Showing posts with label odd car. Show all posts
Showing posts with label odd car. Show all posts
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Concept Car : MAZDA KAAN E1 RACE CAR
Unlike some of the other entrants in this year’s LA competition, Mazda hasn’t forgotten to pen its concept with childlike awe; the Kaan features a sweeping, aerodynamic shape constructed with plenty of carbon. The centre-less wheels look strangely like beer bottle openers from the side - though not many bottle openers have light beams running across their centres.
Also unique among all the entrants is the idea that Kaans don’t compete alone, but rather in a peloton - a close knit pack of cars in formation like cyclists in a race. According to Mazda, the closer the pack sticks together, the more aerodynamic and thus faster it becomes. A lightning bolt inspired all that, allegedly.
Early Retirement or Podium Finish: Finishes just outside the top three when one of the peloton gets too close and clips another during the final lap, causing a multiple comedy tankslapper among the entire pack.
The MAZDA KAAN is an electric race car designed to compete in the E1 races, the pinnacle of international motorsports in terms of technology and popularity. In 2025, California freeways have been resurfaced with a sub-level electro-conductive polymer that powers the electric cars of the modern world. MAZDA’s patented electronic tire system uses this technology to power the KAAN to reach 250 mph with no harmful emissions!
The vehicles are piloted by individual drivers but teams are made up of thirty cars, all on the track together. Using strategies similar to those in cycling peletons, the tighter the group sticks together, the more aerodynamic and powerful it becomes.
Inspiration for the KAAN comes from electric fields and textures seen in nature, particularly those in a lightning bolt. The car is uniquely designed around its powerful electric wheels while the cockpit acts as a capsule to safely house the driver, allowing for tighter peloton formations and a team victory.
Also unique among all the entrants is the idea that Kaans don’t compete alone, but rather in a peloton - a close knit pack of cars in formation like cyclists in a race. According to Mazda, the closer the pack sticks together, the more aerodynamic and thus faster it becomes. A lightning bolt inspired all that, allegedly.
Early Retirement or Podium Finish: Finishes just outside the top three when one of the peloton gets too close and clips another during the final lap, causing a multiple comedy tankslapper among the entire pack.
The MAZDA KAAN is an electric race car designed to compete in the E1 races, the pinnacle of international motorsports in terms of technology and popularity. In 2025, California freeways have been resurfaced with a sub-level electro-conductive polymer that powers the electric cars of the modern world. MAZDA’s patented electronic tire system uses this technology to power the KAAN to reach 250 mph with no harmful emissions!
The vehicles are piloted by individual drivers but teams are made up of thirty cars, all on the track together. Using strategies similar to those in cycling peletons, the tighter the group sticks together, the more aerodynamic and powerful it becomes.
Inspiration for the KAAN comes from electric fields and textures seen in nature, particularly those in a lightning bolt. The car is uniquely designed around its powerful electric wheels while the cockpit acts as a capsule to safely house the driver, allowing for tighter peloton formations and a team victory.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Concept Car : 1972 Maserati Boomerang
Starred in Turin, Geneva, Paris, London, and Barcelona motor shows, then stayed in Spain until 1980 when “rediscovered” outside Benidorm night club. Restoration completed in 1990, then shown from Bagatelle to Pebble Beach. Excellent panel fit, very good paint with few visible flaws- some bubbling at corner under right taillight, small drip on right side vent behind door. Worn window felts, some curb rash on rear alloy wheels. Very good interior, with some scratches on dashboard and instrument binnacle. Some sun-fading on door panel leather.
Stunning Giugiaro designed showcar that influenced the Lotus Esprit, first VW Golf, and a host of others. Sold at Christie’s February 2002 Retromobile sale for $627,923. Seems like a healthy profit, but when viewed in Euros, about the same price in 2002 as now. Since ‘02, has reportedly seen $37k worth of mechanical and electrical work to bring to full roadworthy condition. More likely to be displayed than driven, however. A good investment on the seller’s side, a unique piece of automotive history for the buyer.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Concept Car : Peugeot Stylight
Another entry from the Peugeot Design Competition is the Stylight, a 3-seater city hybrid car with a small 1.6-liter engine and an electric motor placed above the rear wheels. Ognyan Bozhilov, the designer, said that this arrangement “improves weight distribution, gets rid of the complex, heavy mechanics for power transmission and makes the unique, aerodynamic body possible.” The Stylelight also offers unique safety features: an expansive windscreen for maximum visibility, and LED tail lights designed so the harder you press, the more lights turn on.
Concept Car : MDI Air-Powered AirPod
The folks from MDI are holding firm to their ideas for an air-powered car—using electricity to compress huge amounts of air in small tanks, and then slowly releasing that air to drive pistons. The latest iteration from MDI is the AirPod, which seats three passengers, one facing backward. The AirPod uses a pair of wheels mounted side by side in the front to turn the vehicle—operated by the driver with a joystick—while the rear wheels provide power to the ground. The Airpod delivers about six horsepower of performance.
Concept Car : Peugeot Omni
The Peugeot Omni gets its name from the uncanny omnidirectional abilities of the car’s wheels. But it’s the electric motors in each of those four wheels that give the Omni its green credentials. Those are powered by lithium ion batteries charged, in part, by solar cells on the roof. The amount of energy required is reduced due to the lightweight carbon fiber body, the teardrop-shaped aerodynamic design, structural elements made of aluminum and titanium, and super efficient organic light-emitting diode (OLED) lighting.
Concept Car : Hinterland Aeronautic EcoVan
At highway speeds, drag resistance can account for 75 percent of fuel consumption. Therefore, designers in Canada put better aerodynamics on the top of their list in the design of a long-range electric vehicle. They aimed for a drag coefficient of less than 0.25, which would beat out the Toyota Prius and the original Honda Insight. Designers want to see the design—something like an aeronautical fuselage on wheels—turned into the ultimate eco-friendly six-seater carpooling machine.
Concept Car : BamGoo Electric Bamboo
The body of the BamGoo is made out of bamboo. Designers from Kyoto University, and the City of Kyoto (home to the famous environmental protocols), demonstrated how organic material like bamboo—which is light, very strong and grows very fast—might be incorporated into car design. The single-seat all-electric car weighs on 130 pounds and can travel 30 miles on a charge.
Concept Car : The Helios Lizard
Kim Gu-Han of Universitat Dulsburg-Essen, Germany, wants to build a solar-powered car that can charge itself entirely from the sun. The problem is the limited space for photovoltaic panels on a car’s roof. The Helios overcomes that limitation by acting like a frill-neck lizard. When stationary, the off-road vehicle can unfurl a large set of photovoltaic cells to produce enough energy to run the car, with excess energy for home power. The Helios won Best Use of Technology category at the Interior Motives Design Awards 2008.
Concept Car : Eco Transportation Phoenix
Future transportation concepts give the world hopes to deliver eco-friendly vehicles that will be far better both in technology and looks. However, all this exists conceptually and we are still not near any such technology that could provide high-speed sporty vehicles with zero emission electric engines. Phoenix is another such conceptual design for American urban life. This machine is in itself a try to blend freedom, strength, and flexibility, with a special concern to our gradually deteriorating environment. Design seems to be inspired from American muscle cars and pick-up trucks. This two-seater car derives power from Flexi-Fuel V8 engine. Not only engine but the bio-composite material and recycled aluminum used in body are other important aspects that make it soft toward the environment.
The tough and agile design incorporates a safety cell made from reinforced bio-polymers with roll-bars behind each seat to provide additional protection. An Orbital Omni-directional four-wheel-drive system makes it capable of rotating around its own axis and sideways. All this sounds fantastic and do go with its name that is inspired by an ancient mythical bird, except that it can’t fly.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
