Some guy who insists on remaining anonymous but whose name is Chris Donovan of Denver, Colorado (kidding) has customized an Audi R8 with a ton of ridiculous awesomeness.
The Audi R8 Blackbird is perfect for gadget lovers, sporting "four GPS units, two radar detectors, police scanner, CB radio, kill switch for all rear lights, and high-speed broadband Internet with Wi-Fi running on a tablet PC."
This is a BMW concept car designed by Transportation Design students Jai Ho Yoo and Lukas Vanek from the instituo Europeo di Design. They imagined the ZX-6 after being asked what the vehicles of 2015 would look like. Now call me crazy, but isn't 2015 just 7 years away? These guys are nuts. Besides, by 2015 we're not going to be driving cars anyways. Nope, the only thing we'll be driving is golf balls -- on Mars. ZOMG, Interplanetary Olympics!
Alfa Romeo Concept Actually Being Produced
The Alpha Romeo Bertone BAT 11 looks like someone stole it from the future. Apparently the once concept car is actually hitting production. If you call making 25-50 "hitting production". I already put my name on the list, along with this guy and this guy, which means we'll probably be seeing D&G and rubidium covered models soon. There's not too much information on the car's stats, minus it goes fast and runs on the blood of virgins instead of oil....
Half RV, Half Houseboat, All Totally Awesome
Cool Amphibious Manufacturers International retrofits RV's to make them amphibious. You just drive the massive mother into a lake, and presto, houseboat for the weekend. I want one badly but they cost anywhere between $850,000 - $1.2 million, putting them about $850,000 - $1.2 million out of my price range....
Smera Electric Car Concept Is Mad Skinny
The Lumeneo Smera is an electric car concept that's 8 feet long but only 31 inches wide (insert something about your penis here). It can reach 80 MPH and gets about 93 miles to a charge. Not too shabby.
Both of the front wheels on the Smera have their own 20hp electric motor which have a life expectancy of around 200,000 km. Those electric motors, as well as the rest of the vehicle, are all powered by a 144 volt lithium ion battery which weighs in at 180lbs.
The company is hoping to garner enough interest in the project to have models available for sale by the Paris Motor Show in October. Unfortunately, they'll be going for $30,000 - $46,000 and disintegrate if you get sideswiped, leaving you Smera'd (!) all over the road. HAHA! Okay, one nut punch...
BMW Makes Morphable, Fabric-Covered Car
Yesterday BMW unveiled their GINA Visionary Model, a fabric-covered vehicle that can change shapes with the push of a button.
Chris Bangle (head of design at BMW) and his team actually built GINA -- which stands for "Geometry and functions In 'N' Adaptions" -- six years ago, but BMW kept it under, er, wraps until Tuesday. It's built on the Z8 chassis and has a 4.4-liter V8 and six-speed automatic transmission. BMW says the fabric skin - polyurethane-coated Lycra - is resilient, durable and water resistant. It's stretched over an aluminum frame controlled by electric and hydraulic actuators that allow the owner to change the body shape. Want a big spoiler on the back? Wider fenders? No problem. "The drastic reinterpretation of familiar functionality and structure means that drivers have a completely new experience when they handle their car," BMW says.
MonoTracer Covered Motorcycle
The MonoTracer looks like a covered motorcycle. And that's pretty much what it is. It features an aerodynamic cockpit that reduces the bike's drag, and seats two (one behind the other). It looks alright. Its 130 horsepower engine gets it going to 60 in 5.7 seconds and maxes out at 155 MPH. Now I know what you're thinking -- the Geekologie writer is a total wanker. And you're right, I am. The MonoTracer will set you back a staggering $82,350 and are available now.
Surprise!: Aircar Can Both Fly And Drive
Here at Geekologie we've seen flying cars in the past, and here comes another. The Milner Aircar can be both flown and driven. The $450,000 vehicle is capable of going up to 200 mph at 25,000 ft and 85 mph at 0 ft. This is great.........
Popular Mechanics Digs Aptera Electric Car
We reported the Aptera and its 300mpg claims back in September, and now Popular Mechanics magazine has had the chance to drive one and they say the thing is legit. The all electric version is slated for release in 2008 and will cost around $30,000. The hybrid 300mpg model will be out by 2009. If all goes well the company plans on a four-wheeled model capable of sitting up to five people hitting the streets in the not-so-distant future. And you know what else is going to be hitting the streets soon?
Impress Your Date With A Car Of The Future
Want to impress your friends and possibly score a girlfriend? How about purchasing this sweet-ass "Fastlane" car of the future? You can "Buy It Now" on eBay for a cool $15,000. But before you push the button: It's not really a car. It's a shell designed to fit on top of a Pontiac Fiero. Which is not included in the auction. So, yeah. It was designed for Universal Pictures by concept car maker Trans FX for use in a movie or something...
Ukranian Man Builds Two-Faced Wooden Car
I don't know what it is with Ukrainians and building unusual wooden things, but Vasily Lazarenko has gone and built himself a car. Under the wood it's a 1981 Opel, but on top of the wood it's a confusing looking sedan/convertible hybrid. Like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I mean damn that wood looks good, but I would have stuck with one design for the whole thing. Vasily quit his job and sold two other cars in order to afford the 1.5 years and parts needed to complete this, uh, thing. He refuses to admit what it cost to build, which means it was way too much and he regrets ever doing it. You have talent Vasily, but lets stick to rocking chairs and toy wagons in the future, okay?
Stackable Cars May Solve 'Last Mile' Problem
MIT believes they have come up with an eco-friendly solution to the 'last mile' problem. The 'last mile' refers to the distance you have to walk between your subway stop and your actual destination (i.e. home, work). The idea is to have a network of these small, electric cars stacked outside mass transit systems so commuters can grab them as needed. Instead of an engine they'll have four in-wheel electric motors run by lithium-ion batteries, saving a reasonable amount of space so the cars can be made extra small. They'll have 360 degrees of steering, so you can park the little bastards sideways in spots and maneuver into other small spaces. I'm not sure if something similar with bicycles or electric scooters has ever been attempted, but that may be a consideration as well. Good job MIT, except I invented stackable cars a year ago. And by 'invented stackable cars' I mean 'started a twelve car pile up during rush hour.'
The Solar Bug Solar Car Becomes Reality
The Solar Bug is an electric car that has solar panels on top capable of recharging its batteries (lead acid based) to increase the car’s range by 1/3. The company hopes to be able to make the car run 100% on solar energy in the future. It's got a top speed of 35 mph, a range of 60 miles, and takes 4-6 hours to recharge via plug (for a cost of 30-60¢). It weighs 900 pounds and will go for around $9,500 when it hits the road next year.
Honda's Puyo Is Soft, Does 360s In Place
Not to be outdone by Nissan and their cute little Pivo 2 Honda showed off the Puyo (which I thought was Spanish for a woman's genitals) concept van/box thing in Tokyo this week. It has a gel-like outer shell instead of sheet metal that's supposed to be a lot more resilient and safe in collisions. The wheels are from a go-cart (okay, maybe not) and are pushed all the way out to the corners, so the car can do 360s in place. To jack up its coolness factor from 0 to 1, it has scissor-wing doors. Nice try Honda...
Aptera Hybrid Now Accepting Pre-Orders
The Aptera hybrid is actually being produced. You can put down your $500 deposit now, and see your car in about a year. It hits 60 mph in ten seconds, and is governed at 95 mph. It comes in two versions. The all electric version ($26,900) has 120 mile range, and is plugged in at night. The Hybird version ($29,900) has an efficient gasoline powered generator that achieves over 300 mpg....
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