Body-on-frame is an automobile construction technology. Mounting a separate body to a rigid frame which supports the drivetrain was the original method of building automobiles, and its use continues to this day. The original frames were made of wood (commonly ash), but steel ladder frames became common in the 1930s.
In the USA the frequent changes in automobile design made it necessary to use a ladder frame rather than monocoque to make it possible to cha ...
In automotive engineering, the bodywork of an automobile is the structure which protects:
The occupants
Any other payload
The mechanical components.
In vehicles with a frame or chasis, the term bodywork is normally applied to only the non-structural panels, including doors and other movable panels, but it may also be used more generally to include the structural comp ...
Prior to this time aircraft were built up from an internal frame, typically of wood or steel tubing, which was then covered (or skinned) with fabric to give it a smooth surface. The materials vary; some builders used sheet metal or plywood for the skin. In all of these designs the idea of load-bearing structure vs. skin remained.
By the late 1920s the price of aluminium (specifically duralumin) started dropping considerably and many manufacturers started using it to replace the internal framing, and in some cases, the external ...
There are three main types of automotive bodywork:
The first automobiles were modelled on horse-drawn vehicles, and had body-on-frame construction with a wooden frame and wooden or metal body panels. Wooden-framed motor vehicles remained in production until the middle of the 20th century, for example the MG A which continued in production until 1962.
A steel chasis or ladder frame replaced the wooden frame. This form of body-on-frame construction is still common for trucks.
Monocoque const ...
The first automotive application of the monocoque technique was 1923's Lancia Lambda. Citroën built the first mass-produced monocoque vehicle in 1934, the innovative Traction Avant. The popular Volkswagen Beetle also used a semi-monocoque body (its frame required the body for support) in 1938.
In the post-war period the technique became more widely used. The Alec Issigonis Morris Minor of 1948 featured a monocoque body. The Ford Consul introduced an evolution called unit body or unibody. In this system, separate body pa ...
