Inflatable cars: coming soon.
Yep. You read that correctly. Inflatable cars. But no, the picture here is not of the actual blow-up car I’m talking about.
An American start-up company called XP Cars, inspired by NASA’s Mars rover, is set to start selling the Whisper (lol @ the name) - an inflatable electric-powered car. Each Whisper will be shipped directly to the customer in knocked-down form in 2 cardboard boxes. Apparently, it should take 2 adults a couple of hours to assemble the whole thing.
XP Cars claim that the car will be extremely lightweight (and thus energy-efficient), but also very safe for passengers and pedestrians. Their reasoning is that in a collision, most of a damage to people is caused by the metal that a car is made of. Makes sense. The Whisper is to be priced below $5000, and will initially be aimed at the Southeast and Western Asian markets. It will also be able to float!
I think I’ll let their own press release do the talking after the jump.
Low cost Inflatable electric car is announced as world’s first crash-proof, long range, flat-pack vehicle.
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 13 –XP Vehicles™ today announced that it’s Whisper™ electric car is being developed for online direct ship distribution at sub $5000.00 price-points.
A baffled pressure tube system (think Zodiac™ rubber boat) provides the actual supporting and protective structure of the vehicle. How safe is it? Recall that NASA recently threw tens of millions of dollars of ultra-sensitive electronics onto the surface of Mars from nearly a mile up and then bounced that same delicate gear for over a mile over boulders and everything worked flawlessly.
This was due to the instruments being shrouded in an already expanded inflatable housing that has served as the model for the Whisper™ body structure. Anyone looking at the warnings on their visor can be concerned about the dangers during airbag inflation so XP simply built a vehicle entirely out of next-generation, always inflated, safety airbags. The engineers for the Whisper are confident you can drive it off a 25-foot cliff without serious injury to its passengers. They claim this is the safest car ever designed for drivers, passengers and pedestrians.
Initially designed for the Southeast and Western Asian markets, the car will float in an emergency such as a flood or tsunami and can be assembled by any two people of reasonable competence. The vehicle, similar in appearance to rounded edged sports cars, will be configurable online by each customer much like you build and customize personal computers online today at various major retailers. Colors, trims, features, and styles will be user-configurable on 4 different body-types.
The vehicle is so light it can go many times further on the same energy pack as other vehicles. Device Conduit Technologies () is providing the novel, low cost power system. The sealed composite membrane tube structure uses a layered web material system. The wheels use eight hub-mounted motors. A large luggage area can carry home all of the groceries or luggage needed for the vast majority of everyday circumstances. The whole vehicle packs into two cardboard boxes for shipping by common carrier anywhere in the world.
XP is seeking distribution partners for large territory contracts. Sales are not currently open direct-to-public.
XP Vehicles is a Bay Area start-up formed by technology experts and a consortium of companies who are each expert in their component area. Multiple issued and pending patents protect this disruptive technology and distribution system.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
sounds fabulous, and practical. thinking out of the (cardboard) box, and about time too. made of completely recyclable / recycled components? or is that jumping the gun. good work. can’t wait to own one. how do i go about getting a distributorship?