Local Motors Latest 3D Printed Car Aims To Allow Customization

The first time we talked about Local Motors and a 3D printed car was the Strati car that the company had designed itself. Local Motors held a contest after the Strati was unveiled to allow people to design it's new car and the winner of that contest was an engineer for HP named Kevin Lo. The car he designed is a 2+2 convertible and it still has the Strati's layered, rough appearance.

The new car is an EV and Local Motors hopes that the car will be able to be 3D printed on demand and it is intended to allow the customer to add custom colors and trim pieces to the car. The first iteration of the new EV will be priced at somewhere in the $18,000 to $30,000 range and will be a neighborhood car.

A version of the 3D printed auto that is capable of cruising the highways will come by the end of 2016 according to the company. It's unclear why the initial version of the car has such a wide price range or when exactly the car will be available for purchase. A 3D printed car with limited versatility in that price range will be a hard sell.

There are all manner of brand new cars and used vehicles in that price range, including some EVs from established manufacturers like Nissan. Lo says he won the design contest because he didn't know what he was designing. He spent hours online reading what the design community for Local Motors suggested to perfect his design.

SOURCE: USA Today