BLT’s Metal 3D-Printed Car Body Parts and Brake Calipers Help BYD’s Yangwang Car Shatter the World Speed Record at 496 km/h

Panda3dp.com’s Introduction:The BYD Yangwang U9X has broken the world record with a top speed of 496.22 km/h — a milestone in which 3D printing technology played a pivotal role. For some time, Panda3dp.com speculated whether Yangwang’s components were self-manufactured or produced in collaboration with a 3D printing company. The mystery has now been unveiled by BLT (Bright Laser Technologies).

On November 3, 2025, Panda3dp.com noted that BLT announced its partnership with BYD, providing 3D-printed car body components and brake calipers for the Yangwang U9X.

At the EuroCarBody 2025 Conference held from October 14 to 16, BYD showcased the world’s first integrated 3D-printed high-performance car body — the Yangwang U9X. The vehicle drew immediate attention and earned the highest score from the panel of professional judges. Previously, the Yangwang U9X had undergone extensive performance development testing at Germany’s Nürburgring Nordschleife and achieved a record-breaking top speed of 496.22 km/h at the ATP testing ground in Germany. On October 21, Yangwang officially announced that the U9X completed a lap of the Nürburgring in 6′59″157, becoming the fastest mass-produced electric car to ever run the track — and the world’s first hypercar to simultaneously break both the top-speed and lap-time world records.

The development of the Yangwang U9Xtreme’s (U9X) 3D-printed car body represents a “groundbreaking exploration into the manufacturing paradigm of the future.” It encapsulates the technological breakthroughs and inventive spirit of both the BYD and BLT teams. 3D printing technology has endowed the car’s structure with exceptional design freedom and integration. Thanks to this innovation, the car body achieves race-level rigidity and outstanding crash safety while maintaining an industry-leading lightweight performance. With years of experience in the automotive field, BLT offers one-stop solutions covering structural optimization, part printing, post-processing, and quality inspection. Its decade-long expertise in structural optimization, large-format 3D printing systems, and high-strength aluminum alloys has enabled the efficient development and delivery of these parts.

Lightweight construction and a high degree of structural integration are the defining technical features of the U9X body. Through topology optimization, BLT employed a design that combines hollow cavities with reinforcing ribs, enhancing torsional rigidity by over 200% compared with solid structures of the same mass. This ensures an optimal balance between weight distribution and strength, laying a solid foundation for both safety and lightweight performance. The high-strength aluminum alloy car body, produced using BLT’s 3D printing process, achieves more than 30% weight reduction compared with traditional solutions.

Using BLT-S1000, BLT-S615, and BLT-S815 machines, BLT realized fully integrated printing of car body components for rapid delivery. Its large-format precision control technology ensures that over 90% of the printed surface deviation remains within ±0.5 mm. With over 200 large-format printers (build volume ≥450×450×500 mm) and a mature, stable production system, BLT guarantees cross-device and cross-batch consistency in performance — securing both production capacity and quality for high-end automotive components.

In addition to the car body, BLT also supplied twenty sets of brake calipers for the Yangwang U9X, all of which have passed Nürburgring testing. Through topology optimization, the calipers achieved a 20–30% weight reduction compared with the original design. The oil channels and inserts were printed integrally, reducing assembly steps while improving durability and reliability under extreme conditions. Dimensional accuracy is controlled within ±0.5 mm for the front calipers and ±0.3 mm for the rear, with a part density greater than 99.5% and no defects detected under radiographic inspection.

The successful collaboration between BYD and BLT stands as a landmark achievement for metal 3D printing in the automotive industry, underscoring its immense potential in next-generation vehicle manufacturing. Looking ahead, BLT will continue to push technological boundaries, opening new possibilities for intelligent automotive production.

On October 30, 2025, Yang Feng, Director of the Yangwang Research Institute at the BYD Automotive Engineering Research Institute, published a detailed article elaborating on the R&D process behind the U9X’s 3D-printed car body — describing it as “a groundbreaking exploration toward the manufacturing paradigm of the future.”

△ Comments from some online users:
Their feedback suggests that for high-end automobiles, metal 3D printing is no longer a luxury — it’s a viable, performance-driven choice.

See also: “BYD Begins Applying Metal 3D Printing Technology to Its Yangwang U9X New Energy Supercar.”