DURABILITY OF BONDED METAL JOINTS IN MOTOR-VEHICLE CONSTRUCTION

To estimate the long term behaviour of bonded joints investigations on shear strength and fatigue strength were conducted on lap shear speci mens of sheet metal (steel and aluminium alloys) in the as-received co ndition and after weathering (weathering cycle according to the modifi ed VDA-climate test and IN-test respectively). Additional fatigue test s on typical structural specimens were included in the tests. Microstr uctural investigations on tested specimens gave evidence of the damage process and damage character. Appropriate selection of adhesives and sheet metal types (state of the metal surface) give satisfactory resis tance for the application of adhesive bonded metal joints to primary s tructural parts. Fatigue life data and stresses sustained respectively of undamaged and pre-corroded specimens are well above those of compa rable assemblies made by point jointing techniques like spotwelding an d clinching.