Now I took the plunge and bought a 3D printer, I want to make some stuff for the car. The first thing that occurred to me was the small brackets that can hold fuel and brake pipes, like these but significantly cheaper.

I'd make them a little bulkier to compensate for the material, perhaps even do them in two halves that are screwed/glued together, but is there anything else I should consider before I give it a go? I'm guessing Mr IVA man will want to see that they are decent, and from a self preservation point of view I'd want to make them pretty decent.

I've been playing round with odds and sods like that. Its easy to make them sound, generally the smaller they are the sturdier they are as they are naturally solid.

You need abs not pla as the pla will degrade..

Most 3d-printed parts will be sensitive to heat, unless you use some of the more exotic materials like nylon filament. Unfortunately the most useful materials are also the hardest to print properly (nylon is tough to get right, and carries its own problems for home printing). PLA goes soft at quite a low temperature (it can deform simply by leaving a printed piece on your dashboard in full sun), ABS is better, but both suffer from a low 'glass transition temperature' - the point at which the material loses all structural strength (much, much lower than their melting point). ABS is better than PLA, but not by much.

You may also find that common 3d-printing materials will eventually fail if they're in regular contact with petrol, especially with its additives like ethanol.

Saying that, I've printed spacers and the like for use in the 'cold' parts of the car, so it does have possibilities - you just have to be careful.

Hmm, the heat aspect is definitely one consideration. They will be inside the transmission tunnel which could get quite warm in the sun. I'm not expecting them to be in contact with any solvents, if they are then I think I have bigger problems than just soft fixings!!

I did do a quick search on Thingiverse, there's a few examples of clips although they seem to be for push bikes rather than anything else. And I did see a design for a set of Honda Accord brake pads, I am just hoping the designer did it as a proof of concept or standalone design rather than considering them as a cheap option for actual pads...

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Originally posted by Bluemoon
You need abs not pla as the pla will degrade..

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I designed & 3D printed a lot of parts for my roadster, all from PLA. The parts that don't encounter excessive heat or vibration, and that are smaller / denser (print fill %) have lasted 3 years without any obvious degradation. For example: Rear light housings, battery isolator switch mount, phone/tablet mounts on the dashboard.

Parts that haven't stood the test of time were the air intake trumpets (far too much heat and vibration - now replaced with steel trumpets) and the coolant header tank mount (too thin in design, and carrying a large inertia when driving enthusiastically - now mounted on a steel bracket).

When reliable small parts have been required, I have printed them solid, i.e. 100% fill. For example: Throttle outer cable adaptor into pedal box, and shaped washers between the ali-angle and threaded rod that clamps the fuel tank in place.

When identifying parts that could be 3D printed, I would bare in mind the potential risk if the item was to fail. If one of my rear light mounts were to fail, I'd still be able to get the car home. If a part failure is likely to cause a breakdown, I would take a lot of care to ensure the part had sufficient strength. If a part failure would likely lead to a catastrophic failure, then don't 3D print!

Cheaper, lighter, quicker?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Nylon-Plastic-Clips-Fasteners/dp/B01IHSEO5I/ref=asc_df_B01IHSEO5I/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=256110 712503&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8598312693469462760&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocp hy=9045837&hvtargid=pla-783518692557&psc=1


3d-printing is great- we use it at work for all sorts (even printing metals) but I'm not sure fuel/brake pipe fixings is the right use for it?

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Originally posted by James
Cheaper, lighter, quicker?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Nylon-Plastic-Clips-Fasteners/dp/B01IHSEO5I/ref=asc_df_B01IHSEO5I/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=256110 712503&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8598312693469462760&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocp hy=9045837&hvtargid=pla-783518692557&psc=1


3d-printing is great- we use it at work for all sorts (even printing metals) but I'm not sure fuel/brake pipe fixings is the right use for it?

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I've found Petg is good for parts on the car, made various trim pieces, seatbelt slots for the seats, rear covers for the seat belt bolts, for IVA I printed a mirror mount. Also steering column cowling and fuel pump bracket. I actually made an inlet manifold from alloy910 but it struggled to keep the water sealed in the water gallery part.

I'm slowly working towards making some 3d printed thottle trumpets (still planning on going EFi with my ST1100 engine)...
Print them in ABS, coat in investment plaster, melt out the ABS with heat and acetone then fill with molten ali....

What can possibly go wrong

Still dialling in my printer settings / technique for ABS. Much harder to work with than PLA- but I've got the prep work licked now. During my initial ABS prints I was having issues with warping / bed adhesion so did a few on rafts. I'm not printing rafts any more but the rafts make great donor material - few dots of acetone on the bed then use the raft like a squeegee. As it goes it leaves a nice thin layer on slurry- much better than mucking about with a paint brush! Haven't seen any loose prints for a while.

I too have been printing the odd bits. I wouldn't use PLA in the engine bay or tunnel areas due to heat. But certainly fair game in the cockpit.

The kind of stuff I get for free from a visit to the scrap yard...recycle reuse

All the cars I break up I keep all the bolts, clips, fitting etc have jars and jars of them