Patent ID: 8915530

Claim:
A method of manufacturing a vehicle frame assembly, comprising: selecting a cross member, a sleeve member, and a rail, the cross member and sleeve member having different material compositions and the sleeve member and rail having the same material composition, a width of the sleeve member being greater than a width of the cross member; forming an aperture in a sidewall proximate an end of the cross member, wherein forming an aperture in the sidewall comprises forming a first lip extending inward about a circumference of the aperture; inserting the end of the cross member into the sleeve member to overlap the aperture with the sleeve member; deforming a portion of the sleeve to mechanically engage the aperture to form an interlocked cross member and sleeve member, wherein deforming a portion of the sleeve inward comprises forming a second lip extending from the inner face of the sleeve member and folded against the first lip; inserting the interlocked cross member and sleeve member into a sidewall of the rail, the sidewall of the rail defining a hole, wherein the cross member extends from the sidewall of the rail; and welding the sleeve member to the rail.