sQuba - underwater Car
bondaholic007
LondonPosts: 878MI6 Agent
I Read about this on google alerts.
heres the link to my story of it.
http://forum.bondaholic.com/cms_view_article.php?aid=20
and heres link to the source
http://forum.bondaholic.com/cms_view_article.php?aid=20
I think its cool
heres the link to my story of it.
http://forum.bondaholic.com/cms_view_article.php?aid=20
and heres link to the source
http://forum.bondaholic.com/cms_view_article.php?aid=20
I think its cool
Comments
Thanks for the link
Hopefully they'll be in stores by Christmas, (when that winning lotto ticket cashes in)
The paper had a picture but it seems to be missing online, apologies
*************************************************
Submersible Car Swims Out Of Bond Fantasy
By BRADLEY S. KLAPPER, The Associated Press
Published: February 15, 2008
GENEVA - OK, so the Swiss have invented a car that runs on land and underwater. But did they really have to make it a convertible?
It's called the "sQuba," and conjures up memories of James Bond's amphibious Lotus Esprit from "The Spy Who Loved Me." That fictional vehicle traveled on land, and when chased by bad guys in a helicopter, plunged into the water and became an airtight submarine - complete with "torpedoes" and "depth charges."
But "Q" isn't responsible for this one.
The concept car - which unlike Bond's is not armed - was developed by Swiss designer Rinspeed and is set to make a splash at the Geneva Auto Show next month.
Company chief executive Frank Rinderknecht, a self-professed Bond fan, said he has been waiting 30 years to re-create the car he saw Roger Moore drive off a dock.
The sQuba, which has electrical motors, can plow through the water at a depth of 30 feet.
You'll have to break out the wetsuit, however.
The car has an open top, exposing the two passengers to the elements.
"For safety reasons, we have built the vehicle as an open car so that the occupants can get out quickly in an emergency," said Rinderknecht, 52.
Passengers will be able to keep breathing underwater through an integrated tank of compressed air similar to what is used in scuba diving.
The sQuba's top speed on land is about 77 mph, but it slows to 3 mph on the surface of water and 1.8 mph underwater.
Working with engineering specialists, Rinspeed removed the combustion engine from a sports car and replaced it with several electrical motors. Three are located in the rear - or rather aft - with one providing propulsion on land and the other two driving the screw for underwater driving.
"We always want to do cars that are outrageous, which nobody has done before. So we thought, 'Let's make a car dive,'" said Rinderknecht, whose company has made transparent, flying and voice-activated cars.
The company calls the sQuba the first real submersible car. Unlike military amphibious vehicles, which can move slowly on a lakebed, the sQuba travels like a submarine either on the surface or submerged.
The interior is resistant to saltwater, allowing the skipper to drive into a lake or the sea.
"Many concept cars introduce important new technology," said John Cabaniss at the Association of International Automobile Manufacturers in Washington. "Anything to improve the efficiency of a vehicle, streamlining or reducing the weight of materials, while maintaining strength ... is put into concept cars first."
Cabaniss said the lithium-ion batteries in the car are state-of-the-art and added that the car industry in general would be looking for more ways to make things work electronically. But he was skeptical of the overriding idea.
"Other than some kind of a movie situation, for Bond-like stuff with lots of gimmicks, I can't imagine it will have any practical value," Cabaniss said. "Maybe people will need to go from land to water, and traverse a body of water, but underwater? Especially as it gets your suit wet."
Rinderknecht said it cost more than $1.5 million to make the sole sQuba in existence, and that it was difficult to make a car watertight and pressure-resistant enough to be maneuverable underwater.
"The real challenge, however, was to create a submersible car that moves like a fish in water," he said.
Rinspeed is in discussion with commercial manufacturers about making a limited number of the cars. The price? "It would be cheaper than a Rolls-Royce," Rinderknecht said. A 2008 Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe has a sticker price of more than $400,000.
http://jalopnik.com/356461/rinspeed-squba-bonds-lotus-submarine-made-real
another couple of , shorter, film of the most amazing car ever... :007)
I want one...
http://video.msn.com/dw.aspx?mkt=en-gb&vid=967cb5a1-31c1-4be2-b57c-8759150be...
http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-GB&brand=&vid=d03db230-9ca1-4ac3-...
Also it's going to seriously going to confuse your Satnav.
You're not going to get any help from the AA if you break down.
And if I was a shark, I'd consider that a packed lunch. Or meals on wheel. ;% (sorry!)