Although it's a concept often overlooked by buyers, that doesn't mean it's unimportant. When buying a car, we usually focus on its power, fuel consumption , or safety, but why don't we consider this aspect? Why should we?
Torsional rigidity refers to the force required to twist the longitudinal axis of the chassis , the force that the part itself resists. To easily understand this, we only need to imagine folding a cloth and the force it exerts in the opposite direction to our effort.
This concept is very important because it affects parameters as crucial as on-road performance , comfort , and vehicle safety . We've surely heard phrases like "the engine is too powerful for the chassis" or "this chassis can handle a bigger engine"; these phrases are directly related to torsional rigidity.
To be able to see this term in an easy way, there is nothing more to look at the abysmal differences between luxury models and simpler models, at one extreme we would have a Rolls-Royce Phantom or even a Mercedes class S with 40500 Nm / degree and in the other to a Peugeot CC with 11625 Nm / degree.
Convertibles generally suffer from torsional rigidity problems because they lack a significant part of the car, namely the roof. For this reason, manufacturers often add all sorts of reinforcements to maintain values similar to their fixed-roof counterparts, which considerably increases the weight.
I am a non-conformist and I want to improve the rigidity of my car
You are a driver who demands the maximum, or you simply notice that your machine has many shackles or the suspension does not do its job well.
For this problem you have two simple solutions, either you decide to retire your Daewoo Lanos and buy a basic €500000 Phantom (includes climate control, rims and puncture repair kit) or you convert your car into a real WRC with a torsion bar.
The torsion bar is a metal component that connects the suspension shafts, reducing chassis movement. This upgrade is easy to install and improves the car's rigidity.
So if you're thinking of buying a quality car, don't forget to ask the salesperson about the torsional rigidity of the chosen model, and perhaps with the safety package they'll install a torsion bar in your new car.