ROME – If someone had told it a few years ago they would have taken him for crazy. A printer that makes a car? In 3D? In the meantime, technology has made great strides and so yes, 3D printers exist, they are now a reality and they can do incredible things, even bring out a Lamborghini.
This story begins in Denver, where in the living room of a typical American cottage a man named Sterling Backus enjoys playing with his son on the PlayStation, driving supercars at supersonic speeds. Love at first sight is fatal. The eleven-year-old son falls madly in love with the Lamborghini Aventador protagonist of the game and, candidly, asks his father if he can give him one for his next birthday. Do not imagine, probably that the price to take an Aventador to the garage starts at 344,250 euros.
With a cough, Sterling tries to explain that despite his salary as Chief Scientific Officer, this creates some embarrassment, but in order not to disappoint his son he devises something new. Starting from his position within the company where he works, KMLabs of Boulder, Colorado, and through some expertise in 3D printing he decides that an Aventador can also be built in his own garage. At Amazon, he buys three different types of printers, including the Qidi X Pro and the Creality CR-10 105, and gets to work.
The result is surprising. Using carbon panels for the body surfaces, Sterling is able to come up with a clone of the Toro supercar, producing every single part faithfully. In the video that testifies to the undertaking on youtube, the protagonist explains that he started by printing the exterior of the Aventador in micro parts, and which he subsequently took care to glue using a particular adhesive.
Once the work had been completed, the last problem remained, not a small one: making the car mobile. Certainly not being able to make use of the monstrous 6.5-liter 740hp V1 that the real Aventador is equipped with, Backus placed the engine of a 2003 Chevrolet Corvette under the hood of his creature, a 5.7-liter to which he added two turbochargers to increase its power.
“When my son asked me to build him an Aventador, I didn’t hesitate: sure, let’s roll up our sleeves,” says Sterling Backus. “But I wanted the car to be not only the same as the original but also safe, so I paid a lot of attention to this aspect. In “youtube university” there are many people who explain in great detail how to best use a 3D printer ”.
The story also has a happy ending: Lamborghini was so amazed by this father’s resourcefulness and passion that she decided to lend him an original Aventador for a few days. Just enough time to check if the copy was successful.