DURHAM, N.C. -- Joe Harmon has always loved cars. He built models growing up and still loves to go to car shows and watch racing on TV.

Discuss This Story

“I’ve always thought cars were cool,” said Harmon, as he used an air host to blow the dust off his latest creation. “The faster, the sleaker the better.”

So it’s no surprise that when Harmon needed a graduate project for his master’s degree in industrial design at NC State, he decided to build a car. But not just any car -- a car made of wood veneer; cherry, walnut, maple and hickory. Harmon discovered that wood veneer, bonded by resin and tightly compressed is as strong as steel by weight.

“It’s all about strength versus weight,” said Harmon, holding up a molded piece of wood. “In a car you care about the weight if you want it to go fast.”

Harmon rebuilt a Cadillac Northstar engine for his car. He figures combining the 700 hp engine with a car weighing only about 2,500 pounds will enable the car to hit 220 mph.  But except for the engine, windshield, and tires, almost everything else in the car is made of wood.  Harmon created molds of fiberglass, then used the molds to shape the vood veneer. 

“It should handle like a Ferrari,” said Harmon smiling. “I’ve called it, The Splinter.”

The project has taken two years. Harmon will show off his car at the International Woodworking Show in Atlanta in August.  He hopes to turn his creation into a degree and then a job as a car designer.