Lotus and Aston Martin

[fitfan]

I ahve mentioned a few times that Lotus did the modern Aston chassis (kicked off by the vanquish as i recal), and have been asked where i heard that... and i never remebered. but i was reading on atston martin website about my new favorite car in the world - rapide, i need one, my bike will fit - 4 door hatch with folding rear seats and found this!

ARCHITECTURE
Underpinning the Rapide concept is Aston Martin's VH architecture, developed to offer exceptional manufacturing flexibility. This high-strength, low-mass architecture forms the backbone of the current generation of Aston Martins, spearheaded by the DB9 Coupé and flanked by the DB9 Volante and the Vantage.

The extruded aluminium construction of the VH architecture can be modified in both length and width, providing a myriad of packaging options, and the chemically-bonded structure (using glues derived from aircraft manufacture) is mated with bodywork that mixes aluminium and composite materials. The architecture’s flexibility is further demonstrated by its use in the DBR9 racing car, where it is combined with carbon-fibre composite body panels to produce a modern race car of rare beauty.

[...m...]

...that certainly sounds like VVA - do they explicity say anywhere that it was developed by lotus?..i wonder how an aston buyer will feel the first time she experiences frame damage and is told that it's irreparable - i guess it's expected at that price level...

[wallabyguy]

Autocar - Lotus reveals radical aluminium chassis

The VH is much more VVA than what the Elise has. It can be repaired in sections so the vehicle is much less likely to be totaled in an accident.

[ads_green]

Elise doesn't have VVA and thats the problem.
Evora is the first true VVA production car from lotus.

[wallabyguy]

Originally Posted by ads_green

Elise doesn't have VVA and thats the problem.
Evora is the first true VVA production car from lotus.

This is correct. The Elise uses a similar system but it is not constructed in sections like the VVA, VH or the system Lotus designed for Jaguar. The result, as mentioned earlier, is that an accident is more likely to total the entire vehicle than with the new systems.

[fitfan]

Originally Posted by ads_green

Elise doesn't have VVA and thats the problem.
Evora is the first true VVA production car from lotus.

exactly, but not the first VVA car produced.

[Rat27]

So what was the first VVA car produced? I didn't think any VVA products had been produced yet.

[charliex]

my guess for lotus is the APX

[Rat27]

I should have been more specific. I meant the first production vehicle with VVA. You are right that Apex was the first vehicle. Well at least the first one shown to the public.

[milehitom]

In the May/June 2005 issue of Aluminum Now magazine (we all get that, don't we?), they wrote "In 2002, Lotus signed up its first as yet-unnamed OEM as client, discussed with them the options it had already evaluated and, ultimately, the client settled on the riv-bonded aluminum cast/stamped/extruded solution. Lotus says the first vehicle to emerge for its client from the VVA program will be a crossover vehicle combining the attributes of an SUV, MPV, and a sports car."

http://www.autoaluminum.org/Download...usMayJun05.pdf

IIRC, the Evora has a VVA chassis. I'm excited to see how the additional rigidity offered by VVA will affect it's handling and feel.

The ability to replace sections of the chassis in the event of a crash makes it very attractive.

Tom

[wallabyguy]

My guess is that the article was referring to the APX which was supposed to be produced by ZAP and then was shelved.

[ads_green]

Originally Posted by Rat27

I should have been more specific. I meant the first production vehicle with VVA. You are right that Apex was the first vehicle. Well at least the first one shown to the public.

I meant a production car that is actually got produced

[charliex]

It was produced, just in a very limited select run of one

Lotus has done a few production cars in runs of one.

[codymac]

Well... technically...

The AM chassis was manufactured by a company called Holden Aluminum Worcester which is the same company that manufactured the Lotus chassis. It was a private company for years until being sold to Hydro Aluminum (IIRC) and Lotus, (yes, that Lotus), who purchased the Holden Lightweight Structures division and renamed it Lotus Lightweight Structures.

The engineering, tooling, and production of the AM, BMW, Jag, and Lotus chassis components was performed by Holden (Lotus as of 2008, if you're keeping up).

All that neat stuff people think Lotus did as far as technology with the chassis? Most of it was Holden - they do some mind-boggling stuff with aluminum: compound bends and twists with extrusions, etc.

As to the split between the development and production engineers?

[charliex]

Originally Posted by codymac

Well... technically...

thats the best kind of "....ly"

[fitfan]

Originally Posted by Rat27

So what was the first VVA car produced? I didn't think any VVA products had been produced yet.

it would seem the astons. i believe their work on the vanquish is what sparked the vva concept.

[fitfan]

Originally Posted by ...m...

...that certainly sounds like VVA - do they explicity say anywhere that it was developed by lotus?..i wonder how an aston buyer will feel the first time she experiences frame damage and is told that it's irreparable - i guess it's expected at that price level...

vva should have more durable (cast i believe. not extruded) uprights - but the chassis itself, if damaged, is no more replaceable that the elise style - just that the vaa uprights should be more robust - the final product is assembled in similar fashion.

[Rat27]

Originally Posted by wallabyguy

My guess is that the article was referring to the APX which was supposed to be produced by ZAP and then was shelved.

I actually think APX was supposed to be built by a Malaysian car company. Take a look at the headlight shape on the APX and compare it to the headlight shape on the Europa. I think you'll see a similarity.

[ads_green]

wasnt the sale to hydro before the first elise project? the elise story dvd has a fair chunk on the poor guy who had to deal with hydro as there were lots of delays and problems.

[codymac]

Originally Posted by ads_green

wasnt the sale to hydro before the first elise project? the elise story dvd has a fair chunk on the poor guy who had to deal with hydro as there were lots of delays and problems.

Could be - entirely possible that I've got the timeline wrong.