For some years now Benteler Automotive has been working with S2AB to rethink rear suspension design. The key change is to the toe gradient, which is to toe-out in bump rather than the convention toe-in setup, a behavior achieved by new kinematics, elasto-kinematics and chassis topology.
At Vehicle Dynamics Expo 2012, Benteler is not only raising awareness of the project, but also presenting its progress to date, which includes a working and thoroughly tested demo car featuring the five-link ‘Premium’ version of the technology, as well as a FWD demonstrator with the twist-beam ‘Compact’ version that’s about to begin testing, too.
In addition, the concept will be tested later this year on a Koenigsegg supercar, a further awareness-building exercise that, if successful, could potentially lead to a first OE contract for this radical approach. There’s still a long way to go in winning over automotive manufacturers, however. As Dr Armin Zuber, manager of advanced chassis for Benteler notes: “We’re trying to convince people that black is white…”
