News

3D-printing technology – or, to use its proper name, additive manufacturing (AM) – has progressed fast over the past five years.

Dutch car company Donkervoort is one of the latest to take advantage of its unique benefits, by 3D-printing intercoolers for its forthcoming P24 RS supercar. These were developed by Australia’s Conflux, and the technique goes one step further than merely being a convenient way to manufacture things. By using AM, the weight of the aluminium-alloy liquid-to-air intercoolers has been slashed from 16kg to 1.4kg.

Conflux describes the technique as Formula 1 technology (its founder has a background in the sport), and it has other benefits too: this intercooler has superior thermal performance and packaging benefits to conventional equivalents.

It should be tougher too, because it’s a single, one-piece structure with no joints or welds. Donkervoort issued a specification for the intercooler and Conflux actually improved on it, returning a design that was so effective that it could be downsized still further from the original prototype.

Rather than mounted at the front of the car, the compact intercoolers can be sited within the engine bay, reducing the length of the inlet tract by two-thirds. The result is quicker throttle response, better efficiency and optimised weight distribution, all of which directly benefit the driver.

Coolant flowing through the intercooler is dedicated to the job and cooled by an external radiator not shared with any other drivetrain cooling system. AM is a process whereby, controlled by a 3D computer model, objects are formed by firing lasers into a bed of powdered material, fusing it together.

Conflux makes the new intercoolers from AlSi10Mg, a high-grade aluminium alloy that it claims is one of the most common and well accepted aluminium alloys in the industry. Conflux also uses it for components in aviation, motorsport and industrial applications.

Intercoolers are needed because when air is compressed (by a turbocharger in this case), it heats up and becomes less dense. For maximum performance and trouble-free combustion, an engine needs cool induction air. An intercooler cools down the compressed and heated air before it enters the engine by conducting heat through finned walls into a coolant.

Thanks to the AM process, these fins in the new Conflux intercooler are extremely thin: at 160 microns, just two or three times thicker than a human hair. And the thinner the fins can be, the more effective they will be at conducting away the unwanted heat.

More than that, Conflux uses the advantages of AM to produce sophisticated surface contours, or ‘geometries’, that take into account the changing thermal properties of the fluids as they pass through the intercooler. That adds up to more efficient heat transfer and, put simply, an intercooler that does a better job.

BYD will launch the Atto 2 crossover in the UK next month, priced from £30,850.

Available to order now, it plugs the gap between the Dolphin hatch and Atto 3 SUV to give BYD a footing in the competitive electric crossover segment.

Its starting price places it in the crosshairs of the Jeep Avenger and Hyundai Kona Electric. However, BYD is positioning it as a more premium offering in the segment, with plans to go after slightly more expensive rivals such as Smart #1 and Volvo EX30. 

To that end, the company cites the quality of standard kit offered in the Atto 2. For example, the entry-level Boost model comes with 17in alloys, a 12.8in rotatable touchscreen (the same as in the larger Atto 3), wireless charging, a ‘high-tech’ audio system with eight speakers, and vehicle-to-load (V2L) capabilities, which mean it can power external devices such as, BYD notes, a lawnmower. It also gets a heat pump.

The entry-level Boost model comes with a single motor that sends 174bhp to the front wheels and electricity is drawn from a 51.1kWh battery pack that yields a range of 214 miles. 

A better-equipped Comfort model will arrive later this year. Priced at £34,950, it is expected to get BYD’s 15.6in touchscreen and higher-quality materials. It will also be fitted with a larger, 64.8kWh battery pack that offers up to 261 miles of range and a slighter more powerful, 201bhp front-mounted motor.

The Atto 2 Boost can handle charging rates of up to 82kW, allowing the pack to be juiced from 30-80% in 30 minutes. Comfort increases this to 155kW, dropping the fill-up time to 21 minutes.

Both configurations can hit 62mph from standing in 7.9sec. Top speed is limited to 99mph.

A smaller sibling to the existing Atto 3, the new Atto 2 measures 4.31m long, 1.83m wide and 1.68m tall. That lines it up neatly to serve as a higher-riding alternative to the BYD Dolphin hatchback. The Atto 2 offers seating for five as well as a 400-litre boot.

In addition, the battery is fitted to the car using cell-to-body construction, which is said to boost chassis rigidity. 

BYD will launch the Atto 2 crossover in the UK next month, priced from £30,850.

Available to order now, it plugs the gap between the Dolphin hatch and Atto 3 SUV to give BYD a footing in the competitive electric crossover segment.

Its starting price places it in the crosshairs of the Jeep Avenger and Hyundai Kona Electric. However, BYD is positioning it as a more premium offering in the segment, with plans to go after slightly more expensive rivals such as Smart #1 and Volvo EX30. 

It says this is down to the quality of standard kit offered. For example, the entry-level Boost model comes with 17in alloys, a 12.8-inch rotatable touchscreen (the same as in the larger Atto 3), wireless charging, a ‘high-tech’ audio system with eight speakers, and vehicle-to-load (V2L) capabilities which means it can power external devices such as, BYD notes, a lawnmower. It also gets a heat pump.

Underneath, the entry-level Boost model comes with a single motor that sends 174bhp to the front wheels, with electricity drawn from a 51.1kWh battery pack that yields a range of 214 miles. 

A better equipped Comfort model will arrive later this year. Priced at £34,950, it is expected to get BYD’s larger 15.6in touchscreen and better quality materials. It will also be fitted with a larger 64.8kWh battery pack that offers up to 261 miles of range and a slighter more powerful 201bhp front-mounted motor.

The Atto 2 Boost can handle charging rates of up to 82kW, meaning the pack can be juiced from 30-80% in 30 minutes. Comfort increases this to 155kW, dropping the fill-up time to 21 minutes.

Both configurations can hit 62mph from standing in 7.9sec. Top speed is limited to 99mph.

A smaller sibling to the existing Atto 3, the new Atto 2 measures 4.31m long, 1.83m wide and 1.68m tall. That lines it up neatly to serve as a higher-riding alternative to the BYD Dolphin hatchback. The Atto 2 offers seating for five as well as a 400-litre boot.

What’s more, the battery is fitted to the car using cell-to-body construction, which is said to boost chassis rigidity. 

The new Cupra Tindaya concept car will preview the next stage of the brand's design language when it is revealed at the Munich motor show next month.

The show car is named after the volcanic mountain on the Atlantic island of Fuerteventura because "its copper-toned rock echoes the signature of Cupra", said the brand.

To be unveiled on 8 September, it is expected to focus heavily on the future of the brand's interior design.

Cupra said the concept "delivers the maximum expression of driver focus, while offering a unique experience, enhancing the driver’s emotions".

In a preview image released by the brand, it shows a radical new cabin similar to that of the DarkRebel concept unveiled in 2023. It includes a yoke-like wheel, chunky central spine similar to the electric Tavascan's, and what appear to be racing seats.

The brand said the concept will blend “human and machine, where the driving experience and emotions reach their fullest expression”, emphasising a focus on interior design.

Cupra has revealed little else about the concept but did confirm it will also show the next step of its exterior design language.

The concept follows a major range-wide redesign last year in which the entire line-up was refreshed to bring parity between the new electric cars and older combustion models. The revamp mainly focused on the front end and included a prominent nose, a broader grille and triangular LED lights

The show car will be revealed alongside a camouflaged production version of the new Raval – Cupra’s Volkswagen ID 2 twin. The Raval will arrive in 2026 as the brand’s new entry-level model and a rival to the Renault 5. It is expected to be priced at around £25,000.