TRW Tops S&S Quality Tests – Again

TRW achieves matching OE status and comes joint-top in tests on suspension ball joints

Steering and suspension parts are safety critical. ALL manufacturers should offer components of the highest quality as standard, or they are risking lives.

Many S&S manufacturers in the European IAM make unsubstantiated claims in terms of quality, standards and safety.

To find out the truth, and confident in its own product quality, TRW encouraged independent testing company FKA - working in conjunction with the IKA specialists in vehicle testing and dynamics based at Aachen University, Germany - to test S&S parts against a set number of criteria.

The first product tested was stabilizer links. Out of seven major aftermarket manufacturers tested, TRW was the only one to pass every single test and meet all of the given tolerances.

And now the results are in for suspension ball joints:

Ball joint technology is employed at the point where components are joined - and so must meet the most demanding requirements in terms of mobility and reliability.

The technology directly affects driving safety, vehicle handling and comfort.

The FKA tested 10 major aftermarket manufacturers with regard to their durability and comfort. A number of physical factors were measured, including:

Break away torque
Rotational torque (low rotational torque means there is free-play in the joint and can lead to a ‘clacking’ noise)
Radial elasticity
Pull out force
Endurance test

And the news is……

TRW’s suspension ball joints are of OE quality
Only TRW and ONE OTHER parts manufacturer include a self locking nut as standard
Massive performance differentation between the manufacturers
The tests showed that the suspension ball joints of certain parts manufacturers were seriously out of tolerance – resulting in significant comfort issues for the driver

	Break Away Torque <12 Nm		Rotational Torque 2 - 7 Nm		Radial Elasticity >300 µm		Pull Out Force > 15 kN>
	Before	After	Before	After	Before	After
TRW	6.46	7.07	2.45	3.02	756.3	813.8	> 40
Competitor A	7.51	1.99	1.54	0.85	837.0	808.4	> 40
Competitor B	17.05	12.27	5.16	3.00	723.0	750.2	> 40
Competitor C	7.02	1.15	0.87	0.46	727.2	928.1	> 40
Competitor D	8.60	8.33	2.41	2.04	806.7	828.8	> 40
Competitor E	21.39	9.38	4.74	1.99	831.7	863.2	> 40
Competitor F	10.25	1.59	2.43	0.75	831.8	834.3	> 40
Competitor G	27.93	16.63	8.21	3.1	655.2	695.1	> 40
Competitor H	16.22	8.81	4.64	1.92	787.0	790.0	> 40
Competitor I	7.37	4.39	2.07	1.67	756.2	1.67	> 40
Competitor J	8.20	5.06	1.67	1.39	683.0	750.5	> 40

TRW’s Parts and service product manager, S&S, Dennis Christ commented: “We are pleased that an independent company has recognised once and for all the OE quality status of our product – and laid bare the false claims of certain other manufacturers. The truth is, there’s a lot of poor quality parts coming out of the IAM – backed up by incorrect and misleading claims of quality.”

“Manufacturers simply cannot continue to make false claims – these parts are safety critical and the use of defective or poor quality components can be dangerous. This is an area where nobody can afford to compromise price for quality – what price really can you put on the safety of your family?” concluded Dennis.

Sales of TRW’s suspension ball joints grew by more than 20 per cent in 2009 and the programme now totals nearly 400 references – ALL manufactured to TRW’s own OE quality – and that’s a fact!