Turbocharged [EGR] Oil Pipes Development Case for Honda

With the rapid development of the domestic automotive market, Honda vehicles have gained high recognition in China for their fuel efficiency and durability.  Therefore, Honda decided to develop a new model equipped with a 1.0T three-cylinder engine, focusing on the principle of affordability and fuel efficiency to meet domestic market demand.  For the new EGR (Exhaust Gas Recirculation) pipe part of the three-cylinder engine, Honda began to seek cooperative suppliers capable of producing EGR pipes.  Hexin, as a manufacturer with years of experience integrating stamping, hydroforming, and integrated assembly, came to Honda's attention.  Hexin's capabilities in independently developing specialized equipment, molds, jigs, and gauges, along with its comprehensive quality system, gained Honda's recognition.

The project was initiated in July 2015, and the development of EGR pipes commenced. After a series of development work including mold design, sample production, and testing & verification, the EGR pipes passed all performance tests, and Hexin thus obtained the qualification to supply EGR pipes. Subsequently, through mass production preparation work for various vehicle models—such as phased quality verification, production capacity verification, PFMEA (Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis), Control Plan, and verification of historical defects—Hexin passed Honda's Safety Declaration and was approved for mass production.

During the development process:

By improving the stamping dies, the problem of high-temperature resistance and extrusion of precision dies for thick-plate flange stamping was solved;

A breakthrough was achieved in small-diameter pipe bending technology, with the pipe bending flatness kept below 3%;

Lightweight structural design was adopted—on the premise of ensuring strength, the weight was reduced by 15%, reducing the engine load;

Modular interface design was implemented to adapt to multiple engine models, shortening the matching cycle for the automaker.

Our EGR pipes are applied to major Honda models including Civic, Life, and Crider.

* Design and manufacturing of tooling and gauges;

* Design, development and manufacturing of special equipment for production capacity improvement;

* Various product performance testing and verification (including welding sensitization testing, welding strength testing, corrosion resistance testing, air tightness testing, material physical property testing, product precision section testing, etc.);

* Implementation of various PPAP requirements, etc.

The previously low supply efficiency was completely reversed—the procurement lead time was shortened from 10 months to 2 months, effectively mitigating market risks caused by supply fluctuations, and the procurement BOM cost was reduced by 20%;

This EGR pipe development case not only met strict environmental regulations and power design requirements but also enhanced the product's market competitiveness through breakthroughs in materials, structures, and manufacturing processes. In the future, with the development of new energy and hybrid technologies, the EGR system will continue to be optimized, and efficient and durable EGR pipes will become a key guarantee for engine performance.