A US-based company has produced a 3D-printed car that could go on sale to the general public before the end of 2015.<\/p>\n
Local Motors developed the world's first 3D-printed car after it was challenged via the internet to make use of the technology to make a working prototype.<\/p>\n
This led
to the creation of the Strati and now Local Motors has confirmed it will be producing another car that will be available to buy.<\/p>\n
Interested drivers can already sign up via the car maker's website and it is thought the vehicle could retail for between £11,900 and £21,000.<\/p>\n
It isn't yet clear if the model will be the same as the Strati, which is capable of speeds of up to 50 mph and was made from 212 layers of ABS plastic reinforced carbon fibre. However, some components such as the battery, motor and wiring come from a Renault Twizy as they cannot be printed.<\/p>\n
Overall, it took 44 hours to print the electric powered car, but Local Motors are hoping this will be reduced to around 24 when it goes into production.<\/p>\n
Local Motors believes the use of 3D-printing technology will allow prototypes to be created much faster compared with standard fabrication technologies and is cheaper for smaller vehicle numbers. It will also allow production to be more local, therefore reducing transport costs.<\/p>\n
However, the 3D-printed car is not yet thought to be roadworthy, although its makers are hoping the US vehicle standards authorities will give it the green light in the near future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A US-based company has produced a 3D-printed car that could go on sale to the general public before the end of 2015. Local Motors developed the world's first 3D-printed car after it was challenged via the internet to make use of the technology to make a working prototype. This ledto the creation of the Strati […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5930,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2302","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n