Does any still make front aluminum bumper beam?

[Shaylord]

I haven't been able to find anyone that still make a front aluminum bumper beam, anyone know of any one that does or know of anyone that wants to sell one at least?

Decided I didn't want to die WHEN I crash my NSX

Shay

 

[ALwAyS4SaLe]

Pro car makes a cf one, but that's cf.

 

[MugenNA1]

I haven't been able to find anyone that still make a front aluminum bumper beam, anyone know of any one that does or know of anyone that wants to sell one at least?

Decided I didn't want to die WHEN I crash my NSX

Shay

I bought the last aluminum one made by Pro-Car and will sell it.

 

[RYU]

if you're worried about crash safety please keep your stock beam.

with that said i made my own front and rear aluminum beam.

 

[MvM]

if you're worried about crash safety please keep your stock beam.

with that said i made my own front and rear aluminum beam.

AFAIK, the Procar aluminum beam was little more than a set of rectangular aluminum beams than only extended slightly from the chassis bars. Which means that in an offset frontal collision, the beams did not offer any protection and the chassis bars would have to resist the impact directly.
Do your home made beams have a similar setup? Would very much like to know what they look like.

 

[A.S. Motorsport]

Actually it's best to use a curved setup as in the OE beam that greatly improves strength.
It will partiality work as a loaded spring as well upon lighter impacts

 

[MugenNA1]

I bought the last aluminum one made by Pro-Car and will sell it.

On a side note the Procar hollow aluminum beam is lined with a strong light weight block of derlin on the inside to add to robustness.

 

[J KRIB]

I am in the same boat as RYU, I made my own aluminum units and both extend out the same distance as the oem units. Not saying mine are the same strength as the oem units but I saved a ton of weight, I used 1/8" wall thickness tubing. My goal was to save weight, plus my car is not a daily driver. If you are worried about crash damage stick with the oem units.

 

[geometro]

Rudimentary rule of thumb of steel vs aluminum: aluminum is 1/2 the strength @ 1/3 the weight.... So a properly engineered aluminum part would roughly weigh 1/3 less than a steel one, if aluminum is a suitable material for the application.

Curious why Honda never tooled up to make an aluminum front bumper beam since they did make the rears, albeit the rears are more of a simple extrusion than the formed shape the front is..

Be interesting to see some of the DIY set ups to see what people have done.

 

[NSXcitement]

Be interesting to see some of the DIY set ups to see what people have done.

Yep, I wish some of the DIY guys would post some photos. How about using a plasma cutter to lighten up the OEM front beam?

 

[geometro]

If anything, I'd probably be interested in seeing if a dual material would be viable or even save weight.

For example: backing plate of 1/8" or 1/4" steel connecting the chassis bars then a box section of 1/8" wall thickness aluminum rectangular tube in front of it be enough? Or an aluminum rectangualr tube with a steel pipe in it work? Or would 1/4" wall thickness aluminum rectangular tube alone be enough?

Swiss cheesing the front bumper beam is probably not advisable.

Replacing the rear beam with an aluminum one seems fairly OK since 1) Honda already did it, with a more complex extrusion for probably a better crush structure and 2) there is "more" car between the passenger compartment and rear bumper than the front bumper.

 

[RYU]

A.S. Motorsports makes a nice piece. Some here may want to consider that.

For the folks asking about crash protection... Think about it for a second. Honda spent so much time and money to thoroughly test all the crash components on the NSX. The front bumper beam is a KEY piece in that equation. Please don't kid yourselves in thinking a replacement will provide the same protection. The OEM beam crumples in a certain way and is designed to absorb impact. It's rigid in certain areas and designed to dissipate energy in other sections. You can drill holes, chop it, bend it, grind it or even replace it but don't think you will still have any semblance of safety as Honda intended.

I fabricated mine to save weight and restore the rigidity in the chassis lost by removing the OEM beam. I'm under no impression it is crash worthy.

 

[Procar Specials]

This car was equipped with our lightweight aluminium front bumper beam.
The car is still alive and the front bumper beam is still installed......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMZBw0V8rts