We covered details of Rinspeed's iChange concept previously, and now have photos to add. The iChange is a new concept for the 2009 Geneva auto show. Electric powered, it sports a different profile depending on whether it is carrying one or three people.
The last Jeep we reviewed did not have a smoke machine as standard equipment
(Credit: CNET Networks)It looks like the bad guys are taking a leaf out of the Q Branch car-modification manual. According to the BBC, Mexican police have discovered a gadget-laden Jeep Grand Cherokee equipped with an onboard smoke machine and a device to scatter spikes in the road behind it in order to evade capture. The vehicle, which is believed to belong to members of a drug cartel, was abandoned in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas after a shoot-out. The SUV may not be on a par with the torpedo-launching, oil-spraying, mine-ejecting Lotus Esprit that Commander Bond used to his advantage in "The Spy Who Loved Me", but--aside from the Rinspeed sQuba--it's the nearest thing we've seen to a real-world Bond car.
Source: BBC
It's a boat, it's a car, it's a submarine! At the 2008 Geneva auto show, we took a peek at the underwater concept car that's been popping up around the news lately. Equipped with oxygen tanks and a front sensor, this car is definitely an eye-catcher.
The Rinspeed sQuba flies underwater. Really.
(Credit: Rinspeed)Rinspeed, a boutique automotive design company, plans on blowing away the upcoming Geneva auto show with its sQuba concept, a car that swims underwater, drives autonomously on land, and is emission-free. The car, based on a Lotus Elise, uses an electric motor to drive the wheels on land, plus two other motors to drive propellers underwater. According to Rinspeed, it uses a laser system to detect obstacles ahead so that it can drive itself. Rinspeed released video of the sQuba, showing that it really can swim underwater.
Click here to see Rinspeed's video of the sQuba.
Sound familiar? James Bond's Lotus swam underwater in the 1977 movie, The Spy Who Loved Me. Of course, that was movie magic. The sQuba can float on the surface and--when the driver floods the open-top cabin--the car will submerge. Rather than sinking to the bottom, it can travel through the water at depths up to 10 meters. Along with its rear propellers, it has small water jets on the sides. Yes, the occupants will get wet, but an integrated scuba tank means they can breathe. Rinspeed points out that the interior materials won't be harmed by contact with salt water, although your tuxedo probably won't fare so well.
Look for our coverage of the sQuba and other cars at the 2008 Geneva Auto Show, starting March 4.
The Sensosphere shows a starry night on cabin walls.
(Credit: Rinspeed)Swiss automotive design house Rinspeed announced a new initiative to design airplane cabins with light displays on the walls. According to its press release, Rinspeed says it can replace "clinical and plastic-orientated ceiling and side panels" with "soft-focus effect pictures and patterns, which are supported by sound and aromas". Rinspeed calls its cabin design Sensosphere. It relies on a computer-controlled electroluminescent material lining the cabin walls for the displays, and we're not really sure what it relies on for the aromas. But anything has got to smell better than the passenger in the next seat. We've seen Rinspeed's work before with its crazy transparent eXasis concept car at the Geneva auto show. BMW recently announced its own initiative to design airline cabins, so it seems this is a hot new market for carmakers. We've seen similar mood design going into Toyota's iSwing concept.
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