nzlegend 1 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 Check out this awesome amphibious car designed by a New Zealand fella. It rips! I watched the video and it powered through the water at 50kph just like a jetboat! awesome Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 How many leagues to the gallon? Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 just saw that on tv but its a rich mans toy. I can buy a bmw and a 200hp power boat for less than half the amount that thing costs. Link to post Share on other sites
NoFakie 45 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 It may be a kiwi invention but the guy moved his company to the UK to build it. Not exactly a vote of confidence in NZ, is it? Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted September 4, 2003 Author Share Posted September 4, 2003 Quote: Originally posted by NoFakie: It may be a kiwi invention but the guy moved his company to the UK to build it. Not exactly a vote of confidence in NZ, is it? NZ has no car industry period. He had to go overseas to utelise technology, facilities and expertise (a team of 50 former Jaguar engineers)that a small country like NZ simply deosnt have. Also its not exclusive to Britain the design and planning was undertaken in Auckland and Detroit aswell as Coventry. As far as a rich mans toy, sure it is, but people pushing the envelope of technology like this guy is called "progress". Technology like this has future implications for a variety of issues, eg rescue vehicles and the military. You can bet military analysts are watching this new product with keen interest Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 I beg to differ on your "no car industry" comment. Yes NZ has a car industry, it just isn't an industry that has sufficient resources to support the engineering required. As for vote of confidence for NZ I suspect that maybe the UK company of this man is laden with many ex-pat NZ'ers who had to take their skills overseas to be recognised in both employemnt and salary. Great invention though! Fattwins, how well would your BMW do in a flood? Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted September 4, 2003 Author Share Posted September 4, 2003 nzoom actually has a really good story and 5min video check it out Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 Any serious amphibious vehicle would surely have been built around a 4x4. I have a sneaking feeling that the military/rescue services already have something along the 'amphibious' line. I have no idea what special techonology was used to make this car so special, but I really can't see how it could be anything particularly revolutionary. Now, a car that can swim AND fly ... Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 my 15 ton LRV (fully loaded, fueled and armed) was amphib. It used the cat tracks to propel it in the water. Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted September 4, 2003 Author Share Posted September 4, 2003 But this one is claiming to be the first HSA - High speed amphibian vehicle.. previous amphiban vehicle aside from a hovercraft couldnt do more than about 10kph, this is the real deal as its jet unit produces 1 tonne of thrust and is good for 50kph, enough to waterski behind. There in lies the difference. And you are right Miteyak, a 4x4 would be better.If you watch the 5min video, Gibbs states his intention is to sell the idea of vehicle and get others to make it however they see fit 4x4 buses, trucks whatever and he collects royalties. He is showing the world that HSA is a viability and now he wants to sell the idea/technology Link to post Share on other sites
oo 1 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 Bond Car! Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted September 4, 2003 Share Posted September 4, 2003 Well now we have a double garage, I guess I'll be getting two of them. Couldn't watch that video for some reason... Link to post Share on other sites
nzlegend 1 Posted September 4, 2003 Author Share Posted September 4, 2003 Quote: Originally posted by Ocean11: Well now we have a double garage, I guess I'll be getting two of them. double! I am green with envy, oh for a garage..... Link to post Share on other sites
mikazooki 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 u gotta give some points to a car with retractable wheels. not many points but some anyone else disappointed that our world is quite un-jetsons-like fancy! no talking dogs and its 2003! Link to post Share on other sites
miteyak 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 More to the point, where the hell are the aerial superhighway cars, Osaka-Nagano in twenty minute mobils! Link to post Share on other sites
snowboard_freak 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 Saw that on the news this evening. They said that the price tag was around $A500 000. Nice and pricey! I'd love for the world to be more Jetson like. It always looked so damn fun filled! But it was cartoon i guess. Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 It's rather hard to see how this invention is going to overcome problems of scale. Imagine trying to make say, a river-going ambulance. The thing is going to need doors so the victim and the equipment don't get wet with spray. And windows. Of course it will need to be stabilized in some way so that the victim doesn't get too sporty a ride. That will add weight and require more power. It becomes rather hard to imagine how it could go very fast on water. It doesn't seem particularly workable. For military applications, it would need to be very robust. Swimming using tracks, wheels, screws, and water jets have all been tried successfully. But it's hard to imagine something the size of a Humvee, with heavy machine gun or grenade launcher mounted, skimming over the water. Training the crews might be an involved process. I don't see this going much further than maybe a special forces gimmick. So, I'm afraid that you Kiwi's pride and joy is premature, and you're always going to be a handful of cheerful but irrelevant folks on a couple of islands in the middle of nowhere. Now these plywood wings I'm fixing to the car we've borrowed from Subaru are utterly revolutionary. After a few more drinks, I'll be ready to advance to the testing phase. Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 i will say it would be fun hearing that a rescue car to avoid traffic jumped into the river thames thus by-passing traffic and saving a life. Link to post Share on other sites
Goemon 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 Quote: Now these plywood wings I'm fixing to the car we've borrowed from Subaru are utterly revolutionary. If it's a plywood car your looking for, Ocean, you may have missed your chance; this one 's already been sold... (and who says dogs don't talk? Mine does all the time...) Link to post Share on other sites
Ocean11 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 Hahaha! Snort. This car really attracts the masses (not shown in this picture). I don't think matey can tell the difference between admiration and disbelief. Talking of talking dogs, I once saw one on TV that clearly yapped 'yada' when its OL mistress put it in the bath and shampooed it. 'Yada' being the lingua franca of OLs everywhere, it's hardly surprising the dog picked it up. Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 Quote: Originally posted by Ocean11: So, I'm afraid that you Kiwi's pride and joy is premature, and you're always going to be a handful of cheerful but irrelevant folks on a couple of islands in the middle of nowhere. Okay, now I am offended How dare you tell the truth like this in public! There are many people in this world with false but very nice preconceptions of NZ. I equate you to the cheating gold fish dude. You have ruined the dreams of so many children... I can think of one excellent purpose for this car! Cutting the driving time and costs down to Chiba beach in the Summer! No tunnel and no traffic jams! Bliss! Link to post Share on other sites
FenderBender 0 Posted September 5, 2003 Share Posted September 5, 2003 Great vehicle! Link to post Share on other sites
sweetaz 0 Posted September 7, 2003 Share Posted September 7, 2003 i thought just about every family with 2.5 kids in the US had a plywood station wagon...?!! great toy....i'd just like to see somebody try and get in it once the top's up. Link to post Share on other sites
TheOrange 0 Posted September 8, 2003 Share Posted September 8, 2003 It was on the tv last night too - looks great. I want one! Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts