Front set of wheels for an automobile vehicle

Claim 2

In a vehicle comprising two side-frames which are part of the stucture of the vehicle, and a front suspension comprising a set of front wheels and lower guide means for each front wheel, which guide means comprise for each wheel a transverse arm and an oblique arm interconnected by an articulation; the improvement wherein the side-frames each have an upwardly offset front portion and the lower guide means are supported by a support comprising a U-shaped cross-member which has a web portion and two branches upwardly extending from the web portion and is contained in a substantially vertical transverse plane spaced rearwardly from the transverse arms and from a vertical plane containing the axes or rotation of the front wheels and is disposed under said offset portions of the side-frames and fixed to the side-frames adjacent upper ends of said branches, two ties respectively connecting the cross-member to the side-frames, each tie extending rearwardly of the vehicle from the cross-member to a rear end portion of the tie and extending forwardly of the vehicle through and beyond the cross-member by a front end portion of the tie which forms a journal, on which journal the corresponding transverse arm is mounted to pivot about a substantially longitudinal axis, means mounting an end of the oblique arm remote from said articulation the corresponding side-frame to form a pivot longitudinally closely adjacent said rear end portion of the tie, and means fixing the rear end portion of each tie to the corresponding side-frame whereby each tie, said offset portion of the corresponding side-frame and the corresponding branch of the U-shaped cross-member form a rigid structure.

Claim 3

A vehicle in claim 1, wherein each tie comprises a bar which extends through an aperture in the U-shaped cross-member.

Claim 4

A vehicle as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means mounting the end of each oblique arm is a bearing fixed on the corresponding tie.

Claim 5

In a vehicle comprising two side-frames which are part of the structure of the vehicle, and a front suspension comprising a set of front wheels and lower guide means for each front wheel, which guide means comprise for each wheel a transverse arm and an oblique arm interconnected by an articulation; the improvement wherein the side-frames each have an upwardly offset front portion and the lower guide means are supported by a support comprising a U-shaped cross-member which has a web portion and two branches upwardly extending from the web portion and is contained in a substantially vertical transverse plane spaced rearwardly from the transverse arms and from a vertical plane containing the axes of rotation of the front wheels and is disposed under said offset portions of the side-frames and fixed to the side-frames adjacent upper ends of said branches, two ties respectively connecting the cross-member to the side-frames, each tie extending rearwardly of the vehicle from the cross-member to a rear end portion of the tie and extending forwardly of the vehicle through and beyond the cross-member by a front end portion of the tie which forms a journal, on which journal the corresponding transverse arm is mounted to pivot about a substantially longitudinal axis, said two oblique arms forming integral end portions of a transverse torsion bar, which end portions extend obliquely rearwardly from said articulations, means mounting the torsion bar on the side-frames to rotate about an axis adjacent said rear end portions of the ties, and means fixing the rear end portion of each tie to the corresponding side-frame whereby each tie, said offset portion of the corresponding side-frame and the corresponding branch of the U-shaped cross-member form a rigid structure.

Claim 6

In a vehicle comprising two side-frames which are part of the structure of the vehicle, and a front suspension comprising a set of front wheels and lower guide means for each front wheel, which guide means comprise for each wheel a transverse arm and an oblique arm interconnected by an articulation; the improvement wherein the side-frames each have an upwardly offset front portion and the lower guide means are supported by a support comprising a U-shaped cross-member which has a web portion and two branches upwardly extending from the web portion and is contained in a substantially vertical transverse plane spaced rearwardly from the transverse arms and from a vertical plane containing the axes of rotation of the front wheels and is disposed under said offset portions of the side-frames and fixed to the side-frames adjacent upper ends of said branches, two ties respectively connecting the cross-member to the side-frames, each tie extending rearwardly of the vehicle from the cross-member to a rear end portion of the tie and extending forwardly of the vehicle through and beyond the cross-member by a front end portion of the tie which forms a journal, on which journal the corresponding transverse arm is mounted to pivot about a substantially longitudinal axis, said two oblique arms forming integral end portions of a transverse torsion bar, which end portions extend obliquely rearwardly from said articulations, means mounting the torsion bar on the side-frames to rotate about an axis adjacent said rear end portions of the ties, and means fixing the rear end portion of each tie to the corresponding side-frame whereby each tie, said offset portion of the corresponding side-frame and the corresponding branch of the U-shaped cross-member form a rigid structure.