Innovation: A new idea, method, product, etc. Like we’ve mentioned on this site before, the automotive industry has been innovating through the use of 3D printing, Recently, Chevrolet has shed light on its use in their Corvette, INDYCAR, and NASCAR Camaro, and Silverado divisions to ensure a better racing experience.
For example, 2 C8.R’s, unveiled at Rolex 24 and Daytona, have raced over 8,000 miles and won multiple firsts. Some printed parts include the oil tank, tank inlet and cap, air conditioning driver cooling box and integrated hydration system, power steering pump bracket, and headlight assemblies, according to Chevrolet Pressroom. The off-road Silverado race truck has but over 900 miles on printed rear damper shields and in the Chevy INDYCAR V6 department, they have raced over 60,000 miles on printed exhaust systems. Over 500 parts, such as a gear-cooling duct, were 3D printed to prototype to increase aerodynamics for the body of their ZL1 1LE track car for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series. That duct alone has been used for over 18,000 miles in the competition, again proving its capabilities. In total, these parts have raced for over 80,000 miles, an impressive feat given the wear and tear these products face.
All of this adds up to increased efficiency, in the form of reduced costs, less time needed, more “design freedom,” and “parts consolidation.” In fact, the company also saved over $100,000 in wind tunnel time, according to Andrew Cunningham, Additive Design and Manufacturing Product Application Engineer, Motorsports at GM. He added that 3D printing technology is slowly making its way into everyday cars, and was even a part of the creation of the mid-engine C8 Corvette. “Our use of 3D printing will only accelerate with each new model we introduce,” he said, but none of these parts are currently used in production cars. It’s important to note that these parts are as strong, or even stronger than conventionally made parts. “3D-printed parts can offer equal strength and durability to cast or milled components, which is critical for product development and design,” added Audley Brown, GM director, Materials Engineering, Additive Design, and Manufacturing.
This form of creation, 3D printing, is also often called “Additive Manufacturing” while current methods are “reductive” because it involves removing material. Cunningham continues to add that, “A large advantage of additive manufacturing is parts consolidation, which often results in eliminating welds, every joint or weld between parts is a potential failure location,” which is helpful because you can avoid issues that haven’t even occurred, but may occur with traditional methods. “Another way additive manufacturing helps to eliminate on-track part failures is by providing the capability to rapidly iterate new designs.” During the prototype stage, like the NASCAR Camaro Zl1 1LE, this is especially helpful because it allows for issues to be quickly solved compared to standard methods which involve changing molds and can take weeks.
Some claim that this use of 3D printing also helped manufacturers to quickly adapt to making medical equipment in today’s coronavirus pandemic, similar to other companies, like Ford. Regardless, we are still very far from using 3D printing in the creation of everyday cars, even though specialty cars, like the Czinger, are entirely printed and shedding new light on the growing industry. What are your thoughts? Would you trust an ordinary car that contained 3D printed parts? Let us know in the comments and stay safe!
C8.R Corvette 
3D printed rear damper shields used on the Silverado race truck 
Another view of the Silverado race truck
More Info:
- https://media.chevrolet.com/media/us/en/chevrolet/home.detail.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2020/oct/1008-3dadditive.html
- https://www.autoweek.com/news/technology/a34346355/chevy-has-raced-80000-miles-on-3d-printed-parts/
- https://3dprintingindustry.com/news/chevrolet-racks-up-80000-race-miles-in-vehicles-built-with-3d-printed-parts-177114/
