Porsche has built its first ever complete housing for an electric drive unit (engine and gearbox) using 3D printing. The unit even passed quality and stress tests without any issues, proving that this technology is viable for consumer products.
The prototype unit’s additively-manufactured alloy housing is more lightweight than a conventionally cast part, reducing the overall weight of the drive by roughly ten percent.
Meanwhile, stiffness in highly stressed areas has nevertheless been doubled, thanks to special structures made possible by 3D printing.
“This proves that additive manufacturing with all its advantages is also suitable for larger and highly-stressed components in electric sports cars,” said Falk Heilfort, Project Manager in the Powertrain Advance Development department at the Porsche Development Centre in Weissach.