Rediseño y construcción de la suspensión McPherson del tren delantero de un Chevrolet Vitara Clásico aplicando herramientas computacionales de simulación estructural y manufactura

Abstract

In this work, the objective was to carry out the redesign of the McPherson suspension system of the front end of a classic Chevrolet Vitara brand, to improve the driving conditions of the vehicle on third-class roads. To improve the dynamic behavior of the suspension system, we started from the modeling of the original components of the McPherson suspension to subsequently apply the redesign respecting the support points and the points where the suspension components are attached. The new components are designed based on the geometry of the double wishbone suspension system. New parts were designed: upper table support, upper table, secondary spindle, upper shock absorber support, and turret reinforcement. The dynamic and static simulation of the two systems was carried out for the design validation, where the characteristic curves of the alignment angles, Camber, Caster, and Convergence, were determined, where the variations of these were: 6.31°; 0.49° and 9.76° in the original system and 0.97°; 0.36°; 2.49° in the modified system respectively. In the static analysis applied to the lower table, the safety factor was 2.64 in the original system and 2.90 in the modified system. Obtaining improvements in the dynamics of the suspension, the manufacturing process was carried out, and consequently, the field tests determined that the vehicle improved its driving conditions and, the suspension work increased from 185 mm to 225 mm, improving its adherence with the road surface by 20%. It is concluded that the redesigned system is efficient on third-class roads and, the alignment angles are in normal ranges. It is recommended to install this type of suspension on Vitara brand vehicles which are held to extreme conditions.