Editing Body-on-frame (section)

== History ==
[[File:Ford model t 1919 d044 lubrication chart.png|thumb|A [[Model T]] chassis ready for its body]]
[[File:Dodge4Door1920.jpg|thumb|All steel chassis and all steel body<br>Body by Edward G Budd Manufacturing Company of Philadelphia for John and Horace Dodge<ref name=GAO>page 106, George A Oliver, ''A History of Coachbuilding'', Cassell, London, 1962</ref>]]
The [[Ford Model T]] carried the tradition of body-on-frame over from horse-drawn buggies, helping to facilitate high volume manufacturing on a moving assembly line.<ref>[https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304178104579538081576326194?ref=SB10001424052702304677904579535612915387656 Great Moments in Body-on-Frame Car Construction] WSJ, May 2, 2014</ref> The use of steel ladder and X frame [[chassis]] allowed numerous vehicles to share a chassis and drivetrain while making changes to bodywork and interiors relatively easy, thus keeping costs down and minimizing design time. Over time the technology for unibody construction became economically feasible, assisted in recent decades by [[computer-aided design]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0KJI/is_2_115/ai_97872909 |title=Framing the question &#124; Automotive Design & Production &#124; Find Articles at BNET |publisher=Findarticles.com |date=2009-06-02 |access-date=2009-12-08 |first=Christopher A. |last=Sawyer |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211205129/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0KJI/is_2_115/ai_97872909 |archive-date=2009-02-11 }}</ref> in addition, modern creature comforts, luxury and power-assisted features, and extensive safety reinforcement of vehicles have all added substantial weight, the ability to offset this with unibody construction has proven advantageous.

A handful of  small passenger vehicles switched to [[Vehicle frame#Types|unibody]] construction by the end of the 1930s. The trend had started with cars like the [[Citroën Traction Avant]] (1934) and [[Opel Olympia]] (a [[General Motors]] design) introduced in 1935, and the short-lived, aborted [[Chrysler Airflow]]. [[Truck]]s, [[bus manufacturing|bus manufacturers]], and large low-volume cars or those made in the United States continued to use separate bodies on "conventional" frames. Body-on-frame remains the preferred construction method for heavy-duty commercial vehicles (especially those intended to carry or pull heavy loads, such as trucks and some [[sport utility vehicles]] (SUVs)) but as production volumes rise, increasing numbers of SUVs and [[Crossover (automobile)|crossover SUVs]] are switching to [[unibody]] frames. Mass-market manufacturers [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]], [[General Motors]], and [[Chrysler]] are abandoning true body-on-frame SUVs, opting, when sales volume permits, for more efficient unibody construction.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://editorial.autos.msn.com/blogs/autosblogpost.aspx?post=7bdff2c1-c41c-4a71-bc48-bbf244f419d1|title=Car Reviews, New and Used Car Prices, Photos and Videos - MSN Autos|website=editorial.autos.msn.com|access-date=10 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140106032956/http://editorial.autos.msn.com/blogs/autosblogpost.aspx?post=7bdff2c1-c41c-4a71-bc48-bbf244f419d1|archive-date=6 January 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Toyota]] currently manufactures the most body-on-frame SUVs with the [[Toyota 4Runner|4Runner]], [[Toyota Sequoia|Sequoia]], [[Toyota Land Cruiser|Land Cruiser]], [[Lexus GX]], and [[Lexus LX]], followed by [[Nissan]] with the [[Nissan Patrol|Patrol]], [[Nissan Armada|Armada]], and [[Infiniti QX80|Infiniti QX56/80]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.autoblog.com/2013/07/29/toyota-reaffirms-commitment-to-body-on-frame-suvs/|title=Toyota reaffirms commitment to body-on-frame SUVs|website=autoblog.com|access-date=10 April 2018}}</ref> 

[[Image:Austin A40 Roadster ca 1951.jpg|thumb|[[Austin A40 Sports]], ca 1951. [[Jensen Motors]] (of [[West Bromwich]]) built the aluminium-on-ash bodies under contract and transported them to Austin's [[Longbridge plant]] for final assembly.<ref name="austmem1">
{{cite web
 |title= Austin A40 Sports 
 |publisher= Austin Memories 
 |url= http://www.austinmemories.co.uk/page8/page106/page106.html 
 |url-status= dead 
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090105215228/http://www.austinmemories.co.uk/page8/page106/page106.html 
 |archive-date= 2009-01-05 
}}
</ref>]]