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Hub AI
MacPherson strut AI simulator
(@MacPherson strut_simulator)
Hub AI
MacPherson strut AI simulator
(@MacPherson strut_simulator)
MacPherson strut
The MacPherson strut is a type of automotive suspension system that uses the top of a telescopic damper as the upper steering pivot. It is widely used in the front suspension of modern vehicles. The name comes from American automotive engineer Earle S. MacPherson, who invented and developed the design.
Earle S. MacPherson was appointed the chief engineer of Chevrolet's Light Car project in 1945. He was tasked with developing a new, smaller car for the immediate post-war market, an effort that led to the Chevrolet Cadet.
The Cadet was poised to be a groundbreaking vehicle, and the three prototypes that had been built by 1946 displayed a wide range of innovations. One of these was a revolutionary new independent suspension system that featured what is now known as a MacPherson strut. The Cadet was slated to be the first production vehicle with MacPherson struts, but the project was cancelled in 1947 and never saw commercial production. This was in large part due to GM's concerns about the Cadet's forecasted profit margins.
After the Cadet project was shelved, a disgruntled MacPherson left GM to join Ford. Patents were filed in 1947 (U.S. patent 2,624,592 for GM) and in 1949 (U.S. patent 2,660,449 for Ford), with the latter patent citing designs by Guido Fornaca of FIAT in the mid-1920s.
MacPherson's new strut design may have taken inspirations from other earlier designs as well. The strut suspension of the pre-war Stout Scarab could have been an influence, and long-travel struts in aircraft landing gear were well known by that time.[citation needed] The French Cottin-Desgouttes utilized a similar design, albeit with less sophisticated leaf springs, but the Cottin-Desgouttes front suspension was in turn inspired by a 1904 design by American engineer J. Walter Christie.
MacPherson designed the strut for all four wheels, but it is normally used for the front suspension only,[citation needed] where it provides a steering pivot as well as a suspension mounting for the wheel.
The first production car to use MacPherson struts is often cited incorrectly as the French 1949 Ford Vedette, but it was developed before MacPherson, with an independent front suspension based on wishbones and an upper coil spring. Only in 1954, after the Vedette factory had been purchased by Simca, did the revised Simca Vedette switch to using front struts.
Following MacPherson's arrival at Ford, the first production car to feature MacPherson struts was the British-built 1950 Ford Consul and the later Zephyr.
MacPherson strut
The MacPherson strut is a type of automotive suspension system that uses the top of a telescopic damper as the upper steering pivot. It is widely used in the front suspension of modern vehicles. The name comes from American automotive engineer Earle S. MacPherson, who invented and developed the design.
Earle S. MacPherson was appointed the chief engineer of Chevrolet's Light Car project in 1945. He was tasked with developing a new, smaller car for the immediate post-war market, an effort that led to the Chevrolet Cadet.
The Cadet was poised to be a groundbreaking vehicle, and the three prototypes that had been built by 1946 displayed a wide range of innovations. One of these was a revolutionary new independent suspension system that featured what is now known as a MacPherson strut. The Cadet was slated to be the first production vehicle with MacPherson struts, but the project was cancelled in 1947 and never saw commercial production. This was in large part due to GM's concerns about the Cadet's forecasted profit margins.
After the Cadet project was shelved, a disgruntled MacPherson left GM to join Ford. Patents were filed in 1947 (U.S. patent 2,624,592 for GM) and in 1949 (U.S. patent 2,660,449 for Ford), with the latter patent citing designs by Guido Fornaca of FIAT in the mid-1920s.
MacPherson's new strut design may have taken inspirations from other earlier designs as well. The strut suspension of the pre-war Stout Scarab could have been an influence, and long-travel struts in aircraft landing gear were well known by that time.[citation needed] The French Cottin-Desgouttes utilized a similar design, albeit with less sophisticated leaf springs, but the Cottin-Desgouttes front suspension was in turn inspired by a 1904 design by American engineer J. Walter Christie.
MacPherson designed the strut for all four wheels, but it is normally used for the front suspension only,[citation needed] where it provides a steering pivot as well as a suspension mounting for the wheel.
The first production car to use MacPherson struts is often cited incorrectly as the French 1949 Ford Vedette, but it was developed before MacPherson, with an independent front suspension based on wishbones and an upper coil spring. Only in 1954, after the Vedette factory had been purchased by Simca, did the revised Simca Vedette switch to using front struts.
Following MacPherson's arrival at Ford, the first production car to feature MacPherson struts was the British-built 1950 Ford Consul and the later Zephyr.
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