Dune Buggy Frame - Chassis Construction

Apart from the design of the buggy frame/chassis the steel that is used to construct it is one of the most important factors in building your buggy. Cutting corners at this point of the build process is a recipe for disaster in that if the wrong material is chosen you will most likely encounter some kind of failure in a serious accident which would not be good.

To provide a safe chassis that you know is going to do the job in the event that you flip your buggy upside down or collide with any fixed objects etc it is best to use something that has been proven in a racing environment. Now you may not be using your buggy for competition use but im sure you will agree that sticking to the specifications that these associations use is a good thing.

Here in Australia all motor sport categories are governed by CAMS (confederation of Australian motor sport) which outlines the details of roll cage and dune buggy frame construction. CAMS also bases its technical specs on the FIA which are used globally.

It is for this reason that we are going to adhere to the CAMS specs for dune buggy frame construction and have chosen to use the following steel tube for the construction of our chassis:

Prospec 350 - 38.1 x 2.6mm CDS

This tubing is a stress relieved 1020 grade, seamless mild steel tube available in various Mpa. The tube we will be using is the 350Mpa CDW which complies to CAMS and ANDRA.

Here’s some more technical specs on this tube

Tensile Strength (ksi)        80
Yield Point (ksi)                 70
Elongation (% in 2″)           15
Rockwell hardness            RB80

This isn’t the cheapest steel tube around but hey can you put a price on your life? Spend the extra dollars and get something that you know will be there to protect you in the event of an accident!

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Nick