‘Hoonitruck’ Sets Record Without Moving a Single Foot!
Powered by one of the EcoBoost V6s used in developing the GT, custom 1977 F-150 features world’s largest 3D-printed metal part.
Not too long ago, hooning icon Ken Block dropped his latest installment of the beloved Gymkhana series, starring his newest ride, a 1977 Ford F-150 dubbed ‘Hoonitruck.’ Powered by an EcoBoost V6 used in the development of the current Ford GT, the Hoonitruck lives up to its name with over 900 tire-smoking horses.
As if that’s not big enough, the Hoonitruck, with the help of Ford Performance, is a literal record holder: it holds the world’s largest metal part ever to be printed from a 3D printer.
Mounted atop the EcoBoost V6 is an aluminum air intake designed to send the air it captures from the twin turbos into the cylinders. The beast of an intake was a collaborative effort between engineers in the U.S. and Europe, who then sent their findings and plans to RWTH Aachen Digital Additive Production Institute in Aachen, Germany, who then printed the final result.
“We are fortunate to have access to incredible technology, but this was one project that pushed us – and our computing power – to the absolute limit,” said Ford of Europe engineer Raphael Koch. “The manifold has a complex web‑like structure that couldn’t be made using traditional manufacturing methods. We ended up dissolving the support systems in acid.”
The manifold took tons of computing power and five days to print, resulting in a part that weighs just over 13 pounds. As Block himself says, “Ford did an exceptional job… You could not have made it any other way.”
Join the F-150 Online forums now!
