The Underwater Car
Cars are generally acknowledged to be an awfully good idea. Environmentally they may not have covered themselves in glory, but you can’t fault the ability of our four wheeled friends to move humans at great speed in total comfort. Whether we desire to go over a mountain or wind through a valley the car will dutifully take us wherever we need to go.
With one small exception.
A car facing water is as useless as a Dalek facing stairs, which is something of a problem when you live on a diminutive island like ours.
Fortunately, the solution has come in the form of the Rinspeed sQuba – a stunning concept car revealed at this year’s Geneva Motor Show.
Inspired by James Bond’s submersible Lotus in 1977’s The Spy Who Loved Me the sQuba is able to drive from land, into the water and dive to a depth of 10m (33 ft). This is truly a car that can take you anywhere. It’s green too, running on nothing but electricity.
Two propellers positioned either side of the rear number plate push it along the surface at 3.7mph when you feel like a little boating, but open a door and the car begins to dive. Once under water, one of the sQuba’s three battery-powered engines sucks in water through the car’s front grille before pushing it out of two side jet vents.
It is these two jets, attached to the car with intricately designed swivelling heads, which manoeuvre the car left and right as well as up and down, pottering along under the surface at nearly 2mph.
Other distinctive features include a saltwater resistant interior, high-friction diamond abrasive materials so you don’t float out of your seat, and a laser sensor system to make sure the sQuba returns to the surface if the driver leaves the vehicle.
Admittedly, the lack of roof makes for a somewhat damp experience, but once oxygen is pumping through the scuba-style diving regulators you can move through the water with relative ease.
“This is something I always wanted to do – everybody loved the underwater car in the movie so I was inspired to see if it could be done for real,” says the company’s CEO Frank Rinderknecht, 52, with a smile. “We chose now as the moment to see if it could be done because last year was the 30th anniversary of The Spy Who Loved Me… plus 30 years ago I was too young and didn’t have the technical or financial capability!”
Like Bond himself Frank leads something of a double life. By day, his company Rinspeed busies itself with inconspicuous tasks such as classic car restoration and engine tuning, but look behind the scenes and there is a secondary world. A world devoted to making the most outlandish concepts possible for the country’s annual motor show.
Previous efforts have included the Splash (an amphibian car capable of 45 knots on water or 125mph on land) and the Bedouin (a 4×4 with a natural gas engine and an interior filled with Swarovski crystals).
To use an age-old pun, they’re working with a licence to thrill. “It’s an exercise in design, but we’re very happy with the result. We don’t plan to sell it – it’s just a one off. ” enthuses Frank.
It’s just a shame about that roof really. It’s one thing to emerge from the water looking suave in a tuxedo; it’s another to come out looking like a drowned rat and with seaweed in your footwell. “This was one of the biggest problems to overcome, but it’s a safety issue,” explains Frank. “In the movie James Bond was in an enclosed passenger compartment, but in reality this is not possible as you wouldn’t be able to get out in an emergency, plus the volume of air in the passenger compartment would necessitate three tonnes of extra weight on the car to make it go under the water.”
Budding James Bond – or should that be James Pond? – enthusiasts will be pleased to know that the car comes with a revolving number plate. Unfortunately, rocket launchers will probably have to remain an aftermarket accessory. Nevertheless, it’s still one of the ultimate drives around – for the very select few who will ever get to try it.
“I have driven it underwater,’ says Frank with some pride… “but it was last December. We took it a lake in Zurich and it was around zero degrees, or damn cold. But despite that it’s just the best feeling when you’re sitting there in a car seat but under the water like a diver.”
For now, the rest of us can only imagine what it must be like. But maybe, just maybe, for as long as there are men like Frank Rinderknecht toiling away one day that might all change.
About the Author
Richard Ryan is a professional journalist who has worked in the UK, Malaysia and Australia. For more information visit http://www.richardryan.co.uk
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