https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYHBCZdMlqw
Car companies have built life-size clay models for almost 100 years, for nearly every car you see on the road. But modeling is an expensive process. Exotic l

https://www.businessinsider.com/why-car-companies-spend-thousands-clay-models-2022-5?op=1
Still, a full-size clay model may feature $20,000 worth of materials. And the hours of labor contributed by digital designers, sculptors, and milling by CNC machines add up. Depending on how many

https://www.slashgear.com/1450234/clay-car-models-history/
Bloomberg/Getty Images. The reason clay models aren't going anywhere, despite the cost and time needed to make them, is that digital tech simply cannot replace having a 1:1 physical representation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xatHPihJCpM
Since the 1930s, every car has started as a full-size clay model before being manufactured. However, these models can cost automakers hundreds of thousands o

https://www.carscoops.com/2022/05/in-the-digital-world-why-do-car-companies-still-make-clay-models/
The clay makes up the fine details of the outer skin, and usually has a thickness between 1-2 inches (25-50 mm). Both clay and digital work together for the bulk of the design work by using a CNC

https://www.anet360.com/post/clay-car-models
For those who love both design and cars, you might be familiar with the process of car design. The use of clay models in car design can be traced back to General Motors in the 1930s. Harley Earl, head of GM's styling studio, was the first to use malleable clay to turn sketches into full-scale models. This innovative approach changed the car

https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a36754924/how-automakers-use-clay-to-create-beautiful-sheetmetal/
Carbon fiber, he says, makes an awesome modeling tool. It's light, stiff, holds a curve, and leaves a subtle rippled texture that designers favor. Clay is endlessly malleable, correctable by

https://www.facebook.com/businessinsider/videos/why-car-companies-still-use-clay-models-that-cost-up-to-650000/5990191631037552/
Luxury brands can spend $650,000 for a model. | company, clay, motor car Why Car Companies Still Use Clay Models That Cost Up To $650,000 | company, clay, motor car | Automakers have built life-size clay models for almost 100 years.

https://www.fastcompany.com/3045316/why-the-car-industry-still-builds-life-size-clay-models
Autodesk told the Journal that one European manufacturer had used digital workflows to reduce its clay builds by 70%. So while the few remaining clay modelers command salaries of $100,000 or more

https://www.facebook.com/insidertransportation/videos/why-car-companies-still-spend-thousands-on-clay-models/1339510223212663/
Since the 1930s, every car has started as a full-size clay model before being manufactured. However, these models can cost automakers hundreds of thousands of dollars. We explore why in 2022 clay modeling is still a crucial step in the design process.

https://www.sme.org/technologies/articles/2018/june/clay-modeling-still-a-key-for-vehicle-design/
Wenzel DesignTec offers two models of five-axis clay mills, the DT Mill which can mill clays and foams with a density up to 62.4 lb/ft³ (1.0 gr/cm³) at milling speeds up to 40 m/min, max rpm 18,000. The DT Robot "The New Original" also mills at speeds up to 40 m/min max rpm 18,000 in clays and foams with a density of 37.4 lb/ft³ (0.6 gr

https://www.npr.org/2023/03/18/1163278082/car-prices-used-cars-electric-vehicles-pandemic
Cox Automotive crunched the numbers and found that from December 2017 to December 2022, sales of new cars under $25,000 — affordable, by new-car standards — dropped 78% and went from almost 13

https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/car-repair-maintenance/car-brands-and-models-that-can-save-you-money-over-time-a9081677414/
On average, hybrid cars cost only slightly more to maintain than EVs over a 10-year period ($2,785 vs. $2,320). And a typical hybrid car owner will save nearly $1,000 in maintenance costs over 10

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/is-the-era-of-inexpensive-cars-over-why-auto-prices-are-on-the-rise-in-america
And not only they're very few inexpensive cars, it seems like at the top end, it's grown. It's not just the car is now cost 40 or $50,000. But there are a number of models that are more than $100,000.

https://www.npr.org/2022/02/08/1078333943/buying-a-car-chips-supply-chains
A car dealership stands empty in Laurel, Md., on May 27, 2021, as many car dealerships across the country are running low on new vehicles because of a computer chip shortage. It's months later

https://www.npr.org/2023/03/14/1163301573/exploring-the-many-reasons-why-car-prices-remain-high
Exploring the many reasons why car prices remain high Why are car prices still so much higher than they were before the pandemic? The average cost of a new vehicle tops $48,000. The average cost

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/automotive-and-assembly/our-insights/used-cars-new-platforms-accelerating-sales-in-a-digitally-disrupted-market
A big, stable, largely countercyclical market. The US used-car market is more than twice the size of the new-car segment and is outpacing it in growth. McKinsey's auto retail micro-market model (ARM 3) for used- car demand in the United States estimates that Americans buy 39.4 million used cars each year, versus 17.3 million new ones (2018

https://www.csmonitor.com/Business/2021/0623/Why-used-cars-are-suddenly-costing-more-than-when-they-were-new
Prices shot up a record 10% in April and another 7.3% in May, as inflation spiked 5%, the biggest 12-month increase since 2008. The average used vehicle cost $26,457 this month, according to

https://www.motus.com/blog/company-car-vs-car-allowance/
The Downsides of a Car Allowance. Car allowances are simple to implement, but that simplicity has a price. That price is tax waste. Because the allowance amount is not substantiated by mileage logs, the IRS considers it additional income and thus taxable. The average car allowance in 2021 was $575. After tax waste, that comes out to $393.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/08/business/car-prices-inflation/index.html
According to Edmunds, a go-to resource for car information, the average used car price hit $26,500 in June, up 27% from a year ago, while the average new car transaction price is $41,000, up 5%

https://www.npr.org/2022/11/04/1133678811/used-cars-new-prices-price-costs-maintenance-inflation-expensive
And other costs of car ownership are rising, too. Vehicle prices are still sky-high these days, even as the market frenzy cools - averaging more than $48,000 for a new vehicle and $28,000 for

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-02-14/new-car-prices-are-so-high-only-rich-americans-can-afford-them
But for the typical American family, it's now a distant dream. The average monthly payment for a new car has soared to a record $777, nearly doubling from late 2019, according to Kelley Blue

https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/21/business/car-prices-record-high-short-supply/index.html
Wholesale prices for used cars sold at auction are up 26% since the start of this year, according to other data from JD Power. Retail used car prices are up a more modest 7% in the same period