6 ms·

What happens in an accident, or when someone drills a hole through the frame?

by gwbas1c 6y ago

ssully 6y ago
I think if this becomes a reality, the standard advice will be: "Do not drill holes through your car frame"
- macjohnmcc 6y ago
  We can adapt the don't drill a hole in anything that may contain flammable liquid to include don't drill into anything energized.
- VBprogrammer 6y ago
  Pretty decent advice even without the chance of drilling through the battery pack.
- throwaway0a5e 6y ago
  "pay $599.99/mo for this upfitter guide subscription that tells you where to drill"
LeifCarrotson 6y ago
It's much like unibody car repair: You used to be able to bolt a hitch, bumper, roll cage, or winch to the ladder frame of your vehicle. The ladder frame was basically a pair of ~2x5" C-channel heavy steel bars running the length of the vehicle, with crossmembers linking them together. It's still present on a lot of trucks, and some SUVs, but more and more vehicles are moving towards lighter unibody construction. In particular, this helps with impact safety, because the unibody can form crumple zones. A ladder frame doesn't crumple. Now, most vehicles don't have ladder frames. If you want to drill a hole for attaching a bolt, for example to add a tow hook, you probably need to first weld on a 1/4" plate. A body shop can't just un-bolt a rocker panel damaged in an accident and put on new ones, both rocker panels are one big piece that forms part of the structure of the vehicle and everything else is connected to them. You cut and weld to repair the damage, or bend it back into place. In race vehicles and motorcycles, this concept is extended to the engine itself: The block is a structural member of the vehicle. Practice will adjust to progress. It won't always be as easy to repair as it once was. We can only hope that the safety and energy improvements are worth the complexity and functionality.
- throwaway0a5e 6y ago
  > because the unibody can form crumple zones. A ladder frame doesn't crumple. Ladder frame can crumple just fine. It's a prerequisite technology for airbags.
recursive 6y ago
What happens when someone drills a hole in their gas tank? Probably similar.
- throwaway0a5e 6y ago
  >What happens when someone drills a hole in their gas tank? Probably similar. They get wet. Gasoline doesn't come with its own ignition source (and a drill bit isn't usually enough to provide one) whereas puncturing battery packs starts the chemical reaction that quickly results in fire.
  - smileysteve 6y ago
    They get wet, cause a minor ecological disaster, lightly burn their skin (without ignition, known carcinogen), and require an extensive eye flush. From experience, the eye flush is terrifying wondering if you'll be able to see again for about 10 minutes.
LeonM 6y ago
One should never drill into the battery, regardless if it is inside the body, or inside a box. It's dangerous, but so is drilling into a gasoline or LPG tank. Car mechanics are trained on this topic, they know. Compared to current battery-in-a-box construction methods, I expect that for crash safety the embedded battery may actually give more structural rigidity, and more freedom to incorporate crumple zones on tactical places.
Qwertious 6y ago
The answer: Who knows, this is material scientists talking, not engineers.

What happens in an accident, or when someone drills a hole through the frame?

ssully 6y ago

I think if this becomes a reality, the standard advice will be: "Do not drill holes through your car frame"

macjohnmcc 6y ago
We can adapt the don't drill a hole in anything that may contain flammable liquid to include don't drill into anything energized.
VBprogrammer 6y ago
Pretty decent advice even without the chance of drilling through the battery pack.
throwaway0a5e 6y ago
"pay $599.99/mo for this upfitter guide subscription that tells you where to drill"

LeifCarrotson 6y ago

It's much like unibody car repair: You used to be able to bolt a hitch, bumper, roll cage, or winch to the ladder frame of your vehicle. The ladder frame was basically a pair of ~2x5" C-channel heavy steel bars running the length of the vehicle, with crossmembers linking them together. It's still present on a lot of trucks, and some SUVs, but more and more vehicles are moving towards lighter unibody construction. In particular, this helps with impact safety, because the unibody can form crumple zones. A ladder frame doesn't crumple. Now, most vehicles don't have ladder frames. If you want to drill a hole for attaching a bolt, for example to add a tow hook, you probably need to first weld on a 1/4" plate. A body shop can't just un-bolt a rocker panel damaged in an accident and put on new ones, both rocker panels are one big piece that forms part of the structure of the vehicle and everything else is connected to them. You cut and weld to repair the damage, or bend it back into place. In race vehicles and motorcycles, this concept is extended to the engine itself: The block is a structural member of the vehicle. Practice will adjust to progress. It won't always be as easy to repair as it once was. We can only hope that the safety and energy improvements are worth the complexity and functionality.

throwaway0a5e 6y ago
> because the unibody can form crumple zones. A ladder frame doesn't crumple. Ladder frame can crumple just fine. It's a prerequisite technology for airbags.

recursive 6y ago

What happens when someone drills a hole in their gas tank? Probably similar.

throwaway0a5e 6y ago
>What happens when someone drills a hole in their gas tank? Probably similar. They get wet. Gasoline doesn't come with its own ignition source (and a drill bit isn't usually enough to provide one) whereas puncturing battery packs starts the chemical reaction that quickly results in fire.
- smileysteve 6y ago
  They get wet, cause a minor ecological disaster, lightly burn their skin (without ignition, known carcinogen), and require an extensive eye flush. From experience, the eye flush is terrifying wondering if you'll be able to see again for about 10 minutes.

LeonM 6y ago

One should never drill into the battery, regardless if it is inside the body, or inside a box. It's dangerous, but so is drilling into a gasoline or LPG tank. Car mechanics are trained on this topic, they know. Compared to current battery-in-a-box construction methods, I expect that for crash safety the embedded battery may actually give more structural rigidity, and more freedom to incorporate crumple zones on tactical places.

Qwertious 6y ago

The answer: Who knows, this is material scientists talking, not engineers.