Why are there 3 identical lower front wishbone arms
but made of 3 different materials for all PQ35 cars ( eg Skoda Octavia-II ) ? 🤔
( Of course they have different VW/Skoda part # )
There must be some underlying thought/reason here !?!?   🤔

* Pressed sheet metal.

* Cast steel.

* Cast aluminium.








 

Price vs Weight vs Application.

 

I think the cast alloy were used for Golf GTi and Audi TT etc.

Price vs NVH reduction with perhaps unsprung weight being a consideration on sporting variants.

 

Price trumps all but different brands will place different values on the other two factors.

 

Is it not just a case of continued value engineering with the components getting cheaper during the production run?-

 

It is probably not the case today but 20-25 years ago Skoda would be the first to get the newest engines and drivetrains as effectively guinea pigs, if unforeseen problems developed in service it would only taint the budget brand not those with a hard earned reputation for quality.

2 hours ago, Golf-Fiend said:

Price vs Weight vs Application.

( I think the cast alloy were used for Golf GTi and Audi TT etc. )

 

1 hour ago, J.R. said:

Price vs NVH reduction with perhaps unsprung weight being a consideration on sporting variants.

Price trumps all but different brands will place different values on the other two factors.

Is it not just a case of continued value engineering with the components getting cheaper during the production run ?

It's probably not the case today but 20-25 years ago Skoda would be the first to get the newest engines and drivetrains as effectively guinea pigs,
if unforeseen problems developed in service it would only taint the budget brand not those with a hard earned reputation for quality.

If you think about the propagation of sound/noise, the cast aluminum wishbone should be the best at arbsorbing sound/noise
so that it does not propagate into the passenger compartment as disturbing noise.
...But this still does not feel like the primary reason why 3 identical lower front wishbone arms  are available in 3 different materials  🤔

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PQ35 platform cars:

• Audi A3 Mk2 (8P)
• Audi TT Mk2 (8J)
• Audi Q3 Mk1 (8U)
• SEAT León Mk2 (1P)
• SEAT Toledo Mk3 (5P)
• SEAT Altea (5P)
• Škoda Octavia Mk2 (1Z)
• Škoda Yeti (5L)
• Volkswagen Touran (1T)
• Volkswagen Caddy Mk3 (2K)
• Volkswagen Golf Mk5 (1K)
• Volkswagen Golf Mk6 (5K)
• Volkswagen Jetta Mk5 (1K)
• Volkswagen Scirocco Mk3 (1K8)
• Volkswagen Jetta Mk6 (1K)
• Volkswagen Beetle A5 (16)
• Volkswagen Eos (1F)
  
  
   

Edited 19 November, 20241 yr by 2stroke

Its not the propagation but the damping of said sound, the mass plays a big part.

 

Sound is not really the word to describe NVH but I am responding using your terms.

 

Before I could drive I was working in a garage all weekends and was soaking up information like a baby, I looked closely at a Bentley from under the ramp and was shocked by how massive and heavy the suspension arms, steering, crossmembers etc were, far heavier than needed for the loads they would incur even on a heavy vehicle like that, it was done for NVH but in a crude way, there was not the knowledge of the science then, very much in the same way that my vintage machine tools and construction equipment are massively heavy, modern ones are much lighter but don't vibrate or chatter any more than the old, they feel robust to use though.

12 hours ago, J.R. said:

 

Sound is not really the word to describe NVH but I am responding using your terms.

 

 

Sound is a pretty good word to describe the 'N' in NVH.

On 20/11/2024 at 09:40, J.R. said:

Its not the propagation but the damping of said sound, the mass plays a big part.

Sound is not really the word to describe NVH

 

12 hours ago, Me-109 said:

Sound is a pretty good word to describe the 'N' in NVH.

As English is not my native language, it is a bit difficult to understand abbreviations.
( It's been more than 30 years since I sat in a school desk and tried to learn English. )
I don't know what NVH means !?!?  🤔

My sincere apologies, I usually write what an acronym is in brackets.

 

NVH is a motor industry term for noise vibration and harshness.

 

And yes I agree that sound is a good way to describe the noise component of NVH, the other components are felt by the other senses.