17 replies to this topic

[NTSOS]

This is cool.......I think the transmission expert supreme would like the concept!

Flying Car

John

[Magoo]

That's pretty awesome, thanks!

[Tony Matthews]

I really, really want one! The self-opening and closing prop is cool, but there's no indication of the rotor blades doing the same, and I reckon you'd need a pair of (short) steps to reach them and fold them into their bag. Most of these oddball vehicles seem to either look good and not work, or work and look grim, but this is very smart.

You should be able to hit 88 mph and prop and rotor spring into action - seamlessly.

Edited by Tony Matthews, 03 April 2013 - 15:58.

[carlt]

You should be able to hit 88 mph and prop and rotor spring into action - seamlessly.

I'm sure there would be a microsecond where there is no drive .........

[Tony Matthews]

Damn! Back to the drawing board...

[John Brundage]

On their website they list a max power of 230hp, but no mention of torque.
It does look interesting

[desmo]

Why haven't we all got one? This is not the future were were promised!

Seriously though, the autogyro makes a perfect platform for the "flying car" and this one looks pretty well thought out.

[Greg Locock]

Jesus wept.

Roughly speaking I get 4 helicopter flyovers per day. We also get about 10000 commuter cars across the town. Imagine if even 1% of the commuters switched to these things. I'd buy a 0.5" rifle.

[Dipster]

Jesus wept.

Roughly speaking I get 4 helicopter flyovers per day. We also get about 10000 commuter cars across the town. Imagine if even 1% of the commuters switched to these things. I'd buy a 0.5" rifle.

You are not too far off the truth.

A few years ago I lived in Sao Paulo. I was told then that SP has the highest per capita number of helicopters in the world. I cannot think how many flew around us each day. But I am sure I could see 4 in minutes. Not a problem for me as I really love them (and used them then). But my wife found the constant noise too much. Particularly where we lived, just off Ave Farima Lima, where the noisy little Honda 125s, local buses, choppers and the Boeing 737s and smaller Airbuses (on their very low finals (you could look into apartments from the plane as you passed!) into downtown Congenias airport all met!

But now we live in Europe and have a small municipal airport nearby. My wife is fascinated by a wee yellow Gyrocopter that buzzes around almst daily. She thinks the pilot and passenger who are apparently sitting, exposed, on a motorised bed frame are crazy.

Edited for typos - I use a tiny laptop with a cranky keyboard that leads to spelling errors..... Sorry.

Edited by Dipster, 04 April 2013 - 06:03.

[Tony Matthews]

Some time ago the BBC had a series of promotional film-lets - I don't know what the technical term is - that they would air between programmes. One showed a futuristic cityscape with hundreds of personal aircraft whizzing between the skyscrapers. My wife has been banging on about 'one day everyone will have their own aeroplane' for years, and when she saw this promo for the first time she said "There you are! I told you!" Yes dear.

[GreenMachine]

Jesus wept.

Roughly speaking I get 4 helicopter flyovers per day. We also get about 10000 commuter cars across the town. Imagine if even 1% of the commuters switched to these things. I'd buy a 0.5" rifle.

... and a good crash hat.

At least the hospitals would be under less stress - no survivors from a mid-air

[MatsNorway]

At least the hospitals would be under less stress - no survivors from a mid-air

You would be surprised by how much people can survive.

http://www.militaryp...l-Falls-of-WWII

Include a guy in Norway i can`t find. But he landed in the snow.

He was subsequently captured and interviewed by the Gestapo who were initially suspicious of his claim to have fallen without a parachute until the wreckage of the aircraft was examined. He was then a celebrated POW before being repatriated in May 1945. (Reportedly the orderly Germans were so impressed that Alkemade had bailed out without a parachute and lived that they gave him a certificate testifying to the fact.)

Edited by MatsNorway, 04 April 2013 - 09:17.

[GreenMachine]

You would be surprised by how much people can survive.

Mats, I know about Alkemede's story - and the set of circumstances that all came together to allow him to survive. I didn't know about the others though - thanks for that.

[Tony Matthews]

http://player.vimeo.com/video/39325401

I know, most unlike me to go off-thread, but I thought this was great. Why they have wheels on 747s I don't know, all they need is lots of holes in the belly.

[saudoso]

Don't say that, Southwest might get wind of it. Then in a couple of years we will be all carrying the planes on our backs.

[NeilR]

Jesus wept.

Roughly speaking I get 4 helicopter flyovers per day. We also get about 10000 commuter cars across the town. Imagine if even 1% of the commuters switched to these things. I'd buy a 0.5" rifle.

I'd be more concerned that so many people have difficulty parking cars, let alone driving them that the idea of flying cars is simply frightening. Of course they would be so regulated that they would be hard to use. I wonder why not use a folding wing like a powered hanglider...safer.

[Lee Nicolle]

A vaguely interesting concept. but as a car it 'handles like s sports car' Yeah right, a top heavy 3 wheeled car handles like a Sports Car. At a guess it flys better than it drives. Though that too will be a compromise. BUT it does work.

[Kelpiecross]

A vaguely interesting concept. but as a car it 'handles like s sports car' Yeah right, a top heavy 3 wheeled car handles like a Sports Car. At a guess it flys better than it drives. Though that too will be a compromise. BUT it does work.

As you say not a great car design - I also suspect that it would be too heavy to be a good autogyro. And the hinges in the main rotors are a bit of a worry. But a clever design anyhow.