[90ft]

3 Think out of the box: the sliding trunk drawer

Acting just like a chest of drawers in your bedroom, or a toolbox in your garage, Faurecia’s sliding trunk drawer concept uses the same basic idea but makes it feasible for an automobile. On the Premium Attitude concept, the conventional trunk floor and its rearmost bumper lip slide out to meet the end-user, making access to the rearmost parts of the cargo space much easier. More than a conceptual thought, the drawer is partly made possible through a clever new flat exhaust muffler – approximately three inches thick (80 mm) – packaged underneath the drawer. Only the decorative exhaust end piece moves – along with a section of the bumper – and the drawer can only slide when the vehicle is stationary so there are no stray exhaust issues relating to the movement.
Faurecia’s Thorsten Suess, Industrial Design Studio Manager and Project Leader of Premium Attitude explains: “To my nderstanding Faurecia is the only company in the world that has expertise in exhaust systems, bumpers and interior trim. In this case, we’ve combined these three areas to create one innovation. Normally suppliers just have standard mufflers so designers have to design the package around them. Here we can optimize the space based on a real need.” Faurecia displays here its ability to combine unique lightweight products, with reinforced acoustic performance, in a cost-efficient and sustainable manner. The partition of the double floor is made out of structural “Sommold" – a mixture of polypropylene fibers
and glass fibers – which combines optimum rigidity and effectively eliminates vibrations and noise. Futhermore, the whole carpeting and throw-in mats are made of woven tuft, bringing a further premium feel to the vehicle interior.
The flat exhaust muffler is Faurecia-proprietary and already an industrialized innovation, while the drawer part is perfectly feasible for the next generation of vehicles. All in all, the sliding trunk drawer is a perfect example of how Faurecia is able to offer an integrated product offering through the cooperative approach of its product, design and engineering functions.