Mazda Motor Corporation

Toyo Kogyo Co., Ltd.

Nobuhiro Komatsu

Toshiro Kondo

Masayoshi Sannomiya

Mitsuru Fujinaka

Satoshi Fujita

Yukiichiro Shimada

Motoharu Sato

Makoto Shinhama

Osamu Matsuura

Hiroshi Nakatsuka

Seiichi Tsuji

Hiromichi Kawamura

Atsushi Nishiyama

Eiichiro Iida

Makoto Yamane

Minoru Fujimoto

Kazuyuki Hirata

An engine room structure of an automotive vehicle is provided with a power transmission unit consisting of, for example, a transfer, between a pair of left-hand and right-hand front side frames, a front axle extending outside from the power transmission unit in the transverse direction of the vehicle body. The steering rack functioning as an element of the front-wheel steering mechanism is so disposed within the engine room as to extend in the transverse direction of the vehicle body and as to lie in the position underneath the spower transmission unit. In other words, the power transmission unit is disposed in the position above the steering rack. This arrangement for the power transmission unit and the steering rack can provide a space between them, thereby lowering the positions of the front side frames.

Engine room structure of automotive vehicle

A dual type exhaust system is used in an automobile having an internal combustion engine with transversely mounted front and rear rows of cylinders. Two exhaust pipe assemblies extend from the front and rear rows of cylinders, respectively, toward the back of the car body. The two assemblies are arranged side by side in a space formed in a floor panel. The exhaust pipe assemblies are, respectively, provided with catalytic converters offset in a lengthwise direction of the car body with respect to the space relative to each other so as to be arranged in a straight line in the space.

Exhaust system for automotive engine

An automobile lower body structure includes a floor panel having a tunnel structure extending longitudinally of a vehicle body at a location substantially centrally thereof, a dashboard lower panel secured to the front end of the floor panel, and a dashboard lower cross member extending transversely of the vehicle body and secured to the lower surface of the dashboard lower panel. The dashboard lower cross member has opposite ends secured to respective of two front side frames extending longitudinally of the vehicle body at opposite sides thereof, and a rearwardly extending intermediate portion partitioning the inside of the tunnel structure so that a closed cross section is formed at an upper portion within the tunnel structure.

Automobile lower body structure

A vehicle rear suspension mounting structure for mounting, to a vehicle body, the other end of a rear suspension. The rear suspension includes a suspension link, one end of which is coupled to a wheel support member for rotatably supporting a vehicle wheel and which extends substantially in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle body. The mounting structure has a vehicle body coupling end formed on the other end of the suspension link, a link bracket for supporting the vehicle body coupling end, and a joint member for joining the link bracket to a rear quarter panel constituting a rear wheel house portion.

Vehicle rear suspension mounting structure

A vehicle suspension mounting structure for mounting a suspension device to a vehicle body. At least the upper arm of the suspension device is constituted by two link members disposed to be spaced apart by a predetermined distance in the vertical direction of the body with respect to a vehicle wheel support member. The suspension mounting structure includes a mounting member for mounting the rear end of the upper link member to an upper frame extending along the back-and-forth direction of the vehicle body.

Vehicle suspension mounting structure

A is a vehicle suspension mounting structure for mounting a suspension device to a vehicle body. At least the upper arm of the suspension device is constituted by two link members disposed to be spaced apart by a predetermined distance in the vertical direction of the vehicle body with respect to a vehicle wheel support member. The suspension mounting structure includes a mounting mechanism for mounting the rear end of the upper link member to a dash panel.

A front body structure of a vehicle includes a pair of retractable head lamps, a pair of retractable head lamp covers for covering the retractable head lamps, a pair of drive motors for driving the retractable head lamps and the retractable head lamp covers, a radiator shroud upper member disposed on a front side of an engine compartment and extending laterally with respect to a vehicle body, a cross member disposed below the radiator shroud upper member and extending laterally with respect to the vehicle body, and two side connecting members for connecting the radiator shroud upper member with the cross member, each of the drive motors being mounted on one of the side connecting members. The thus constructed front body structure has advantages in that it is possible to prevent the number of parts for mounting the drive motors from being increased and it is possible to markedly increase the rigidity of the portions on which the drive motors are mounted, since each of the drive motors is mounted on one of the side connecting members secured to the radiator shroud upper member and the cross member which are standard members for constructing the front body of a vehicle and have extremely high rigidity.

Front body structure of vehicle

A vehicle body has left and right front pillars, each formed of an inner panel and an outer panel and having a closed cross-section, and a dashboard upper panel extending in the transverse direction of the vehicle body between the left and right front pillars. A steering shaft support member which supports a steering shaft and extends in the transverse direction of the vehicle body is connected to the corresponding front pillar at each end thereof by way of a bracket which forms a closed cross-section together with the corresponding front pillar.

Steering assembly supporting structure of a motor vehicle

A front frame has a closed cross section and is connected to a front wheel apron to extend in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body. The rear end of the front frame is connected by a torque box to the front end of a side sill which has a closed cross section and extends in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body along a side edge of a floor panel. A floor frame is connected to the lower surface of the floor panel to extend in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body on the inner side of the side edge of the floor panel and the front end of the floor frame is connected to an intermediate portion of the torque box.

Vehicle underbody structure

In an open cowl type front structure for a vehicle body in which a dashboard upper panel and a cowl panel are connected together so that an opening is formed to open upward in front of the cowl panel, the dashboard upper panel is provided on the front end thereof with a vertically extending front wall portion. The front wall portion defines, together with an upper portion of a dashboard lower panel separating an engine room and a passenger compartment, a closed cross-section portion extending in the transverse direction of the vehicle body. The closed cross-section portion is connected to right and left wheel aprons at opposite ends thereof.

Front structure of vehicle body

A compact and light front body construction for a motor vehicle, in which a pair of suspension towers are increased in strength. In the construction, each of a pair of wheel aprons is divided into upper and lower wheel-aprons and the lower wheel-apron has a projecting portion such that the suspension tower is formed by the projecting portion and an upper panel attached to an upper face of the projecting portion. Furthermore, the upper wheel-apron has a closed cross section such that the upper panel is secured to an underside of the upper wheel-apron.

Front body construction for motor vehicle

An automobile body structure has a side sill formed of inner and outer panels, a central pillar joined to the side sill to extend upwardly therefrom, a rear fender panel extending upwardly from the outer panel of the side sill to form the edge of a door opening and rearwardly of this edge to form a body panel, and a reinforcement extending rearwardly together with the inner panel of the side sill to form a closed cross-section therebetween and joined at its rear end to the rear wheelhouse. The structure greatly improves the body strength rearward of the center pillar.

Growing community of inventors

Yokohama, Japan

Nobuhiro Komatsu