[Mike Schreiber]

Originally Posted by FrankJ

[Pointless point] Body panels? No you cannot count the plastic inner squirts as closing the section. [/pointless point]

OOH Race cars. F1 Oriented strand layup. Carbon/Carbon construction. I think I just blew my FRC budget.

The Maserati Birdcage show hows much sexier space frame construction is the a monocoque design even if the monocoque is ultimately better.

I was specifically referring to beam sections such as rocker, roof rail, and A, B, and C pillars.

Body panels don't exactly serve that same purpose. But in a full body having a closed box is very important for torsional stiffness. A great example of this is a shoe box. Twist it while the top is open and it is very easy. Close the lid and twist it again - you'll notice a significant difference. Without the top there is no surface to react the shear load of the 4 walls it contacts. If you don't get what I mean try drawing a free body diagram of a box with a load at one corner. This can often be a problem with FRC chassis (or helpful if you're using a mechanum wheel set up).