Old Meets New in Latest OpenRC Tire Design from Thomas Palm

Leif Tufvesson loves cars. He spent part of his career working as a technician for Volvo’s Research and Development Department in Gothenburg, Sweden, followed by a six-year stint at the also-Sweden-based Koenigsegg. Tufvesson is one of the lucky ones who got to channel his passion into a successful career, but like so many others, he eventually broke away from the corporate world to start his own business doing what he really loves – designing and building his own cars, as well as restoring classic ones.

In 1996, Tufvesson started Caresto. At the time, he was still working for Volvo, but after his years at Koenigsegg, he decided to go full-time with his own business. A quick look at his portfolio is all it takes to know that Tufvesson is talented at what he does. In 2004, he won Hot Rod Magazine‘s “Hot Rod of the Year” award for his Volvo T-6 Roadster, his first “Volvo-rod.” Even more successful, however, was the Hot Rod Jakob, a car he built in 2007 to commemorate Volvo’s 80-year anniversary. Based on the classic Volvo Jakob, the first car ever manufactured by the company, the award-winning hot rod has been featured in numerous magazines since its production. You can see more about the Hot Rot Jakob’s development below:

One thing that sets Tufvesson and other modern car enthusiasts apart from those of the past is a second outlet for their passion. R/C cars have been around for a while, but 3D printing has taken the hobby to an entirely new level, as evidenced by groups such as the OpenRC Project. We’ve been following OpenRC for a long time as it has grown from the personal project of engineer and designer Daniel Norée into a community of thousands of RC and 3D printing hobbyists and fans.

The most excitement to come out of the OpenRC Project recently has been the release of Norée’s RC Formula 1 car, a project that had been eagerly awaited by the OpenRC community over the course of the car’s development. Now that it’s been officially released, however, the car is by no means finished – the beauty of open source projects is that they are constantly changing. Mechanical engineer Thomas Palm of Palmiga Innovation has been one of the biggest contributors to the F1, and to OpenRC in general, with his ever-growing variety of 3D printed tire designs. Palm has now teamed up with Tufvesson to create a new set of tires for the F1 – based, naturally, on the Hot Rod Jakob.

Tufvesson’s tires fit on the low profile rims previously developed by Palm. The new design is a great way to honor how automobiles have changed over the years: from a 1927 classic car to a redesigned hot rod to a remote-controlled, 3D printed model, the Volvo Jakob is an example of how a car can continue to exist long after it ceases to be produced in its original form. The files for the new tires can be found here, and Palm states that something big will be coming from Caresto shortly – so stay tuned. Discuss in the 3D Printed Tires forum over at 3DPB.com.