Joe Harmon, an NC State Industrial Design grad student, has designed a wooden supercar that outruns a Porsche and a Lamborghini, and is made of wood. No kidding. Here’s Harmon talking about his grad school project, The Splinter, which is being built in Durham:
“Wood has a higher strength-to-weight ratio than aluminium or steel, and it possesses a versatility that makes many types of construction techniques possible. The satisfaction involved in making something from a piece of wood is awesome.”
As someone who helped my two sons build many Pinewood Derby cars when they were Cub Scouts, I’m impressed. Maybe Harmon can produce cars that just have a big wooden block sitting on top of the engine and suspension. That way customers could just whittle away what they don’t like and have their own custom car.
Just don’t forget to put graphite on the axles, though. As any Cub Scout dad knows, that makes it go faster.
Here’s another story about Harmon’s car, which is made mostly of maple, plywood and MDF.
UPDATE: Actually, this experimental car looks like a Pinewood Derby car.
(h/t HotAir Headlines)
