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In today’s cost competitive environment, automotive companies are moving towards lightweight materials for reducing carbon footprint, increasing fuel economy and cost benefits. Fiber reinforced plastics (FRP) is one of the most attractive option considering its high strength to weight ratio. The advantage of continuous FRP composites is tailorability according to different performance requirements. This paper will focus on finite element analysis and optimization of automotive hood structure made up of continuous carbon fiber reinforced composite with epoxy resin based matrix. Composite hood structure is analyzed using detailed orthotropic composite laminate models and an appropriate composite material failure theory. Strength of FRPs is maneuvered by orientations of the fiber plies. Considering this, stack-up sequence optimization is performed considering bending, torsional stiffness and fundamental modes in dynamic analysis.

Utility or Off-road vehicles are characterized with their higher ground clearances. Higher ground clearance of vehicle requires the vehicle to have footsteps for easy entry and exit of passengers from the vehicle. A typical foot step construction consists of structural steel brackets with an Aluminum or plastic top panel. Conventional steel construction is heavier to meet weight bearing capacity and durability requirements. Our objective of this work is to explore lightweight materials which can meet these performance requirements with a lighter construction. We chose to study the continuous glass fiber reinforced plastic as an alternative to the metal construction.