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Automotive component light weighing is one of the major goals for original equipment manufacturers (OEM's) globally. Significant advances are being made in developing light-weight high performance components. In order to achieve weight savings in vehicles, the OEM's and component suppliers are increasingly using ultra-high-strength steel, aluminum, magnesium, plastics and composites. One way is to develop a light weight high performance component through multi material concept. In this present study, a bimetal brake drum of inner ring cast iron and outer shell of aluminum has been made in two different design configurations. In two different designs, 40 and 26% weight saving has been achieved as compared to conventional gray cast iron brake drum. The component level performance has been evaluated by dynamometer test. The heat dissipation and wear behavior has been analyzed. In both designs, the wear performance of the bimetal brake drum was similar to the gray cast iron material.

The automotive industry needs sustainable seating products which offer good climate performance and superior seating comfort. The safety requirement is always a concern for current seating systems. The life of the present seating system is low and absorbs moisture over a period of time which affects seat performance (cushioning effect). Recycling is one of the major concerns as far as polyurethane (PU) is concerned. This paper presents the development of an alternative material which is eco-friendly and light in weight. Thermoplastic Polyolefin (PO) materials were tried in place PU for many good reasons. It is closed cell foam which has better tear and abrasion resistance. It doesn't absorb water and has excellent weathering resistance. Also it has a better cushioning effect and available in various colours. Because of superior tear resistance, it is possible to eliminate upholstery and would reduce system level cost.

The crankshaft twist is of great concern for heavy duty engines. In order to have a longer B10 life and better NVH characteristics, it is desired to have minimum Torsional vibrations (TV) in the crank shaft. To keep the crankshaft twist in check - TV dampers are used. Aneasier approach is to use a Viscous TV damper which keeps TV below acceptable limit for entire speed range. But this is a very costly approach. In this paper, the design of rubber TV damper for multi-cylinder engine was optimized to have lower TV characteristics. The optimized rubber damper has been developed with AEM - VAMAC™ grade rubber. This material provides advantages of better TV attenuation, higher thermal resistance, oil resistance higher durability and a much longer life than other rubber compositions. Besides rubber profile was also optimized to obtain higher slip torque. The TV amplitudes with existing rubber compound (EPDM -Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) were measured in the engine testbed.