cars news 10: Watch Oak Ridge National Lab 3D-Print a Replica Shelby Cobra

Watch the government 3D-print a Shelby Cobra replica
-We’re not sure how this flew under our radar, but at this year’s Detroit auto show in January, the Department of Energy showed off an electric vehicle it had 3D-printed out of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic. It was inspired by the iconic Shelby Cobra, but its construction technique—and some liberties seemingly taken with the original lines—mean this isn’t a replica in the truest sense.

The folks at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory put it together to show off their Big Area Additive Manufacturing technology that could allow for rapid prototyping to fully move out of the clay-model era. The spokesperson for ORNL claims that its improvements in 3D printing with these materials substantially reduce energy use and allow for energy-absorbing structures to be printed—technologies they think could prove revolutionary to the transportation sector. Perhaps, but it will still take much in terms of technological and regulatory wrangling to move this from the lab to the dealership.

In any event, here’s an overview of how the Department of Energy built it:

And here’s a more involved time-lapse showing the entire printing process:

And, yes, that’s President Obama and VP Joe Biden at Oak Ridge in the last photo below, checking out the “Shelby” and mugging with lab personnel. Read more about Oak Ridge’s Cobra here.

Watch the government 3D-print a Shelby Cobra replica