Mazda Develops Impact-Absorbing Structure for Aluminum Hood to Enhance Pedestrian Protection

Tokyo, Japan, Apr. 03, 2003 - (JCN Newswire) - Mazda Motor Corporation
has developed a "Shock Cone Aluminum Hood," which has an all-new
impact-absorbing structure aimed at enhancing pedestrian protection.
Compared to conventional framed aluminum hoods, this new structure has
the potential to significantly reduce the severity of head injuries that
can result when a pedestrian is struck by a car. The all-new hood will
be used on the Mazda RX-8 due to appear in showrooms this spring, and
will be gradually incorporated into other Mazda products.

Shock Cone Aluminum Hood (inner surface)

Framed hoods, which are conventionally used for vehicles, have an inner
panel with a bone structure to act as reinforcement. For pedestrian
protection, safety engineers traditionally control impact absorption by
adjusting the way the bone structure crumples. However, the framed inner
panel inevitably leaves some hard points that may not fully absorb the
forces of an impact. 

Instead of a framed structure, the "Shock Cone Aluminum Hood" on the
RX-8 has an inner panel that is uniquely shaped with numerous craters,
similar to cones. The structure with these craters, called "shock cone,"
yields effective impact absorption across the entire surface of the
hood. This is the first time that this structure has been applied to
hoods with the aim of enhancing impact absorption to improve pedestrian
protection.

Major characteristics and advantages of the new 'Shock Cone Aluminum
Hood'

1) Dramatically reduces the severity of head injuries sustained by
pedestrians in accident.

The shock cone structure achieves consistent impact absorption capacity
across the entire hood surface. This reduces the extent of head injuries
sustained by pedestrians who hit the hood after being struck by a car.
In internal tests conducted under European NCAP pedestrian head
protection test conditions, the new hood was shown to reduce the degree
of head injury by as much as 50 percent when compared to a conventional
aluminum hood structure. 

2) Reduced gap between hood and engine.

The gap between the hood and engine is designed by taking into account
the degree of intrusion into the engine compartment in a collision. The
relatively even intrusion level and effective impact-absorbing
properties of the new hood structure allowed engineers to reduce the gap
between the engine and hood by one-third (approximately 30mm). This
configuration, along with the low center of gravity and compact size of
the rotary engine, made it possible to employ a low hood design for the
RX-8 that complements its athletic, sports car styling. 

3) Enhanced rigidity and substantial weight reduction.

Despite a twenty-two-percent reduction in the thickness of the inner
panel, the new hood structureis 1.5 times stronger in torsional rigidity
than hoods made using traditional construction. With a weight per unit
area of 4.87kg/m2, the new aluminum hood is 23 percent lighter than that
of the Mazda RX-7, and 9 percent lighter than that of the Mazda
Roadster. 

Whilst automakers have been working very hard to enhance vehicle safety
in the event of collisions through the introduction of new technologies,
improvements to pedestrian protection are urgently needed. According to
a report provided by the Institute for Traffic Accident Research and
Data Analysis, around 30% of deaths resulting from traffic accidents are
pedestrians, 60% of whom died from fatal head injuries. 

In addition to "Shock Cone Aluminum Hood," Mazda plans to develop other
technologies that demonstrate the company's commitment to pedestrian
safety.

About Mazda Motor Corporation

Mazda Motor Corporation was established in 1920 and is one
of Japan's leading automobile manufacturers. With its headquarters
in Hiroshima, Mazda has two plants in Japan and manufacturing and
assembly operations in sixteen other countries. Mazda cars and trucks
are sold in more than one hundred and thirty countries. Ford Motor and
Mazda agreed to collaborate in 1979, Ford Motor Company started
investing in Mazda and increased its shareholding to 33.39% as of March
31, 1999. For further information, please visit the Mazda Motor
Corporation home page at: www.mazda.com/flash.html
<http://www.mazda.com/flash.html>