Posted on 03/03/2013 6:34:52 PM PST by Kevmo
The 3D-Printed Urbee 2 Hybrid Car is Light, Strong, and Nearing Production
by Morgana Matus, 03/03/13
Nothing says Welcome to the Future like a 3D-printed runabout vehicle with a hybrid engine, three wheels, speeds of up to 110 mph, and capacity to carry up to 1,200 lbs. The Urbee 2 is the result of Jim Kors dream for a modern, sustainable vehicle that will someday revolutionize the way that we commute. The exteriors lightweight construction of ABS plastic allows for a minimum amount of drag and fuel required to operate the car, and its stronger and more easily manipulated than steel. Able to hold two passengers, the Urbee could very well be the next big thing in urban transportation.
Pretty neat. Weight far forward, 2 wheels in the front. Appears a pretty stable design. But it is a motor cycle.
2 wheel motor cycles are pretty safe on dry pavement. If the idiots driving cars make allowances for them.
Anytime you see the words “sustainable “ and “vehicle “ in the same sentence, you can almost guarantee the rest of the text was written by some crackpot.
Anytime you see the words “sustainable “ and “vehicle “ in the same sentence, you can almost guarantee the rest of the text was written by some crackpot.
Maybe they could make it out of shrink wrap. Heat it up and it shrinks to casket size.
I’m guessing that he went with three wheels to avoid having to meet safety standards for cars- a 3-wheeler is technically a motorcycle.
Well, then, maybe you can take it up to the rest of these crackpots over at wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainable_transport
Well at first I thought you were right till I saw the pic in post #42.
Yep, it has got to be two versions.
Still, that is pretty bad when nobody can tell the front from the back.
.
Just change the design a bit...
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What keeps these ultra-light cars from being blown off the road when a large truck passes it?
Wow! Good catch.
Looks like we’re looking at the Urbee 1.0, and the Urbee 2.0!
Gives you a choice on how you would like to die!
Your are correct the arrangement with one wheel forward is highly unstable. Two wheels forward is very stable unless traveling in reverse or in a spin.
The same thing that keeps motorcycles from being blown off the road...
Somebody's design parameters are 'way off...
It’s basically a slightly safer motorcycle. Most motorcycles can go about that speed, not that they do it all that much. The compelling part of this technology is the 3D printing aspect more than the design parameters of the first generation. It’s like the Honda 600 with the possibility of a cottage industry 50 times bigger than the British MG hobby car. Fast forward that concept by 30 years (do you see a lot of Hondas on the road today?) and you’ve got millions of domestically built hybrid cars filling the subcompact niche.
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