I.materialise is 3D printing company. For years, the company churned out concept cars. "We make a lot of concept cars using 3D printing but we're never allowed to talk about them," says i.materialise's Joris Peels. This time is different.
First unveiled in 2008 at the Paris Motor Show, the Citroën GT is a concept car co-developed with Polyphony Digital, the studio behind Gran Turismo, and i.materialise, who did the 3D printing (see this video for how 3D printing works). Fans of Gran Turismo and of stunning cars will be familiar with the Citroën GT. Apparently, an extremely limited production number of six cars was to be released, but as of 2011, they have not surfaced.
Since enough time has passed between the concept car's debut, i.materialise is finally now able to show how it created this concept car after getting the okay. "That's why we're very happy to be able to show you how we 3D printed the interior of the Citroën GT," Peels continues.
"The parts for the Citroën GT were printed on the world's largest 3D printer."
According to the company's blog, "Interior parts, bumpers, dashboards and many other parts are 3D printed. The rest of the car is completely made by hand." For most of the Citroën GT, most of the cabin's interior was made by i.materialise.
The parts for the Citroën GT were printed on the world's largest 3D printer, a Mammoth stereolithography machine, which is able to print 3D objects of 2 meters (6.5 feet) or more in length.
"Materialise was involved at a very early design stage, which made it possible to push the technology to the limits of feasibility," says i.Materialise's Jonathan Cornelus. "No more, no less, this is the full spirit of a successful concept car."
3D printing a supercar, the Citroën GT [i.materialise 3D Printing Service Blog]