Vehicle Structures and Methods Of Assembling The Same

A method of assembling a unibody for a vehicle comprising:

• assembling a door surround ring comprising a forward pillar portion, a roof rail portion, a rearward pillar portion, and a rocker portion;
• subsequent to assembling the door surround ring, installing the door surround ring into a vehicle side outer panel;
• coupling the door surround ring to the vehicle side outer panel;
• and
• subsequent to installing the door surround ring into the vehicle side outer panel, coupling the door surround ring and the vehicle side outer panel to a vehicle interior structural member.

A unibody for a vehicle comprising:

• a vehicle interior structural member;
• a vehicle side outer panel coupled to the vehicle interior structural member;
• and
• a door surround ring coupled to the vehicle side outer panel, the door surround ring comprising:
• a forward pillar portion;
• a rocker portion welded to the forward pillar portion;
• a rearward pillar portion welded to the rocker portion;
• and
• a roof rail portion welded to the forward pillar portion and the rearward pillar portion, wherein components of the door surround ring are welded to one another by welds that are applied in an inboard direction and an outboard direction relative to a vehicle lateral direction;
• and
• a roof patch that is welded to the forward pillar portion and the roof rail portion along a patch weld interface that is offset from a clamshell weld interface of the forward pillar portion or the roof rail portion evaluated in the vehicle lateral direction.