Firewall Material

Lil ugly · Mar 12, 2015

I am in the middle of my buggy build and am constructing the firewall. I have intended to make it out of steel mainly because I will have a child with me most of the time when I wheel and felt that it would give some additional protection from fire or other issues. However I would like some other opinion on Steel vs Aluminum, as I would prefer to save the weight if could. Thoughts or comments?

Jep72m · Mar 12, 2015

Re:

I ended up using .125 aluminum for my firewall and floorboards. I'm glad I did no regrets. It's a little costly though.

yankster · Mar 12, 2015

X2 on the 0.125" aluminum. Plenty of protection and lightweight.

Lil ugly · Mar 13, 2015

Thank you for the responses.

Did you use 2021 grade aluminum or something stiffer?

mac5005 · Mar 13, 2015

Lil ugly said:
Thank you for the responses.

Did you use 2021 grade aluminum or something stiffer?

A lot of what is commonly available to me is 3003 grade. .125" is my favorite to work with.
When doing complex pieces anneal the panel to 675-700 degrees to make it easier to work as most of the commonly available grades will work harden quickly when worked cold.