Materials selection for hot stamped automotive body parts: An application of the Ashby approach based on the strain hardening exponent and stacking fault energy of materials

•The Ashby approach has been used to select materials for hot stamped automotive parts.•The candidates were ranked based on strain hardening exponent and stacking fault energy.•The best candidates were high-manganese steels and 5XXX alloys.•A merit index is proposed to rank the best candidates.

Complex stamping operations are becoming widespread in the automotive industry to produce vehicle body parts with adequate mechanical strength and reduced wall thickness. The need for weight reduction drives the development of new metallic materials capable of achieving a good balance between formability and mechanical properties. Advanced high strength steels play a major role in this scenario. The aim of this work was to develop a materials selection strategy for hot stamped automotive body parts using the Ashby approach. The selection process was based on the formability of metallic alloys derived from two fundamentals materials properties, the strain hardening exponent and the stacking fault energy.