REAR BODY CONSTRUCTION FOR AN AUTOMOBILE

• US 3,661,419 A
• Filed: 11/04/1970
• Issued: 05/09/1972
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Masakatsu Suzuki, Masatoshi Yamaya, Rakuzo Mitamura
• Original Assignee: Masakatsu Suzuki, Masatoshi Yamaya, Rakuzo Mitamura
• Inventors: Mitamura, Rakuzo, Yamaya, Masatoshi, Suzuki, Masakatsu
• Primary Examiner(s): Sheridan, Robert G.
• Application Number:
  US05/086,796
• Time in Patent Office: 552 Days
• Field of Search: 296/24R,28R,37R,37.2 280/5A
• US Class Current: 296/203.04
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 15/00 Arrangement in connection with fuel supply of combustion engines or other fuel consuming energy converters, e.g. fuel cells; Mounting or construction of fuel tanks tanks in general B65D, F17C; supplying combustion engines with combustible mixtures or constituents F02M
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 15/063 Arrangement of tanks
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 21/152 Front or rear frames
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 25/087 Luggage compartments

Abstract

An automobile includes a rear body portion with a trunk space in which a fuel tank is disposed immediately behind the closure wall for the passenger compartment. The backing of the rear seat is formed by a continuation of the passenger compartment floor plate upwardly in a curve behind the seat location. The backing or end wall and the passenger compartment floor are advantageously made of a single plate thereby forming a seal of the passenger compartment in respect to the rear trunk space behind the end wall. A fuel tank is mounted within the trunk space directly behind the curved plate end-wall and it is located over a trunk floor having an opening to the exterior to provide means for dumping the gasoline outwardly below the trunk space in the event of an accident and a rupture of the gas tank. The rear portion of the body is simply formed by tack welding of the upwardly curved rear plate, forming a continuation of the passenger compartment floor at each of its sides to extension of an interior tire housing and to a shelf portion formed at the rear of the vehicle above the trunk space. The tire housing on each side is easily spot welded immediately to both sides of the backing plate and the floor plate. With the method of the invention, the floor plate with the upwardly extending protection wall formation is easily tack welded to extensions of a tire housing on each side of the vehicle to complete the interconnection of a floor assembly to a side assembly of the vehicle at the rear thereof.

Claims

1. A vehicle rear body construction, comprising a passenger compartment floor plate having a generally horizontal passenger floor portion and an upwardly extending rear portion forming a passenger compartment wall, a rear compartment floor plate joined to said passenger compartment floor plate adjacent the bottom of said upwardly extending rear portion and extending rearwardly to define the rear compartment floor, and an inner and outer tire housing assembly spot welded to both sides of said floor plate at said compartment wall portion and said passenger floor portion.

2. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 1, including means on said rear compartment floor for mounting a gas tank, and an opening through said floor at the location of said mounting means.

3. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 1, wherein said rear compartment floor includes a flange portion shaped similar to the lower portion of said compartment wall and being welded to said compartment wall.

4. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 1, including a shelf plate extending substantially horizontally rearwardly of the upper end of said passenger compartment wall portion and being welded thereto.

5. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 1, wherein said inner and outer tire housing assemblies comprise an inner housing having a downwardly extending portion and an outwardly extending portion said outwardly extending portion terminating in a peripheral flange, said outer tire housing incLuding an inner wall having a flange which is welded to the flange of said inner tire housing.

6. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 5, including a bracket carried on said inner tire housing for supporting a fuel tank and a fuel tank located in said rear compartment over said floor plate and connected to said bracket.

7. A vehicle rear body construction, comprising a passenger compartment floor plate having a generally horizontally extending passenger floor plate portion and an upwardly extending rear portion forming a passenger compartment wall, a rear compartment floor plate joined to said passenger compartment floor plate adjacent the bottom of said upwardly extending rear portion, said rear compartment floor plate extending substantially horizontally rearwardly to define a rear compartment floor, said rear compartment floor having at least one opening therethrough, and a gas tank mounted in said rear compartment adjacent said passenger compartment wall and located so that any fuel issuing therefrom due to leakage or rupture will move through the opening of said floor.

8. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 7, including means for mounting said fuel tank in said compartment above said wall and providing packing therefore.

9. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 7, wherein said rear compartment floor extends into a trunk space, said floor having an opening therein adjacent to said rear compartment wall.

10. A vehicle rear body construction, according to claim 9, wherein there are two openings on each side of said rear compartment floor.

11. A vehicle rear body construction for a vehicle having a rear cross axle for supporting two rear wheels, comprising a passenger compartment floor plate having a generally horizontally extending passenger floor plate portion, and having an upwardly extending rear portion adjacent the rear axle and forming a rear passenger compartment wall, a rear trunk compartment floor plate having an upwardly offset portion terminating in a flange extending along the end which is joined to said passenger compartment floor plate at a location below the top of said upwardly extending portion, a fuel tank mounted on said offset portion of said rear compartment floor plate, said rear compartment compartment floor plate having at least one opening therethrough for the passage of fuel from the fuel tank directly to the exterior of the vehicle, and an inner and outer tire housing assembly spot welded to both sides of said floor plate at said compartment and at said passenger floor portion.

12. A vehicle, according to claim 11, including a rear shelf welded to the upper end of said upwardly extending portion of said passenger compartment floor plate.