The innovative Czinger 21C could open the door to a new way of making cars.
The Czinger auto company has produced the world’s first 3D-printed hypercar: the 21C. The high-concept vehicle has a top speed of 281 miles per hour, can go from zero to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds and can hit a quarter-mile from standing in a mere 8.1 seconds.
The car looks like an angry spacecraft, with massive front and back fenders, a bubble cockpit inspired by combat aircraft and a giant rear wing.
The hybrid powertrain is comprised of a twin-turbo V8 and a pair of high-output electric motors with fast-charging lithium-titanate batteries, each one powering a front wheel. A third electric motor functions as a generator, connected to the V8, to make sure the batteries are charged. The V8 itself is designed to run on a variety of fuels, including e-fuels such as carbon-recycled methanol—meaning it could function as a carbon-neutral vehicle.
The vehicle also features an active AWD system with torque vectoring on the front wheels, with power transmitted through a seven-speed sequential transaxle transmission.
The engine is capable of 1,250 horsepower and has a power density of 330 horsepower per liter, making it the world’s most power-dense production engine.
Originally intended to be unveiled at last year’s Geneva International Motor show, which was canceled due to the pandemic, the 21C will cost at least $1.7 million—before any extras—and only 80 will be made.
Czinger used 3D printing and AI to create its hypercar.
Cutting-Edge Manufacturing for a Cutting-Edge Car
To create the high-performance car, Czinger used a variety of additive manufacturing technologies, in particular 3D printing and a patented human-AI production system.
Each component was designed virtually using an automated AI-based design software that also optimizes each part’s weight and performance. The system designs parts for a given task within very specific constraints that include weight, strength, size, material and mounting points. Within those parameters, the system designs the lightest and strongest parts possible by determining where exactly the material does, and does not, need to be. Freed of conventional design constraints, some of the parts end up looking quite unusual. For example, the bubble-shaped cockpit looks like it belongs on a Formula 1 car.
Since the designs of these engineered parts are so complex, it would be difficult if not impossible to machine or cast metal into the complicated designs. Czinger turned to another additive manufacturing technology, 3D printing, to create them. The carmaker uses selective laser sintering (SLS), a process that deploys a laser to solidify (or sinter) powdered metal layer by layer. Czinger’s use of SLS is ground-breaking in the automotive sector.
Most of the metal components are made from aluminum, titanium and Inconel, a heat-resistant alloy used in aerospace designs. The composite carbon fiber body parts are created using molds.
In fact, Czinger went out and helped create a new industrial-scale 3D printer while it was working on its hypercar.
Czinger’s parent company, Divergent 3D, specializes in additive manufacturing for the automotive industry and has been working with SLM solutions, an industrial 3D printer manufacturer, under a joint development partnership to develop next-generation printing technologies. The companies developed the NXG XII 600: a machine equipped with 12 one-kilowatt lasers that can function simultaneously and a new optics system.
“For the first time in the history of additive manufacturing, you can have true serial production fully integrated into your supply chain,” said Sam O’Leary, SLM Solutions chief operations officer.
Another innovation Czinger deploys is in its assembly process. Rather than using a conventional assembly line to put the vehicle together, the 21C is assembled in one central location by robots.
The company’s Automated Unit (AU) process uses an innovative vertical assembly method. Each AU features an array of robotic arms synced together. Some arms hold and position the chassis while other arms attach components to it—all without the need for human supervision.
Each AU is a self-contained, completely computerized unit that can be reprogrammed and scaled according to the demands of the project. This makes the technology incredibly versatile. And it costs much less than a conventional assembly line, making it not only more advanced but also more affordable.
“The 21C is very much at the extreme end of what we are capable of here,” said Jon Gunner, Czinger chief technical officer. “We produce each part using additive manufacturing but then hand-finish each part to be the best and most polished part it can be. Think of this process as the juxtaposition between technology and art like the inside of a Swiss watch.”
Czinger said it will start deliveries of a track-ready version of the 21C late this year, followed by a street-legal version the following year.
Not only does the 21C represent a truly innovative way to produce a high-concept hypercar, but it could also motivate the automotive sector as a whole to rethink the way vehicles are manufactured.
Read more about how 3D printing is disrupting manufacturing industries at Launcher Taps VELO3D and Ansys to 3D Print Rocket Engine Components.
