Terrafugia flying car to go into production in 2012
Flying cars have always been a fictional desire for many since time immemorial. It is a concept only seen in sci-fi movies, enthralling the car-crazy audience and leaving them with dreams which seem impossible this century. But the wait has now come to an end. With the latest invention of the “flying-car” dubbed as the Transition, it is only a matter of time before one may see cars ascend into the air to avoid the traffic snarls on land.
The Transition from Terrafugia is a two-seater light-sport roadable aircraft which is made of carbon-fibre and can lift off from almost any long straight road. Rather than a car which can fly, it is more of an aircraft which has added abilities of a car. It is powered by a Rotax 912S engine, which runs on unleaded automotive gasoline, and is rated for 100 hp at 5,800 rpm. The vehicle has a top airspeed of 185 kph, and coupled with a CVT transmission, the rear-wheel-drive plane is capable of hitting a top speed of 105 kph on land. A carbon fibre driveshaft directs power to the vehicle’s propellers and rear wheels simultaneously. Upon landing, the wings of the Transition can fold up in a matter of 15 seconds. The vehicle, which is roughly as big as a large sedan, has a fuel capacity of 87-litres, which is good enough for covering a total distance of up to 787 km in air and 1,296 km on road. The Transition also boasts automobile levels of safety including single-stage airbags.
Though the manufacturers have been taking pre-orders, the Transition has not entered the mass-production stage yet, with first delivery scheduled only by fall of 2012. Expected price for the Transition is over Dhs 915,000 – not very high considering one would get a car and an aircraft in a single and convenient package. And as obvious as it may be, both a driver’s license and a light-aircraft license is required to buy and operate the “flying car”. Our only unanswered query which remains though is about the woes of the RTA, who may now face the implacable task of installing mid-air Salik gates and deploying X-Trails attached to helium-filled balloons for those “hidden” mobile radars!
Comments
ROJ
I mean we always loved to fly planes… If i could ever afford it, I would love to get myself a helicopter license and my very own chopper to use on the weekends… Dont tell me you never wanted to?
If this thing sells in the future then im sure they will need to make and entry model of it, something cheaper maybe for 1/2 if not 1/4 the price..
ROJ
I dont mind getting one.. I mean you fly it whenever you want to!
Fazl
hhaha….RTA will never allow this in Dubai so dont worry. 😀
vivek
or maybe they’ll allow this in Dubai and then fine you a hefty amount everytime you expand the wings and try to take off 😀 😀 😀
Shibu Daniel
Lol, whats the point in speed cameras when cars can fly ?????
royer
LOL, balloon powered xtrails. Who knows new model will come called xBalloons.. who knows it may happen or may not.. not very sure about petrol powered engines, especially when Gulf itself is having problem with stock and pricings, time for hybrids followed by electric vehicles.
7asoon
its not a car :/
7mood75
That last part made me lol.
Bjorn
First of all RTA & GCAA would have to get along to allow this baby in Dubai or in UAE for that matter. They (RTA) can barely manage Dubai’s Traffic. Getting themselves into Aviation would be like putting the other foot in Quick Sand.
ROJ
They have a good Finance Dept though…
Rahul Jones
Allowing this is never a bad idea. But if you think it over. Isn’t it better to see car crash on land than in air? You know all those flightomobile parts flying onto your head……