Topless bather: Ride 'n dive with latest Lotus

Published Feb 15, 2008

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By Bradley Klapper

OK, so they've invented a car that runs on land and underwater, but did they really have to make it a convertible?

"http://www.youtube.com/v/75rbwrArm1E&rel=1"

NOT A FISHY STORY: This concept car by Swiss designer Rinspeed can run on land or

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The sQuba may conjure up memories of James Bond's underwater-capable Lotus Esprit from "The Spy Who Loved Me" but the car from Swiss designer Rinspeed can swim through water at a depth of 10m with electric motors to power the propeller.

If you want a ride, though, break out the wetsuits.

Rinspeed's 52-year-old CEO and Bond fan Frank Rinderknecht explained: "For safety reasons we have built the vehicle as an open car so the occupants can get out quickly in an emergency."

Rinderknecht said he'd waited 30 years to recreate the car he saw Roger Moore use to drive off a dock and escape a pursuing helicopter.

Rinspeed worked with engineering specialists to remove the petrol engine from the Lotus and replace it with several electric motors.

Three are in the rear, one for propulsion on land and the other two to drive a propeller.

Passengers will be able to breathe underwater using a built-in compressed-air reservoir similar to a scuba tank.

Rinderknecht's innovative company has made transparent, flying and voice-activated cars in previous attention-grabbing splashes for the Geneva auto show, where the sQuba will be unveiled in March, 2008 .

"We always want to do cars that are outrageous, which nobody else has done," he said, "so we thought, let's make a car that can drive AND dive."

He calls the sQuba the first real submersible car. It can maintain stable "flight" down to 10m, unlike military vehicles that can only drive slowly on a lake bed.

The interior is resistant to salt water.

Association of International Automobile Manufacturers spokesman John Cabaniss said: "Many concept cars introduce important new technology; anything to improve the efficiency of a vehicle - streamlining or reducing weight while maintaining strength - is put into concept cars first."

Cabaniss said the lithium-ion batteries in Rinspeed's car were "state-of-the-art" and added that the auto industry in general would be looking for more and more ways to make things work electronically. But he was sceptical of the overriding idea.

"I can't imagine it will have any practical value, other than some kind of a movie situation, for Bond-like stuff with lots of gimmicks," he said.

"Maybe people will need to go from land to water, and traverse a body of water, but underwater? Especially as you'll get your suit wet."

'Moves like a fish'

Rinderknecht said it cost more than €1-million (about R11-million) to make the only sQuba produced so far and that it was difficult to make a car watertight and pressure-resistant enough to use underwater.

"The real challenge, however, was to create a submersible car that moves like a fish," he added.

Rinspeed is in discussion with commercial manufacturers about producing a limited number of the cars.

"It would be cheaper than a Rolls Royce," he said.

But Rinderknecht admitted that it was unlikely that people would soon spot the sQuba on a freeway or popping up from a lake.

"They might sell as toys for rich people," he said. "I don't see mass transportation switching to cars that dive." - Sapa-AP

- More Geneva auto show stories.

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