BMWAutomotivesince 2017
BMW i8 Roadster Soft-Top Window Guide Rail
Soft-top window guide rail — first SLS part in series production BMW
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AUTOMOTIVE · PART PHOTO
Challenge
The window guide rail has complex geometry and low production volume (i8 Roadster is low-volume), making injection moulding tooling uneconomical.
Solution
SLS-printed PA12 guide rail entered BMW i8 Roadster series production in 2017 — BMW's first SLS part in series production. 44% lighter than metal equivalent, 30–40% cost reduction.
Outcomes
- 0144% weight reduction
- 0230–40% cost savings
Technologies
Laser Powder Bed Fusion
Source
First SLS part in BMW series production; i8 Roadster milestone
Cite this page
APA
AM Roadmap. (2017). BMW i8 Roadster Soft-Top Window Guide Rail. AM Roadmap (v0.4.2-fixes-deployed). Retrieved 2026-05-17, from https://amroadmap.com/success-stories/bmw-i8-roadster-window-guide-2017
BibTeX
@misc{amroadmap_bmw_i8_roadster_soft_top_window_guide_ra_2017,
title = {BMW i8 Roadster Soft-Top Window Guide Rail},
author = {{AM Roadmap}},
year = {2017},
url = {https://amroadmap.com/success-stories/bmw-i8-roadster-window-guide-2017},
note = {AM Roadmap dataset v0.4.2-fixes-deployed, accessed 2026-05-17}
}Canonical URL: https://amroadmap.com/success-stories/bmw-i8-roadster-window-guide-2017