Nissan uses 3D printing technology to expand range of repair, replacement parts

Nissan Motor has announced that it will utilize its new technologies to expand the range of its NISMO Heritage Parts program that offers a series of genuine repair and replacement parts for discontinued vehicles.

The new technologies being used by the company include dual-sided dieless forming for body panels and 3D printing for resin parts. Introduced in 2019, the former technology can be used to produce body panels in low volumes. The method is useful in molding of complex shapes through the use of robots pressing rod-shaped molding tools onto opposite sides of a steel sheet. This results in incrementally deforming and molding a panel. Using the dieless forming process, Nissan plans to produce rear panels for the R32 Skyline GT-R.

With this production method, Nissan plans to produce rear panels for the R32 Skyline GT-R. The company says that it has achieved the high-quality required for automobile parts using this process by working closely with its suppliers. It created prototypes while incorporating the sheet metal know-how of skilled workers and used dual-sided dieless forming and non-lubricated processing with mirrored diamond-coated tools as a base.

Nissan NISMO Heritage Parts

The 3D printing technology, developed in collaboration with Solize Corporation, helps produce a protector made of resin for the harness in the R32 Skyline GT-R. With the help of its supplier, Nissan redesigned the parts and conducted performance tests that adapt to 3D printers. With this, the company has enabled requirement of a shorter time to commercialize high-standard parts.

Nissan's NISMO Heritage Parts program that was launched in December 2017, has expanded parts delivery from 80 to 300. The initiative is a part of the company's efforts to enable its customers to continue to drive their Nissan performance cars for a longer period of time.