Optimizing custom Legend Car bodywork production with Heron AM – Castelletto Circuit

Caracol’s advanced robotic technology Heron AM was adopted by Castelletto Circuit to manufacture the entire bodywork of a custom racing Legend cars category. The project is a great example of the application of LFAM to motorsport design, showcasing how innovation in digital manufacturing can be an efficient way to transform high-performance automotive production — also for small-series manufacturing of tailored components.

The development of this project was brought forward by a fantastic team, ecosystem of automotive and design excellence:

• Castelletto Circuit, a hub for motorsport development and validation, supports real-world prototyping and performance testing.
• Garroni Design, with extensive experience in yacht design, was responsible for the styling and development of the vehicle’s exterior geometry.
• T.n.T Garage is a local company specializing in mechanical and electronic services, took care of vehicle testing and maintenance.
• Sabic, a global leader in thermoplastics, provided high-performance ABS reinforced with 20% carbon fiber, offering a perfect balance of strength, lightweight, and printability.

Caracol’s role in the project was that of sharing its years of expertise on design for additive manufacturing, slicing strategies and production of the parts, leveraging its proprietary Heron AM turnkey platform to fabricate all of the bodywork elements for the vehicle in the most efficient way, and eliminating the need for traditional tooling or demanding post-production processes.

Advanced robotic LFAM for Automotive in action

Heron AM, equipped with a High-Versatility (HV) Extruder, was adopted to 3D print the full-scale bodywork parts directly from CAD files, eliminating the need for tools, molds, CNC machining. Heron AM integrates a multi-axis robotic arm, proprietary software, and end-to-end automation that enables the production of large and complex geometries with good quality and performance, efficiency, and minimal waste.

• Material: ABS + 20% Carbon Fiber
• Printing Time (all parts): 150 hours
• Weight (total printed parts): 173 kg
• Dimensions (assembled body): 3600 x 1900 x 1200 mm
• Lead Time Reduction: up to 50% compared to traditional manufacturing
• Post-Processing: Surface sanding and painting to achieve the final aesthetic finish

The structural safety of the vehicle was ensured by the internal rollbar frame making production of the body quite streamlined as a process. Nonetheless, one of the options for future iterations would be to provide a further structural role for the body itself, with additional fiberglass lamination for reinforcement.

Benefits for custom automotive production

This project clearly demonstrated the agility and performance of LFAM for custom automotive manufacturing:

• Rapid production directly from CAD, enables fast design iterations and project lead times.
• Significant reduction in material waste, thanks to subtractive-free production and optimized print paths.
• Lower energy consumption, with no thermal curing ovens or multi-stage tooling required.
• Time-to-part halved, accelerating development timelines for design validation and aerodynamic testing.
• No tooling needed, making LFAM highly competitive even for one-off parts or small production runs.

Pushing the boundaries of custom motorsport manufacturing

This racing car is just the beginning. The successful application of LFAM to the creation of full-scale, highly tailored vehicle parts opens new frontiers in motorsports, concept car development, and niche automotive production. With Heron AM, Caracol is paving the way for ultra-customized, small-batch vehicle bodywork manufacturing – delivering unmatched flexibility, speed, and efficiency.

Soon, we envision the direct 3D printing of bodywork components for small-series production of custom cars, where the ability to leverage and efficient and sustainable process will revolutionize the cost structure and possibilities of accessing custom vehicles.

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