AD #2365 – CR Now Recommends Tesla’s Model 3, JLR Developing AV Off-Road Tech., All-New Acura RDX Impressions

On today’s show… the cost of 3D printing auto parts is coming down fast… Consumer Reports now recommends buying a Tesla Model 3… and we’ll share our impressions of the new Acura RDX. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.

This is Autoline Daily the show for enthusiasts of the automotive industry.

CR NOW RECOMMENDS TESLA’S MODEL 3
Attention Automakers! If for some reason you need any more evidence that extensive over-the-air (OTA) update capabilities is a good thing, look no further than Tesla. Just one week and two days ago Consumer Reports announced it wouldn’t recommend the Model 3 due to poor braking distance. But Tesla has since rolled out an over-the-air software update that has improved braking performance, by about 20-feet, enough to give Consumer Reports the confidence to now recommend the Model 3 for purchase. CR is also renting a more recently built Model 3 from Tesla to see if other issues it had with the first car have now been addressed. But this should be a wake-up call for anyone that’s been sleeping on this technology.

LAND ROVER DEVELOPING 5D TECHNOLOGY
Land Rover is developing off-road autonomous technology that will work in any weather condition. To help make it reality, the company is engineering what it calls “5D” technology, which is a combination of acoustic, video, radar, light detection and LIDAR data in real-time. It will be Level 4 and 5 capable. This technology is being developed as part of the CORTEX project, which is a 3.7 million pound initiative by the UK, to support the deployment of self-driving technology.

HOW VW LIGHTENED ITS EV RACER
Volkswagen, using its electric “I.D. R Concept,” will attempt the fastest Pike’s Peak hill climb by an electric prototype. How? Well electric racers are heavy, which throws off handling, so less weight will be the key. The chassis and aerodynamic parts will be a carbon fiber/Kevlar mix, while most everything else will be steel and aluminum. And the batteries are lighter, though less powerful. Even the racing suit will be lighter and have sponsor logos printed on rather than sewn on. The whole thing comes in at about 2,425 pounds. Could this weight-saving snag VW the record? We’ll have to wait until June 24th to find out.

Still to come… the process to create 3D printed automotive parts is evolving rapidly.

COST OF 3D PRINTING COMING DOWN FAST
Recently on Autoline After Hours, we were joined by Jon Walker, from EOS North America, to talk about 3D printing auto parts. He had some interesting things to say about the how the cost to produce parts is coming down fast…

Jon Walker: “Yes, so I can say in the last two years, if we just look at the costs alone, I think it’s pretty safe to say from two years ago to today just the costs alone have probably come down about twenty percent. So, there’s a savings and then when we look at new technologies we’re doing things to make sure we’ve got the process stable.

Now we’re figuring out ways to take this incredible process and make it faster. So, we’ve added multiple lasers to our system, so our largest machine is 400 millimeters for the build envelope (on the metal side) and we now have four lasers in that machine. So, it’s not a perfect factor of four faster but say it is, you know, 3.7 times faster because there’s non-productive times that are in both systems. So, now we’ve come down twenty percent in cost and we’re almost four times faster.”

(Clip from AAH #421 can only be viewed in the video version of today’s show.)

You can watch that entire episode right now on our website, Autoline.tv or on our YouTube channel.

And speaking of After Hours, make sure you join us this afternoon for an all-new episode. Our special guest is Brian McKay, the head of powertrain technology for North America for the supplier Continental. If you have any powertrain questions, just send them our way to viewermail@autoline.tv, then join us live at 3PM eastern time for some of the best inside talk in the automotive industry.

Coming up next, our impressions of the all-new Acura RDX.

2019 ACURA RDX IMPRESSIONS
The all-new Acura RDX arrives at dealer showrooms tomorrow. We got a chance to drive the new model and here are our impressions. The CUV is built on an all-new dedicated platform and it’s powered by a new 2.0L four-cylinder turbo that’s mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission. The powertrain performed well and for those worried about not having a V6 option, the four-cylinder provides good power. It’s a bit buzzy when you stomp on the accelerator, but it’s not a deal breaker. The RDX also features the fourth-generation of the company’s Super Handling All-Wheel-Drive system, which definitely helps in corners and on twisty roads. Fuel economy for front-wheel-drive versions is 24 MPG combined while AWD models get 1 MPG fewer. Moving to the interior, the NVH is impressive and it’s a quiet ride out on the road. There’s also a new touchpad to control functions in the infotainment screen, which did take a little bit of getting used to. But not all functions are controlled with the touchpad, there are buttons for the HVAC and on the steering wheel. There’s also good leg and head room for passengers in both the front and rear. The 2019 RDX starts at $38,295 with destination charges and a fully loaded model adds another $10,000 on top of that.

But that’s it for today, thanks for watching and please join us again tomorrow.