The fastest accelerating car in the world is the Porsche 918 Spyder, which can go 0-60 mph in 2.2 seconds. An extremely bold San Francisco startup thinks it can beat that ... with 3D printing.
Divergent Microfactories' 3D-printed supercar, the Blade, uses 3D-printed aluminum joints connected to carbon-fiber tubes to create the frame for the chassis. The company claims a 0-60 mph time of "around" 2 seconds and a weight of 1,400 pounds..
The Blade also uses 3D-printed components for all the interior pieces and the exterior grilles.
So calling the car 3D-printed isn't entirely accurate: You can't really compare it to the Local Motors Strati, which has more of its structural components 3D-printed.
The Blade's power comes from a turbocharged four-cylinder engine that's built by a Michigan-based company. They claim 700 horsepower, which is nearly double that of the most powerful turbo-four in production, Mercedes-AMG's 2.0-liter unit, which makes 355 horsepower. A 700 horsepower turbo-four is certainly possible, but it raises many questions about reliability.
You can crank up turbocharger boost pressure to make impressive power numbers easily, but that tends to have a bit of a grenade effect on an engine. The Blade could very well do 0-60 in 2 seconds, but it might only do it once or twice. The Blade could very well do 0-60 in 2 seconds, but it might only do it once or twice. A Porsche 918 Spyder will do 0-60 in 2.2 seconds all day, every day with frightening consistency.
Divergent also claims its technologies will reduce the environmental impact of car manufacturing. Thanks to its partially 3D-printed tubular space frame, it takes less raw material to build this car. But the practicality of the design, as a day-to-day car, is debatable.
3D printing certainly has its place in cars. Koenigsegg, a low-volume supercar maker from Sweden, uses 3D printing to make proprietary parts that are better suited to its cars than the off-the-shelf parts that small companies usually rely on.
Jay Leno, who is an avid car collector, uses a 3D printer to make parts for some of the more obscure pieces in his collection.
Ford is even looking into scaling up 3D printing as part of its technology initiatives.
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