The quality of sheet metal formed parts is strongly dependent on the tribology and friction conditions that are acting in the actual forming process. This paper focuses on the tribology conditions during early try-out of dies for new car models. The motivation for the study is that the majority of the forming simulations at Volvo Cars are performed to secure the die try-out, i.e. solve as many problems as possible in forming simulations before the final design of the die and milling of the casting. In the current study, three closure parts for the new Volvo V60 model have been analysed with both Coulomb and TriboForm friction models. The simulation results from the different friction models are compared using thickness measurements of real parts, and 3D geometry scanning data of the parts. Results show the improved prediction capability of forming simulations when using the TriboForm friction model, demonstrating the ability to accurately describe try-out conditions in sheet metal forming simulations. © 2018 Institute of Physics Publishing. All rights reserved.