ALL-STEEL BODIES

Evening Post, Volume CXX, Issue 144, 14 December 1935, Page 34

ALL-STEEL BODIES

AMERICAN PROGRESS

ROOMINESS WITH STRENGTH

The latest American cars, disclose a nearly unanimous adoption o£ the allsteel body with steel top (remarks an American writer). Even in the high-est-price class, in which limited quantity production and the tremendous expense of large body-stamping dies were obstacles in the past, there .has been a change to this type of body construction. Bigness is emphasised generallygreater over-all length, longer bodies, larger interior dimensions. These are characteristic features of all makes, from the lowest price class to the highest. Mode] designations, in their relationship to the number of passengers accommodated, have been change-j in many cases, due to the increase in the width of the front seat. They are called three-passenger coupes and sixpassenger sedans. Some wider doors prevail this year. One manufacturer has, by means of a cleverly-designed hinge, provided a more substantial support for the door, a wider clear opening, and an unbroken . doorline on the hinged side. The hinge is swung from, underneath the dash panel on the front pillar. Seats are not only wider but deeper, and backs are higher in many instances. Individual coiled seat springs are encased separately, even in cars in the popular-price bracket. All front seats are adjustable to suit the driver. Back seats, too, are adjustable in occasional designs. The adoption of all-steel bodies has focused the efforts of engineers oh structural improvements in the. body. Stripped of upholstering panel and roof coverings, the inherent strength of these all-steel bodies is apparent. Side, top, and rear, panels are electrically welded into an integral unit and greatly strengthened by the judicious use of reinforcements and structural forms welded to" the pillars and steel floor. The welded dash mounting strengthens the forward part of the structure. The rigid :bpdy is; then mounted in unit with the frame. : • As a. result ol intensive study of means to destroy resonance by deadening sound,, the new bodies are quieter.: Each • manufacturer has attacked the problem of sound- deadening in his own

way. For example, one applies a layer of an asphalt compound to the roof and panels which are afterwards baked. Laminated cellulose treated with asphalt is compressed from a thickness of eight inches to three-quar-ters '... of an inch. This compressed material,, weighing ? two pounds ■ per cubic foot;''backed-by -asphalt-impreg-nated paper,; is then joined by heat and pressure tq the metal panels. On the dash panel, a layer of /felt insulator is

cemented and a one-inch lining is attached. Floor boards, raised clear of the frames, rest on rubber tubes in the front compartment. Built-in trunks may be had. in any make of car, and they are larger than previously. Even those cars not so equipped have generous luggage space provided behind the rear seat. Rubber mats and carpets are heavily backed with insulating material.. Insulation against dust and fumes has resulted in tighter passenger compartments. ...■•_