I was wondering since I looked for the info and can't seem to find it. what are the heaviest parts of the prius, well let me qualify this what are the heaviest components that are made of steel and are bolt on I mean hood and fenders are obvious so are the doors but they would be more complex. what other parts are heavy made of steel and pretty much in order of weight please. I have a few projects pending but I'm thinking a little out loud here, how much weight could be saved by replacing parts with carbon fiber composites. I mean you can create a beam that weighs ten pounds that can support the weight of ten and more people. So thinking if one could replace the really heavy parts and some of the not as heavy ones with carbon fiber composites that would be cool. just thinking technically here cross members control arms the hear hatch and the doors hell you could save a few 100 pounds if you add it all up. But a list of the parts and what weight actually be gained(lost actually) would help with number crunching. anyone got some resources has seen a breakdown of what weighs what in this car besides the battery and the engine. terramir
I am not sure there are any nonstructural body parts on a Prius other than the back hatch. The outer panels on the doors, perhaps. The rest will have safety impacts, unless this is a show car, never driven, always towed.
carbon fiber if done right part wise will have 1/4 to 1/3 of the weight and will be stronger than the original part and I'm not just talking compression strength I'm talking across the board from compression to youngs modulus and everything inbetween. stuctural parts are fair game as long as it's not the unibody part because well you'd have to replace the whole thing at once. you can't weld carbon fiber to steel would need to be bolt on but it would be safer than the original part. stronger tougher lighter, but unless you are doing the mold and layup yourself a hell of a lot more pricey. I'm not talking flashy one layer carbon fiber with three layers of glass fiber behind it (what a rip-off) but those one layer carbon fiber three layers glass as long as it's not done with polyester resin will still be stronger than the original fender. I'm talking structurally sound multilayer and multi directional built composite part that will be a heck of a lot stronger and tougher than the original while saving 66 to 75% of the weight of that part. terramir
The hood and hatch are aluminum, so not very heavy. And for the body parts (hood, doors, hatch) stronger isn't necessarily safer. The car is designed to crumple at a rate that reduces deceleration but doesn't crush the occupants. That's a delicate balancing act. I know from personal experience having walked away unhurt after being rear ended while stopped at a traffic light by an old Jeep Cherokee going 60+ mph. Had my Prius been stiffer, a lot more energy would have been transmitted to me. (I was stunned for a while as it was.) Had it been softer, well, he managed to bend my traction battery, so I'd hate to think what would have happened. The front of the Jeep was relatively unscathed. Only surface damage - no crumpling.
I don’t think there is a business model in carbon fiber parts for a car the newest of which is 10 years old, and low performance to boot.