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The August 1996 expansion of FMVSS 201 established head impact performance criteria for upper interior components This standard has forced automotive manufacturers, designers, and suppliers to change their thinking for interiors, especially pillars, compliance with FMVSS 201 will require new, structural designs and energy-absorbing materials An ongoing study has examined the implications of FMVSS 201 and its effect on pillars The results of this study have demonstrated how energy-absorbing engineering thermoplastics can be used to meet and exceed the requirements of the head impact legislation through single-piece pillar trims

With the recent amendment to FMVSS 201 upper interior components must now absorb the energy imparted during a head impact The necessary redesign of these parts will require a thorough understanding of material behavior under impact conditions. A study was conducted to evaluate several materials at strain rates and temperatures representative of upper interior conditions under head impact The results of this study show that engineering thermoplastics behave more consistently and predictably at higher strain rates than do polyolefins and are much less rate sensitive than the olefinic materials