Porsche showcases 3D-printed seats for its 911 and 718 models

Porsche’s sportscars have been renowned for their fantastic driving position and handling dynamics for years now. With a rich racing history, the company is working toward making that experience even better. Their latest innovation is 3D-printed construction for the seats, that allow the seat to be custom fit to the driver’s dimensions, to make it perfectly snug and bespoke. The seat will be lighter, more comfortable and will allow for passive climate control.

Michael Steiner, Executive Board Member for Research and Development, Porsche says “With the ‘3D-printed bodyform full-bucket seat’, we’re once again giving series-production customers the opportunity to experience technology carried over from motorsports.”

The concept is based on the standard bucket seats from Porsche but it gets a base support layer made from EPP or expanded polypropylene, and is bonded to a mix of polyurethane based materials, using 3D-printing. The outer layer of the seat is made from a material called Racetex and allows for partial climate control. Yes, that is a whole lot of technical jargon but leave that to the Germans, for us it translates to a more comfortable and more dialed-in driving experience.

The seat is a long way from production currently, starting May 2020 the 3D-printed bodyform full-bucket seat will be available as an option from the Porsche Tequipment list for buyers of 911 and 718 models. However, it will initially be available for use only on racetracks around Europe to get customer feedback and further develop the design. Once in production buyers will be able to choose from three different levels of comfort for their seat in the buying process and in the long term the company is aiming to have fully customised seats including various colours and exact dimensions to fit the driver.