TABLE OF CONTENTS
> General Definition of a Car Platform
> What are the Future Trends for Automotive Platforms?
> What's Next?

Platform vs. Top Hat

The top hat is the styling-driven portion of a vehicle. A top hat generally includes the upper bodywork, interior, and exterior of a vehicle – in a nutshell, everything “on top” of the platform.
For example, a sedan, an SUV, and a hatchback version could be based on the same platform, whereas the top hat sets them apart in terms of their styling. While this approach is obviously much more efficient than developing three entirely different vehicles, it is necessary to plan in different body styles from the start.

Common Parts

To keep costs low, it is necessary to maximize the portion of shared components. That means that the number of carry-over parts (common parts) should be as high as possible across multiple vehicles planned based on a single platform. In each vehicle unique parts will be utilized to meet styling and various other requirements, though the goal of a platform is to reduce unique parts to a minimum. For example, the seat structure and how it is connected to the body is the same across several models, while the cushioning and fabric of the seat could be unique for each model.

WHAT ARE THE FUTURE TRENDS FOR AUTOMOTIVE PLATFORMS?

Automotive platforms were originally used to maximize the return on investment. In the early days of automotive development, the concept of a platform started as a ladder frame chassis that could be used for different body styles on top of the shared technical underpinnings. Nowadays, the unibody system is the standard for passenger vehicles for reasons of weight reduction and increased rigidity, strength, and crash performance. The underbody must be designed to fulfill all platform requirements.

The biggest trend by far in automotive platform development right now is towards increased modularity for greater flexibility. The total number of distinct, newly developed automotive platforms on the market has decreased over the past few years. Conversely, the platforms on the market are far more adaptable. This is achieved using systems and E/E architectures that are modular in design to allow them to be implemented across different vehicle platforms without the need for re-scaling while having a minimal impact on the performance of parts. The trend is toward platforms that can be freely adapted in size and layout, with only geometrical factors to account for.

Should You Develop Your Own Platform?

A common approach for vehicle manufacturers is to use existing platform solutions as a starting point for new platform development. The benefits are clear to see: You save time, spread costs across several models, and pool resources. As soon as the technological hurdles become too big and too many compromises must be made in the modified platform, it is worthwhile to consider whether it might make more sense to develop a new platform to include all the new features.

New entrants may be strongly inclined to use a shared platform rather than developing one from scratch. As new players in the market, keeping costs low and time-to-market play a major role in their development and production process. Using a shared platform is a good way to achieve both goals more easily.

However, there are still good reasons for new entrants to design their own platform - for example the following:

• Adjustments on an existing platform become too expensive, for example If the intended vehicle segments do not match.
  
  
• Parts costs of the platform are too high, resulting in a too high price for the end customer.
  
  
• Partnership with the platform owner is difficult, for example if there is no legal agreement on the use of the platform. In that case, a neutral partner like Magna can help as an intermediary.