A bigger, boxier body is harder to make stiff. That was the first problem for the All-New Tucson’s safety team.
Kim Han-su, research engineer at Hyundai’s MLV Project Team 1, said the target was world-class safety. The results so far: torsional stiffness up 20.7% and bending stiffness up 34.5%.
How much stiffer is the All-New Tucson’s body?
Torsional stiffness is up 20.7%, bending stiffness is up 34.5%, and the body’s average tensile strength is up about 9.7%.
Hyundai uses more ultra-high-strength steel rated up to 1,760 MPa. It says the Tucson has the largest body in its segment yet weighs about 20kg less than competitors. Material alone wasn’t enough, so engineers designed the body as a ring structure and strengthened the joints between its members. In a frontal crash, the engine bay is designed to absorb more energy so the cabin deforms less.
What changed in the B-pillar?
The main B-pillar reinforcement goes from 1,470 MPa steel at 1.1mm thick to 1,760 MPa steel at 2.0mm, and survival space in a side impact grows by about 23%.
Hyundai also simplified the B-pillar from multiple parts into fewer pieces. The company says the resulting survival space is the best among competing models.
Which new safety features are included?
The All-New Tucson debuts Hyundai’s first dual-power door unlock system and carries nine airbags, including a new front center side airbag.
The dual-power system unlocks the doors through a backup power supply if a crash cuts the main power, so occupants can get out or be rescued. The center airbag stops the driver and front passenger from hitting each other in a side impact.
Standard features include a front collision-avoidance system that detects obstacles in the front blind spot during parking, pedal misapplication safety assist, and P-position emergency braking through the electronic shifter. A Ground View Monitor shows the area under and around the car.