Photo: the sQuba, on land and sea, ready for its unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – What the Swiss lack in the way of a major car manufacturer, they make up for in terms of auto design creativity, thanks to Frank Rinderknecht’s Rinspeed company. Its eXasis (image) was the hit of the 2007 Geneva car show and the designer promises to steal the limelight again in 2008 at the Geneva Motor Show, 6-16 March, with the new sQuba, a car that goes underwater.
This is not just any car, but a convertible that zooms along at 10 metres below the surface. For aficionados of underwater vehicles, this is a step above, literally, military vehicles that are limited to driving along the floorbed of a body of water. “It is undoubtedly not
an easy task to make a car watertight and pressure resistant enough to be
maneuverable under water," says Rinderknecht. Of course not. "The real challenge, however, was to create a submersible
car that moves like a fish in water.”
If you’re still wondering why you need a car that swims, consider this environmentally friendly feature: Rinspeed had to get rid of the combustible engine, not really suitable to the underwater world, so it has several electric engines, including three at the back, with one of these providing jet propulsion on land. A landworthy fish!
Rinderknecht takes pride in the particularly Swiss greenness of the car. "The
‘sQuba’ is a zero-emission car as documented by the rotating license
plate in the rear. It produces no exhaust emissions. The Swiss are
among the world’s pioneers in the area of hydropower. The ‘sQuba’s’
filling station is the water reservoir.” Melting glaciers should
guarantee plenty of fuel in coming decades.
Or think about this feature. It’s safe, designed for quick exits. Rinderknecht is firm on the need for this. "For
safety reasons we have built the vehicle as an open car so that the
occupants can get out quickly in an emergency. With an enclosed cabin
opening the door might be impossible.” An explanation is in order: the
car floats so you can drift down the river, if you like, until you
decide to view the underwater scenery, at which point you crack open
the door and the car dives.
Rinspeed’s
team has thought of everything, such as the need to breathe. Car
occupants will get air from tanks similar to those used by scuba divers.
And
looks. After all, some of us buy cars based on that first look, across
a crowded (Geneva Motor Show) room. The photos, even at their largest
size, don’t do it justice, so we might have to wait to see the real
thing 6 March, based on this description from the company. "Embossed fish and sharkskin patterns from Wetzel
Processing Group and Hornschuch add visual pizzazz and streamline the exterior.
Together with styling elements from Foliatec they create a harmonious velvety
matt-white appearance."
That
leaves us with two questions: where in the world does an idea like this
come from? James Bond, is the simple answer. More particularly, Roger
Moore as James Bond in "The Spy Who Loved Me," the 1977 movie.
And the other: do we ever really need a car like this, or is it totally
frivolous? Surprisingly, maybe we do need it. I recall driving down
back roads in Costa Rica, admiring the lush, isolated rain forest
scenery, when we came to the end of a sandy road. Backtracking would
have meant driving for four hours, in the dark, to get back to a main
road. "Don’t worry," said my fearless travel companion. "The river is
probably not deep. I’ll check it out."
"We’re
close to the sea. The current is probably very fast!" I said, somewhat
more fearful. "And there are alligators here!" Or crocs, I couldn’t
remember which. He smiled in knee-deep water, but he wasn’t quite in
the middle. We drove the little Ford at top speed from one bank to the
other and there was, indeed, a moment where the car appeared to float.
I would have liked to have a sQuba right then.
I’m not sure my travel allowance would have covered the cost, but then you don’t buy a Rinspeed car if you worry about budgets.
- The 78th International Motor Show entry details, Palexpo, Geneva, 6-16 March.
- CNN, "James Bond style amphibious car launched," 15 February 2008.