2001 -Two-Car Temperature Controlled Chamber Helps Jaguar Eliminate X-Type Rattles & Squeaks

Luxury saloon cars like Jaguar's new model X-type need to operate with minimal road noise and virtually no rattles and squeaks. So the company has invested in a sophisticated facility at its new Halewood factory to identify and eliminate unwanted rattles once the cars have been assembled. The Hydrapuls "Rattle & Squeak" facility utilises a 2-vehicle temperature controlled chamber manufactured by West Sussex based Temperature Applied Sciences Limited (TAS), as well as a sophisticated "bump test" road simulation system.

The "Rattle and Squeak" temperature controlled chamber is designed to subject vehicles to a wide spectrum of temperatures, representing the kind of environmental conditions which they will experience when delivered to markets around the world. It is likely that some body or trim noises may only become apparent at "tropical" or "arctic" temperatures, so these need to be identified and eliminated before delivery of the car to these market areas.

Vehicles are first placed in the chamber, fitted with remote temperature sensors and loaded with a test mass of approximately 2800 kg. They are then subjected to a set temperature conditioning pattern, over the range -25°C to +50°C. Following this, the vehicle is removed and mounted on a static Hydrapuls machine to simulate dynamic road and driving conditions through the wheels.

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