Hybrid Material Engine Sump

The Jaguar Land Rover Hybrid Sump was a collaborative project between Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and GRM Consulting to develop a lightweight engine sump. GRM Consulting provided the finite element analysis and optimisation experience which in turn fed into the design work which was conducted by Jaguar Land Rover. The project utilised a CAE led design process which allowed us to develop a lightweight sump which was 20% lighter than the current design without losing any structural performance. One reason the weight saving was so significant was the novel material application. The engine sump was designed with a topology optimised load-bearing aluminium exo-skeleton housing an injected moulded oil-retaining inner volume, hence the hybrid material sump. This compares to most engine sumps which are typically cast metallic components. By doing a hybrid structure the aluminium could form the structure where it was needed, and where less structural performance was required, plastic could be used simply as an oil retaining vessel and not as a structural component, thereby significantly reducing mass. Three patents have been submitted on specific design features of the hybrid material sump.