via the casting for the tailgate-lid
mounting and the side roof frame. The zone at the rear
longitudinal members has been designed such that a
targeted folding-dent process occurs in the extruded
section, whereas the dimensions of the casting in front of it
are such that it sustains only slight deformation. This
allows the cabin to provide maximum protection for the
occupants even in this load scenario.

The dynamic properties of the body were investigated both

on the body-in-white and on the trimmed body. In the
latter method, all mass-affected components which are
rigidly connected to the body are represented in the finiteelement model. By means of synthetic excitation at typical
force application points, responses which permit
improvements to all the relevant components in order to
enhance driving comfort are obtained at customer-relevant
contact points, such as the foot contact point, steering
wheel or seat rail connection.

The frontal crash at 64 km/h against the deforming barrier

with an offset of 40 percent imposes a very high load on
the structure. The objective of the layout was to make
deformation take place in a controlled manner in the
forward structure in the event of a collusion, leaving the
cabin intact. To this end, the front longitudinal members of
the space-frame structure absorb the bulk of the
deformation energy, whereas the beam structures behind it
constitute the passenger cell and are scarcely deformed.
The doors can still be opened easily after the crash (Fig.
4).

STRENGTH
On the A2, abuse load scenarios such as driving over
ground ramps were evaluated with the aid of simulation
and the structure optimized as a result. For this load
scenario, the forces that are introduced into the structure
are calculated by means of MKS simulation. These forces
were then applied to the body through a finite-element
calculation, and the distribution of stresses and extensions
in the structure analyzed and optimized.

PASSIVE SAFETY
Thanks to its vehicle concept, the Audi A2 has a sound
basis for an optimum flow of power under the influence of
the loads occurring in crash load scenarios. For example,
the relatively slight difference in height between the front
and rear longitudinal member and the supporting structure
in the passenger cell zone permits a weight-optimized
structure, with precise control of the deformation which
occurs in a frontal and rear-end collision. The sill, which is
relatively high up compared with familiar vehicle
concepts, likewise contributes to the flow of power and to
the absorption of energy in a side collision.
In the lateral impact to Euro-NCAP at 50 km/h, the vehicle
is struck at right-angles by a trolley carrying a barrier, the
front side of which represents a deformable impact
element. Here again, the rigid cabin constitutes the
survival space for the occupants. In this test, the overlap
between the doors and the posts and sill prevents the doors
from being displaced into the interior. The doors moreover
incorporate large-area impact-absorbing elements which
transfer the forces occurring into the cabin structure.

Fig. 4: Structural deformation in front crash to EuroNCAP at 64 km/h

The B-post of the A2 for the first time consists of a diecast

element. With the aid of calculation, this component has
been designed to adapt ideally to the loads which occur,
permitting precise control of its deformation behaviour;
this contributes significantly to the car's high safety
standards in the Euro-NCAP lateral collision.

SUMMARY
The development of the Audi A2 demonstrates that it is
already possible to use an aluminium body for a compactclass vehicle. Technological advances in aluminium
vehicle design were systematically implemented on this
car, both as a means of reducing costs compared with the
1st-generation Audi Space Frame and to permit its volume
production. Audi has now succeeded in realizing a
pioneering lightweight design concept that sets new
standards.

REFERENCES
[1] D. Engelhart, W. Leitermann et al: Der neue Audi A2
(The new Audi A2), ATZ/MTZ-Sonderheft 03-2000
[2] J. Christlein, H. Behrens: Aluminium als KarosserieLeichtbauwerkstoff fr Personenkraftwagen
(Aluminium as a lightweight material for cars). Bnder
Bleche Rohre 10-1996: 16-24.