Cars
Words: Anthony Doman. Article from the Popular Mechanics October 2015 issue.
How to make a car…in two days
The local Motors Strati Roadster is the world’s first 3D-Printed vehicle. Somewhat surprisingly, its also a blast to drive.
Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne recently called out the car industry for the staggering amount of money it wastes in the design and manufacture of cars. His solution is based on classic business principles: consolidate and eliminate redundancy. Local Motors CEO Jay Rogers perceives the same challenge, but he’s attacking it from a completely different direction. For Rogers, the problem stems not from business organisation but from the fact that we still build cars the same way we did in 1915, on assembly lines with thousands of individual parts. It doesn’t have to be that way, and the proof is parked in his Knoxville, Tennessee, garage, charged up and ready for a drive.
Local’s answer to the cost-cutting question is the Strati, the first 3D-printed car. It’s a humble (albeit very cool-looking) thing. Built – printed – in Detroit, in collaboration with Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, the Strati is a small electric two-seater, the first of many models in Local’s plans. Two factories, scaled to employ 100 people each, are under construction now and scheduled for completion by the end of the year. Local plans to build its own cars, but it could also end up working as a supplier for original-equipment manufacturers, some of whom have met with Rogers already. “One of them said, ‘This would be great for prototyping,'” Rogers says. “And I said, ‘Forget prototyping! This is how you make the car.’ That’s the radical big idea, the one that prompted Popular Mechanics to bestow a Breakthrough Award on Local Motors last year.
Clockwise from left: Because it’s so light, the Strati’s steering is unassisted; the fenders are printed separately so that a fender bender won’t require reprinting the entire vehicle; the wheels are large-diameter but super-narrow to accommodate high-pressure, low- rolling-resistance tyres.
The world’s first 3D-printed car is crude by design, its dashboard looking like stacked silicone beads from a caulking gun. Its flanks, meanwhile, are smooth, resembling the exposed parts of the BMW i3’s matte carbon tub. “We milled the sides to show how that would look,” Rogers says. “Some of the other parts are just how they came out of the printer, so you can see that. But we can make it look however we want. You could put a vinyl wrap on it and the car would still be completely recyclable.”
The Strati is printed from carbon-fibre- reinforced plastic, a versatile, strong, and relatively cheap material that could enable some new approaches to safety. Thanks to the nature of 3D printing, where the car is built in layers squirted from the nozzles of a massive printer, you can embed energy-absorbing crash structures or superstrong seat-belt mounts that are anchored deep in the body. You could bond springy bumpers to cushion pedestrian impacts (right now Local is experimenting with a printable elastic polyurethane material called NinjaFlex). And if you managed to catastrophically damage the tub, you could unbolt the motor and suspension, melt the car down, and print a new one. Of course, the Strati parked in Knoxville doesn’t even have seat belts, but it’s proof of concept.
The prototype I drove is the third that Local has printed and took about 40 hours. The company is currently looking for an electric-powertrain supplier, so for now the Strati has a beefy golf-cart motor as a stand-in. The rear-wheel-drive Strati is envisiged as a city car, but Rogers isn’t blind to the performance possibilities. “If you put a motor with 150 or 200 horsepower in here, it would be a lot of fun,” he says.
It’s a lot of fun already. The rear suspension rides on an aluminium subframe, and with no distinction between body and chassis, the car feels inordinately solid, substantial. There’s some clunking from the stand-in motor, but the car itself is silent. Put a Mitsubishi i-MiEV motor back there and this thing would be a riot.
The last car I tested with a one-piece carbon tub was a McLaren 650S that cost more than R3,5 million. This Strati, lacklustre motor notwithstanding, could cost about R70 000. No, it’s not a McLaren. But to the family of five that crams aboard a motorcycle to get around – Rogers recently witnessed exactly that on a trip to India – it might as well be.
Developing countries would love this technology for cheap transportation, but so might the rich guy who wants a thousand-horsepower car of his own design, printed in a production run of one. Or the carmaker that wants to churn out a complete car in ten hours rather than 24, using a fraction of the components. Modern cars are complicated, but the union of 3D printing and electric propulsion – where the motor has just one moving part – points to a future in which that’s no longer a given.
We currently take it for granted that cars are complicated and expensive. When you’re driving the Strati, it’s easy to imagine a day when we take it for granted that they’re not.
The borrowed engine
Starring the 2005 Morgan Aero 8
I recently drove a 2005 Morgan Aero 8, a car that combines traditional Morgan funkiness (components made out of wood, unsymmetrical aluminium bodywork) and a BMW V8. And, I’ve got to say, what an outstanding combination: the visceral reactions of a hand-made British roadster paired to big, reliable V8 power booming out of side pipes just below the door.
This kind of thing – car companies borrowing one another’s engines – used to happen all the time. The previous-generation Range Rover used V8s from BMW and Ford, and the Saturn Vue once ran a Honda V6, for reasons that were never entirely clear. These cross-pollinations resulted in some strange but fun alchemy. Factory-sanctioned motor swaps aren’t as popular these days, but there are a few worthy freaks out there. Run a Scion FR-S through the gears and it’ll sound like a Subaru. Because under the hood, that’s what it is.
The power output problem
As cars get cartoonishly more powerful, maintaining traction is the newest engineering hurdle for Automakers
Five hundred kilowatts is the new 350 kilowatts, and every performance car worth its carbon-fibre diffuser is packing either a supercharger or a turbo. Traction problems were once confined to the launch – once you were rolling, you could hammer down. The new reality is epitomised by the Dodge Hellcats and the BMW M5, cars that could lay rubber all the way down the quarter-mile if you please. With power numbers heading ever higher (who’ll be first to 1 000?), finding a way to deploy all that energy is becoming the paramount challenge for chassis engineers. Here are three approaches to keeping big power from going up in smoke.
Solution 1
All-wheel drive
For 2016 Jaguar endowed all V8-powered F-Types with all-wheel drive, thus solving any traction problems that might have afflicted the newly upgraded F-Type R coupe. On a test drive at Monticello it powered through and out of corners at borderline crazy speeds without the slightest complaint. “There’s a limit to the acceleration you can achieve with front-engine, rear-drive,” says Tim Clark, Jaguar’s chief technical specialist for power-trains. “Somewhere between 8 and 8,5 metres per second squared – a little less than a g – is about your limit. Now with all-wheel drive we can reach 10 metres per second squared and above. You can access more of the performance more of the time in more conditions.”
Solution 2
What would happen if you mounted a state-of-the-art performance tyre from ten years ago on the 480 kW 2015 Corvette Z06? “The Z06 would fry that tyre,” says Oscar Pereda, a former engineer who’s now director of marketing for Michelin ultra-high-performance tyres. Over the past decade performance tyres have changed significantly in terms of construction, compounds, and even in the basic matter of size. “The overall diameter’s been going up dramatically,” Pereda says. “The taller the tyre, the longer the contact patch, and the better the longitudinal traction to put the power down and accelerate. Compounds and internal materials have come a long way. We now have super-high- strength steel belts that are more flexible, so the tyre can conform to the shape of the ground. With the Z06. I think you’re getting the maximum possible acceleration for a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive car.”
Solution 3
Go mid-engine
Every car in McLaren’s line-up is a beast, with the least powerful model cranking out 420 kilowatts. Not coincidentally, every McLaren has its engine mounted behind the passenger compartment, moving the weight distribution rearward, closer to the drive axle. That’s a boon from an acceleration standpoint, but there’s a cascade effect of benefits. “It’s about straight-line traction, getting the power down, but it’s also about cornering,” says Dan Parry-Williams, McLaren’s chief designer. “With the weight concentrated around the middle of the car, you make it very nimble.” You also reduce overall mass (and, subsequently, inertia), since the engine is closer to the transmission and to the rear-driven wheels, quickening response time. Meanwhile the driver is up front, closer to the front tyres, shortening steering inputs. “You can get a good weight distribution in a front-engine car,” Parry-Williams says. “But you might have a long propshaft, with the driver seated farther rearward and outboard.” So the future isn’t solely about deploying 420 kilowatts in the most efficient way possible. It’s about doing it with style.
Jaquar
Claws out
The mildly strained look on the faces of the Jaguar marketing brigade – and the occasional frown – reflected our after-drive banter about a seriously impressive automobile hobbled by pricing, exchange rates, unlikely competitors and whether anyone really buys into that posh Brit schtick. Nut for nut and bolt for bolt Jaguar’s new sedan is a mighty achievement that should earn the brand a legion of new followers. The problem is – locally at any rate – price. With the cheapest XE coming in at R534 800, no amount of spin can realistically disguise the gulf to the German equivalents costing at least 50 grand less. (Okay, we do realise that often those equivalents exclude options included as standard on the Jag.)
But it’s the best driver’s car, they say. So on to the drive. For a day and a half we journeyed through the winelands and way out to the Little Karoo. Sadly, fog and heavy traffic applied an involuntary cruise control to much of our progress – particularly the part that involved the top 250 kW supercharged V6 version. Still, I can report that the 2,0-litre petrol that was my first drive demon-strated eye-widening overtaking ability. If pressed, I would say that my favourite was the last-driven of the trio of engines, the new Ingenium 2-litre turbodiesel. Never before has 132 kW and 430 N.m of small-capacity diesel felt this refined, this muscular and, yes, this economical: 4,9 litres/100 km indicated.
In any guise, then, the XE really, truly, feels like a Jaguar should. Sporty. Suave. Sophisticated. Will that be enough to stave off the German forces, though? – AD
Land Rover Discovery sport SD4 SE
Almost there
My mantra for my week with the Disco Sport was “Think of it as a Freelander 2 plus, and not a small Discovery.” And that’s exactly what it is; like the Freelander 2 before it it’s possibly the most capable softroader (four-wheel drive without a low-range transfer case) you can buy right now, but it lacks the polish of a Disco. Also, the space is quite cramped in the boot area, and oddly shaped because it curves in at the opening. Now that the niggles are out of the way you’ll be pleased to know the excellent 2,2-litre diesel is still as torquey and willing as ever and the Terrain Response System will still be able to pull you out of more trouble than you can get yourself into. I would’ve appreciated 20 mm more ride height, but swapping out the 18-inch rims for 20s would remedy that. Dynamically the car does respond quickly to steering input and turns in well at speed, but then does the typical Land Rover flop which is a characteristic of the long travel suspension. In essence it’s a Freelander 2 with seven seats and the world is better for it. Price as tested: R635 600. – LS
Mazda2 Hazumi Auto DE
Flawed Excellence
Small hatchbacks make the world go round and the all new Mazda2 may just speed up the rotation. The old car was great, but became slightly overshadowed by the far superior Ford Fiesta it shared a platform with. Now that the shackles of Ford profits are off, Mazda has poured all its love and good handling characteristics into the littlest model in the line-up. That love also comes with the superb Skyactiv technology engine that’s lively and frugal, and, as is the case in this test, a 1,5-litre diesel. Leather and soft touch plastics dominate the interior and the infotainment system feels upmarket with its Mercedes-esque rotary dial mounted just behind the gear lever. On the whole Mazda seems to be positioning itself as more premium and it shows in the build quality and pricing structure. You get the feeling that at maybe R30 000 less this particular model would represent unbeatable value for money. That said, it is priced competitively in its market segement, but lacks one crucial ingredient offered as standard by its competitiors: rear park distance control. Price as tested: R259 900. – LS
Mazda3 2, OL Astima 5DR
Discreet Charmer
The bigger of our two Mazda options this month underlined just how spoilt for choice local drivers are these days. Not only is the Mazda3 an eye-catching hunk of sheet metal, it’s also practical and refined on the move. It doesn’t lack for performance, either.
Our test car’s extensive convenience-feature specification should cater to most needs, with everything from smart keyless entry (it locks the car automatically as you walk away) to multi-info display. The rather dark but nonetheless cosseting interior has a quality feel to it that hints at money well spent. Really, the Mazda is a car that deserves to do better than it does.
On the drive, I did miss the option of a driver mode switch to select either a sportier or a more economy-oriented power- train mode. That said, the Mazda’s “thinking” transmission adapts amazingly quickly to sudden changes in driving style – hard on the accelerator or brakes, for instance – by, say, automatically holding on to a lower gear when needed. The smooth-running 2,0-litre Four pushes out a healthy 110 kW, too. Price: R330 800, including a 5-year/90 000 km service plan. – AD
Ford Focus Ecoboost
Downsize me
You know all that International Engine of the Year hype? Well, it’s true. The EcoBoost is that good. After a week of driving the Focus, we can report that the 1,0- litre three pulls lustily enough to persuade you that downsizing really is the future. With 92 kW on tap, the EcoBoost is, after all, as powerful as the 1,6 it replaces. However, it’s significantly punchier low-down, with 170 N.m of torque from just 1 400 r/min. For the rest, let’s just say that Ford is climbing the Auto Charts and with good reason. Leaving aside a dash layout that the more sensitive among us might regard as a little glitzy, the Focus exudes a feeling of solidity and refinement that feels positively Germanic.
The 2015 Focus features a range of Green tech, from Auto-Start-Stop, Active Grille Shutter, EcoMode and smart regenerative battery charging. The six-speed manual transmission helps, too. But the company isn’t resting there: it was reported earlier this year that Ford would be exploring a new type of cylinder deactivation. In partnership with the Schaeffler Group, a new dual mass flywheel was being tested that enabled cylinder deactivation to take place at a wider range of engine loads and speeds. Initial tests showed fuel efficiency improvements of up to 6 per cent. Price: R218 000. – AD
Volvo XC90 D5
The New Cool
I knew from the international launch that the new XC90 was a special car, but putting it to the test of carting my family around for a weekend really drove the point home. The car is assured on the road with the 2-litre turbodiesel never feeling underpowered. Build and fitment quality can rival even the very best and the material choices are a good combination of practical and luxurious. Most impressive, however, is the interior space. Even with one of the third row seats in use I could still fit a pram and a full month’s groceries in the boot. My only irritation was the steady flow of interested people who came over to chat every time I parked in a public place. If you need a large SUV that can accommodate seven, will stand out in a crowd and feels like it’s from the future, this is the car you get. Price as tested: R920 000- LS
Lego Technic Mercedes-Benz Arocs 3245 Tipper
Chip Off the Old Block
The Unimog Lego clearly struck a chord. Its follow-up is described as one of the most complex models in Lego’s Technic range – Its designers even went along to the truck pro-duction line to get a closer look. The Arocs 3245 stands 31 cm high, 14 wide and 54 long and consists of 2 793 separate parts, with battery-operated power functions to drive the model’s “pneumatic” components Detail work includes the bucket-tooth design of the radiator grille, the handrail, steps, and plenty more.
Go on, you know you need one It’s available at retailers and selected M-B dealers. PM
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