MODULAR SPACE FRAME

摘要

A vehicle space frame (10) for constructing a pick-up truck styled motor vehicle includes a body module (30) and a front module (22). The body module (20) includes a pair of laterally spaced, longitudinally extending main side rail structures (14) and a pair of rearward-most upright structures (26) each being connected to a respective main side rail structure and extending upwardly therefrom to form a pair of rearward-most pillars thereon. The body module further includes a pair of hydroformed upper longitudinal members (30, 32) each being defined by an outwardly deformed tubular metallic wall fixed in a predetermined irregular exterior surface configuration and each including a pillar-forming portion and a longitudinally extending portion. The front module (22) includes a pair of front lower side rail structures (18), a pair of front upper side rail structures (42) and front connecting structure (44). The front connecting structure connects the front lower side rail structures to one another in laterally spaced relation and to connect the front upper side rail structures to one another in laterally spaced relation. The front module (22) is fixed to the body module (20) by rigidly interconnecting each front lower side rail structure with a respective main side rail structure (14) and each front upper side rail structure to pillar-forming portion of a respective hydroformed upper longitudinal member at a position spaced upwardly from the associated main side rail structure (14).