Cars body pillars, an overview

Cars body pillars, an overview

The pillars in a car/SUV are labeled alphabetically, going from the front to the back. The pillars that the windshield sits on, are your A-Pillars. The pillars in between the front and rear doors are your B-pillars, and so on. Those pillars are the structural cages for the cabin of the vehicle. The pillars, combined with the structural strength of the windshield, are what will save your life in a rollover.

The "A" pillar of an automobile is the structure that connects the side of the body of the car with the roof of the car and to which the windshield is attached. It is the first (from the front) support for the roof and, thus, is called the "A" pillar. The "B" pillar is behind the driver and front passenger seats. The "C" pillar connects behind the rear passenger seats (if there are any) and supports the rear of the roof. Some cars, trucks, and SUVs have a "D" pillar behind them. Convertibles have only an "A" pillar and some sports cars and sports "coupes" have only an "A" and "B" pillar.

When it comes to car body pillars, advanced high-strength steels (AHSS) are the right choice to make, you will find that nearly every new vehicle design uses it. AHSS make up as much as 60% of today's vehicle body structures making lighter and optimized vehicle designs that enhance safety and improve fuel consumption efficiency.

Why Don't We Make The Car Pillars Of Transparent Materials?

It's because of strength. It would be a cool idea to have transparent A and B pillars. That would really improve visibility.

I'm sure someone or some engineers are working on that right now as I am writing this.

But in my humble opinion, structurally sound and rigid A and B pillars that are transparent like glass would almost be impossible. But who knows? Car companies might use a camera and have a screen on the pillars that would display what goes on beyond the pillars that a "normal" pillar would block.

I'm sure there are thousands of ideas out there, but one day some sort of transparent pillar would become a thing.

Here are some "prototype" cars that brought a lot of attention. But we have to realize, these two cars will never ever make it through modern safety standards. That will never happen in a million years unless they only sell a limited amount (less than 100 cars) to buyers that they trust.

                                             prototype cars