Continental and VW Provide a 'Lift' to the Luxury Car Segment

AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Aug. 28 -- The Volkswagen Phaeton, recently launched in Europe and headed for the United States next summer, is bringing groundbreaking Continental technology to the luxury vehicle segment.

The Phaeton is the first vehicle in the luxury segment to have Continental Teves' standard four-corner air suspension chassis with a continuously variable semi-active damper control. The system called Electronic Air Suspension (EAS), developed by Continental Teves as systems supplier in cooperation with Volkswagen, eases the conflicts that exist between optimal riding comfort and agile handling. It adjusts the damping force on every wheel variably, depending on the load and driving situation, and also automatically adjusts the height.

The intelligent damper control of the Continental system individually adjusts the damping force on each damper within 10 to 15 milliseconds, thereby making exceptional control possible. The goal is to decouple the up and down motion of the wheels and axles from the car body so effectively that it provides a new benchmark of comfort and handling.

To make this possible, the Phaeton has wheel acceleration sensors on the shock absorbers as well as sensors to measure the car body movements -- two on the front end, one on the rear end. A control unit, which also processes data for the motor management, brake system and Electronic Stabilization Program, then uses the information to calculate the best damping force for each wheel individually.

For example, the front axle hits a bump and as it deflects, it tries to lift the front end. At this moment a very low damper pressure level is set in the Phaeton to provide the wheel with as little resistance as possible as it deflects so that the car body can follow the upwards motion of the wheel smoothly and comfortably. When the wheel has reached the top of the bump, the body is braked in its upwards motion by high damping force in the rebound stage and brought back down together with the wheels as quickly as possible. As a result the car body moves much less on the whole.

From other sensor signals, the control electronics recognizes in turn whether the driver is steering into a curve, whether the vehicle is accelerating or being braked. The chassis control unit immediately sets the appropriate damper characteristic for this driving situation, thus minimizing the rolling or pitching motion of the body. In this way, the optimum riding comfort and best driving safety is guaranteed for every road condition, depending on the driving situation. In addition, the driver can select between four fixed damper settings, ranging from soft to sporty-firm. In situations where a great deal of handling is required, the chassis computer is still in a position to temporarily provide high damping forces also when the comfort setting has been selected.

A second factor that is decisive for comfort and safety is the vehicle load. Conventional non-adjustable chassis with steel support springs can at best try to achieve a good compromise between "empty drives" and those with the maximum loads. In this regard the Phaeton chassis also solves classic conflicts of goals, because the car body is supported by air springs that are filled by a compressor, depending on the load. In this way, there is an automatic height control that ensures consistent spring travel at all times. This technology, which has already been implemented in the Audi Allroad Quattro, was refined for the Phaeton. Since the air springs are surrounded by an aluminum guide, they can be manufactured of exceptionally thin material. The thin wall of the air bellows provides exceptionally sensitive response and top ride comfort.

Continental Teves, headquartered in Frankfurt/Main Germany, is a unit of Continental AG, Hanover, Germany. With 2001 sales of approximately $10 billion (US), Continental is a world leader in the design, development and supply of critical brake and chassis systems that contribute to driving safety and comfort. Continental Teves' North American component is headquartered in Auburn Hills, Mich. For additional information, visit these websites: www.conti-online.com and www.contitevesna.com .