Expansion of the Rear Axle - Chassis Details
These pictures show the internal workings of the expanding chassis as shown in the Mini Cooper images.
The picture on the right is the chassis in the expanded position. The rear of the car and the side bumpers have expanded out of a crumple zone box located in the center of the chassis. If the rear or a side bumper is hit in a collision, the crumple zone box absorbs much of the energy of the collision. The car body parts (doors, trunk, etc.) have less energy to absorb and can be made less strong and heavy. A lighter car gives better gas economy.
The picture on the left show the chassis in the retracted position. Motors draw the rear wheels towards the crumple zone box at the center of the chassis. The side bumpers also are drawn into the crumple zone box.
The crumple zone box contains an energy absorbing material like Honeycomb Aluminum from Hexcel Corp.
Click HERE for details of Aluminum Honeycomb.
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