As we all know, lightweight is of great significance to the machinery industry, especially the automotive industry, and the launch of the Great Wall Motors (GWM) LEMON platform further proves this knowledge.
In September 2020, the third generation HAVAL H6 and HAVAL Dagou developed on the basis of the LEMON platform debuted. Among them, the third-generation HAVAL H6, known as the “champion car”, continued to maintain strong performance, with sales soaring to 11,516 units. In addition, HAVALDagou, which was launched on the market on the eve of the “2020 China International Auto Show”, also achieved impressive results, with a sales volume of 3,045 vehicles in just 5 days, which marked the first month of listing to achieve impressive results .
Therefore, the LEMON platform has been highly recognized by insiders. The strong performance of the third-generation HAVAL H6 and HAVAL Dagou reflects the consumer’s support and recognition of the car models developed on the LEMON platform.
Some consumers may know little about the meaning of lightweighting for automakers. We will briefly introduce you to the better experience that users get from lightweight.
First of all, in terms of cleanliness, energy saving and emission reduction are the direct driving force for weight reduction. With the implementation of the national VI emission standards, all automakers are focusing on improving the efficiency of vehicle emissions.
Secondly, in the field of new energy, lower self-weight means better driving range, which is of great significance for the development and popularization of new energy vehicles.
Third, from the perspective of vehicle maneuverability, light weight can improve acceleration performance, braking performance, steering performance and gradeability, making consumers feel a more pleasant driving experience.
Of course, the premise of lightweight is driving safety and comfort: better lightweight performance must be based on uncompromising safety and comfort and improving fuel economy and power. This is the true meaning of lightweight. This is the ultimate goal of the LEMON platform.
In order to achieve the ultimate lightweight performance of the LEMON platform, GWM has made three improvements to fundamentally achieve lightweight and reach the highest level in the industry.
1. Structural improvement: Adjust the material layout path to fully improve the torsion strength and roof compressive strength.
Improving the body structure is the key to reducing weight. At the beginning of the project, GWM used analog topology and MDO (Multidisciplinary Design) to identify the most effective material layout path that met performance requirements such as safety and rigidity. In addition to maintaining a complete loop path structure, GWM also aims to improve torsion resistance, roof compressive strength and rollover protection.
Second, material improvement: the body strength exceeds the “submarine class”, and more than 70% of the automotive materials are made of high-strength steel
After fully improving the body structure, the LEMON platform will select appropriate materials according to the load conditions of different places and arrange these materials in the most effective position to give full play to the effectiveness of the materials. In a sense, in the field of lightweight, material improvement is the simplest and most direct solution.
Moreover, LEMON Platform attaches great importance to material improvement: it replaces the traditional 1500MPa hot-formed steel with 2000MPa hot-formed steel for the first time. As a result, the yield strength increased by 26%, and the tensile strength increased by 38%. For example, on the key components of the third-generation HAVAL H6 (such as column A, column B and door frames), the pressure of the deflector reaches 2000MPa, which is higher than the subsea-level body strength (1500MPa) promoted by the joint venture. “Blue” means high-strength steel, “yellow” means high-grade high-strength steel, and “red” means hot-formed steel. These three steels account for more than 70% of automotive materials and are the main components. An integral part of the body.
3. Process improvement: Breaking industry conventions and introducing the rolling process of different thickness steel plates for the first time.
In addition, LEMON Platform continues to pursue perfection to achieve “healthy weight loss”. It improves the integrity of parts, reduces the weight of parts, and reduces overlapping edges of parts to reduce weight. By enhancing the connection strength, LEMON Platform makes the path smoother, thereby providing space for reducing the weight of other components, thereby making the weight of the whole vehicle lighter.
For LEMON Platform car models such as the third-generation HAVAL H6 and HAVAL Dagou, the traditional spot-welded splicing door knocker is replaced by an integrated hot stamping door knocker, which helps to eliminate the concentrated collision stress at the joint position along the force transmission path, at 25% In the case of small overlapping collisions, the human body’s violation of the collision is reduced, and passenger safety is improved. In addition, LEMON Platform breaks through the traditional constant-section steel plate design and introduces the rolling process of steel plates of different thicknesses for the first time, so that the body has no “excess fat”.
According to experiments, if the curb weight of the car is reduced by 100kg, the fuel consumption per 100 kilometers will be reduced by 0.3L-0.6L. In addition, if the weight of the car is reduced by 100 kilograms, carbon dioxide emissions per kilometer will be reduced by about 5 grams. After upgrading on the LEMON platform, the lightweight level of GWM has been significantly improved: the total weight of the third-generation HAVAL H6 has been reduced by 100kg, the fuel economy has increased by 14.5%, and the fuel consumption per 100 kilometers has been reduced to 6.6L. Compared with the previous generation GWM car model, the third generation HAVAL H6 has made significant progress and surpasses similar car models. If the driving distance of the car is 30,000 kilometers per year, then GWM car users can save 180L of fuel per year.
For consumers, material improvements will not only help improve fuel economy, but will also bring them a fully optimized driving experience. According to overseas survey data, if the weight of a car is reduced by 10%, its acceleration performance will be increased by 8% and the braking distance will be reduced by 5%, thereby making driving safer and more efficient. This will fully ensure the property and life safety of drivers and passengers.
All in all, as one of the advanced lightweight platforms in the industry, the LEMON platform will not only bring better fuel economy to consumers, but also improve vehicle safety and driving experience, bringing consumers more economical and environmentally friendly, Comfortable and safe driving experience. How many mysteries will “GWM LEMON” bring to us? We believe that the upcoming competitive models will provide us with more satisfactory answers!
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Post time: Oct-23-2020