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10 most amazing amphibious vehicles for an uninterrupted ride

Tejas A:

Given the pace at which vehicles are coming to the road every year, that day isn’t too far when we’ll have to spend hours on the road in an effort to reach our destinations, owing to traffic jams and congestions. To address the grave issue, designers are coming up with amphibious vehicle designs that would allow the commuters tomorrow to ply their vehicles on waters, in event reducing traffic on compact urban roads. Here is a list of some of the most creative amphibious vehicles designed to ensure free flowing urban roads.

1. WaterCar

The water car is built to provide uninterrupted amphibious transportation to the masses just like the Rinspeed sQuba or Splash. The creators of this amphibious car claim that it is the fastest amphibian car, which can reach a top speed of 0 to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds in water. The heart of this car is a Corvette’s LS engine that powers this car and is faster than the bond inspired amphibious cars. This car is priced at $200,000.00 which when compared with the cost of a car, a trailer and a boat is an acceptable deal. This car is available in more than 60,000 exterior and 4,000 interior colors.

2. Humdinga

This is a 4X4 concept car created by the Kiwi entrepreneur Alan Gibbs. The Humdinga is a 5-seater amphibian SUV. It is powered by a V8 engine pumping out 350 bhp of power, which is capable of pushing this amphibian up to 160 kph on land and 65 kph on water. All that is required to transform from the land mode to the water mode is just the touch of a button. Wheels are retracted and the drive train switches to the jet propulsion system from the wheels and the SUV gets into the amphibian mode. To develop the HSA technology, it took its creators 7 years, more than a million man-hours, and millions of pounds of money. It accelerates to a speed of 100 kph in just 9.2 seconds on land and takes less than 10 seconds in water to reach to 65 kph. Its curb weight is 2000 kg and has an independent air suspension for every wheel.

3. Aquada

Sir Richard Branson has said,

It is a great beast. It drives fantastically well on land and then it turns into the most remarkable boat on water.

It is a legend in the amphibians’ category. It is a showcase vehicle of the Gibbs High Speed Amphibious technology. The Aquada is most often compared to the submarine car in the James Bond movie “The spy who loved me”. The engine is a 24 valve V6 with EEC compliant immobilizer. It has a computer controlled air/hydraulic self-leveling suspension. It transforms from land to water vehicle at the press of a button in less than 10 seconds. It has a top speed of about 30 mph on water and 100 mph on land.

4. Amphibious Lamborghini

This is a real amphibious Lamborghini built by Mike Ryan of SeaRoader. This car looks like an Underwater Lotus Esprit from the James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me. The car is an exact replica of the original Lamborghini Countach. It has the exact detailing and the same engine as the Countach. This car, as said by Mike Ryan, is so expensive that the windscreen glass alone cost him a hefty AU$4,250. Therefore, the car is obviously very expensive but still it is worth the price. It has a V12 engine pumping out a power of 375 bhp @ 8000 rpm. The wheels do not retract but the transmission shifts from the wheels to the jet propulsion in just the click of a button.

5. Wilcraft amphibious vehicle

This incredible machine is built for the icy terrains and the water. It makes the fishing trip and hunting trips across any icy terrain more adventurous than you can imagine. The Skill with which it moves over the ice is so good that it can actually be used as a rescue vehicle. The vehicle is so light that it does not put more pressure on ice and it is just about the pressure applied by an average human being. This masterpiece is powered by a 305 cc engine and weighs 205 kg. It has a 2-speed gearbox and the vehicle can reach a top speed of 20 mph. The Wilcraft has a ground clearance of just 11 inches. It has a canvas cover, which makes it convertible, and when pulled, a cabin is created over the vehicle. The Wilcraft comes with a number of options to adjust to the environment. The price of the basic version is $10,495.

6. Amphibious ice cream van

This is the world’s first amphibious ice cream van designed to sell ice creams through the UK’s rivers and canals and all its shores. It set sail in the Thames to dominate the ice cream vans in water after land. The van is a HMS Flake 99 and has a top speed of five knots. The slogan carried by this amphibian is “licensed to chill”.

The main motto of the creation of this van was to highlight how the vans were being driven off the roads due to increasing fuel costs and council red tape during the national ice cream week. It was driven by Dave Mounfield, a stand up coming from Brighton. It finished a nationwide tour of Britain’s beaches and canals of Venice.

7. Gibbs technologies amphibious Quadski

This vehicle is created by the inspiration of the success of the Humdinga and it is the third in this category. This Quadski is a combination of a car and a jet ski, which is developed by the Gibbs technologies. It is the third vehicle to demonstrate the Gibbs HSA technology successfully. It is not just designed for fun but also for military and emergency rescue applications. It transforms from a land quad to a water ski in just a touch of a button. It is equipped with a powerful 140 BHP petrol driven engine that makes this Quadski a wonderful machine that can reach 50 mph on land and water as well. It is a four-wheel drive as well.

8. Amphicoach

This is an amphibious touring vehicle, which enables the tourists to view the city as well as the water bodies surrounding it and in this category, Amphicoach is taking it to the next level of luxury and comfort. This vehicle has a capacity of 50 seats and is equipped with the latest luxuries that you will find in any five-star touring coach. The model took six years to be developed and tested before launching its first model. It is compliant with all the E.U. rules for the safety of the passengers and can sustain prolonged submerged stays either in salt or fresh water. It has a choice of two diesel engines along with two or four wheel drive.

9. DUKW

This amphibian is one of the key vehicles used in World War 2 and is the most iconic amphibian in the present world. This amphibian is built on the GMC’s six by six chassis and has a 270 cubic inch engine and the same transmission as in the GMC. It can handle even the rough seas surprisingly though it has a very low seaboard. After the restoration project of the DUKW’s, they may cost from anywhere between £25,000- £30,000 depending on the condition and operation. Rex Ward is the specialist in operating and working on the DUKW and all the spare parts as well.

10. JMC amphibious pickup

This amphibious vehicle was designed by the JMC Amphibious Vehicle Development Co located in the Nanchang city in the province of Jiangxi. It was mainly designed to overcome the problems in China during the floods and earthquakes to travel in both water and land and to use as a rescue vehicle as well. It is powered by a 4JB1 turbo charged engine, pumping 90hp @ 4000 rpm. It is a four-wheel drive with 5-speed fully automatic transmission system and a 70-liter on board fuel tank, power drive, and AC as well. It can carry five persons and can carry a payload of 350 kg easily. It is also equipped with a GPS to ensure that the owner does not get lost in case of an emergency rescue or a holiday trip in a river or a sea.

Source http://www.designbuzz.com/entry/10-amazing-amphibious-vehicles-uninterrupted-ride/
Mon, 05 Dec 2011 13:01:08 GMT
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