If that turns out to be true and not just a few pounds, and with the new trick suspension, it ought to be really great.

 

yup i am definitely waiting on that. i forgot what the figure was already

 

I always describe a platform as something that shares a similar core but is extremely modular like a PC ATX case.

Platforms can share things from identical power trains to identical or very similar wiring harness \ cabling layouts, use the same fastener kits, you name it, all while coming down the same line as another model of car, you just plug in the options like a mr potato head.

 

Not true. The engine bay was too small on it's own. Lexus had to re-engineer the engine bay, raise the hood, beef up the transmission tunnel for the 8-speed.

The Genesis Coupe's engine bay wasn't designed for a V8 even though it rides on a similar platform as the Genesis sedan. Same goes for the Nissan 370Z and Infiniti M56.

 

i don't agree. 06 gs430 was a v8 with 6 speed. that's already v8. lexus had trouble fitting in the 4.6L with 8 speed but that's a different issue, the platform originally was planned for the 4.3L v8 already

 

When I think of platform I think of specific hard points that are designed. Things that crash structure, suspension and engine have to ultimately mate to. The suspensions and engine modules and the way they mate can also be part of a platform if they are designed to allow for certain flexibility (change in wheelbase, width, etc..) while retaining things like motor mount points, certain hood clearances etc...

Besides things like weight it also effects things like your minimum hood height, A and C pillar design etc.. which forces designers to work under certain constraints.

Sadly I've never really read a good description of a "platform" or what it really means to share a platform (40% parts sharing? 60, 80? *shrug*)

 

although there is no solid answers yet, but i am really liking all the discussions so far in this thread

 

In my mind it is all part of the evolution of the industry. Initially you had essentially unique components for each model, then to reduce R&D & manufacturing costs car manufacturers start using common platforms that can tolerate a certain amount of modification on various dimensions to span a number of models, now they are talking ¨modular architectures¨ which can be used in a sort of mix & match fashion.

 

Making a vehicle's ride-comfort less-punishing to one's kidneys doesn't have to be expensive or hard to do, even on the same chassis/platform. In most cases, all it takes is lower spring-rates, softer shock-damping, thinner-diameter anti-roll bars, smaller-diameter wheels, and higher-profile tires. The simple fact, unfortunately, is that you rarely see this on today's cars, even luxury-oriented ones, because the auto-press and enthusiasts, today, worship at the altar of flat-cornering, quick steering-response, and skidpad/slalom-numbers.....all, of course, which usually work against cushiness in the ride. Many BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and some electronically-variable suspensions like GM's Magna-Ride, though, achieve good compromises of both ride and handling.

 

Here are various bits and pieces that I have read about platforms and platform sharing.

A platform consists of all the hidden electrical, mechanical and hard connection bits underneath upon which you place different "tophats" (a Ford Motor Company term, IIRC) to produce different vehicles. This seems to be extending the various-bodies-on-a-common-ladder-frame concept to the unibody world. This does place some limitations on different vehicles. Platforms not designed for AWD will be restricted to FWD only. I heard that the reason the Pontiac Aztek and its cousin the Buick Rendezvous were so tall was because they were based on the GM minivan platform, which dictated the high cowl height.

Different vehicles derived from a common platform can be assembled on the same assembly line. This is probably an old concept, pre-dating the modern flexible assembly line in which even completely different vehicles can be assembled side-by-side on the same line.

Platform sharing is about common and shared components. Vehicles that share a common platform have inter-changeable components -- engines, suspension components, etc. As long as major components can attach to the hard connection points, you can have different engines and even suspensions on the same platform. Although the Camry rides on rear McPherson struts, a more sophisticated suspension could be provided if it attached to the same hard points.

The Toyota/Scion iQ is said to be heavier than it needs to be because its new platform was planned from the start to support a whole family of larger vehicles, including the Yaris and a 7-seat Verso model. Toyota's MC platform supports the current Gen6 Camry, current Gen10 Corolla, current Gen3 RAV4, Highlander, Sienna, RX, HS, CT, tC, etc. Does that make the Corolla heavier than it could be?

The direction seems to be towards modular platforms. The VW Group was working on this. With a modular platform, the payload portion (passenger and cargo area) of the platform can be mated with transverse-mounted (VW, Seat and Skoda) OR longitudinally-mounted (Audi) engines. There was talk that the next-generation Subaru Tribeca and Toyota Highlander would share a platform. That would have dictated a modular platform, since the Tribeca uses a longitudinally-mounted horizontally-opposed engine and the Highlander uses a transverse-mounted upright engine; the engine portion of the platform would be different but the payload portion would be the same.

Could the E-Class coupe on a C-Class platform be a perception problem? The E-Class is the best-selling model line but the C-Class is seen as the "cheap" model.

 

also some good read

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automobile_platform