Designer: href="http://www.sfu.ca/~hcw5/portfolio/" >Henry Wang

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———- /> /> Yanko Design /> href="http://www.yankodesign.com/">Timeless Designs – Explore wonderful concepts from around the world! /> href="http://store.yankodesign.com/">Yanko Design Store – We are about more than just concepts. See what’s hot at the YD Store!

Designer: Nathaniel Lucero

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———- /> /> Yanko Design /> href="http://www.yankodesign.com/">Timeless Designs – Explore wonderful concepts from around the world! /> href="http://store.yankodesign.com/">Yanko Design Store – We are about more than just concepts. See what’s hot at the YD Store!

It’s not the first Nutmobile that Planters, and presumably their CEO Mr. Peanut, have commissioned, but the company’s latest promotional tool will certainly be one of the greenest and gaudiest creations rolling about the country this year. Built on a 2011 Isuzu NPR box truck, with the box bit swapped for a giant fiberglass peanut reinforced with a steel frame, the new Nutmobile can hold up to 3 passengers plus Mr. Peanut himself should he need to make a public appearance. (I hear he’s actually a bit of a recluse though, and is rumored to have a cannibalistic addiction to peanuts.)

And while it doesn’t appear to be in competition with the Volt or anything, the new Nutmobile is a shining example of promotional eco-friendliness. The engine runs on a mix of biodiesel and regular diesel, the windshield is made from 100% recycled glass, the interior features wood flooring reclaimed from an 1840’s barn and the vehicle’s batteries are charged with a combination of solar panels and a wind turbine built into the roof of the cab. And I’m just going to assume/hope that like Powell Motor’s disastrous ‘The Homer’ the new Nutmobile is also equipped with rack and peanut steering.

[ The New York Times - A Green Makeover for Planters Nutmobile ] VIA [ Autoblog ]

Porsche has been licensing out their name for a while now, resulting in everything from radios to toasters to pocket knives bearing their moniker, but Lamborghini has only just started doing the same. And while gardening tools might not have been at the top of everyone’s ‘what will bear the charging bull next?’ list, the company did start off building tractors after World War II. So it’s not that much of a stretch.

The collection includes grass trimmers, edgers, shrub shears, hedge trimmers and a chainsaw, all electric oddly enough, with some of the models even having rechargeable cordless options. The tools were designed and built by a German company called IKRAmogatec and surprisingly don’t appear to be jaw-droppingly expensive. The most expensive tool is the electric chainsaw which runs just over $200 (€154.99) while the cheapest is the basic electric trimmer which is ~$98 (€74.99).

[ Tonino Lamborghini Garden Tools ] VIA [ Design Milk ]

The concept is this: have one vehicle leading (the engine if you will) and the other cars following behind electronically tethered together. When a vehicle wants to leave, the driver disengages the system, pulls out of the line, and the car behind pulls forward and fills the empty spot. If someone new wants to join the line, they simple pull up behind the last vehicle and engage the system. They are currently testing a system to Europe to make this a reality, using sensors and professional drivers to drive the leader cars. Once you engage the system, automated controls would take over and you relinquish control completely until you reach your destination.

[via Treehugger]

The wheels in the front go round and round. They also take the form of a reinforced, perforated rubber belt affixed to the electric motor. They also have an offset center of rotation. And they work with MAGNETS!

The motor is non-synchronous and runs on direct current with high-powered permanent magnets. The motor works with a geared cylinder with teeth matching apertures in the belt tire. Regenerative breaking x mechanical breaking. Steering via “edistribution of torque and braking on the leading wheels, depending on how the steering wheel is turned.”

The rear wheel is even more wild. Even more. The rear wheel? It’s a reinforced-rubber sphere. Fastened to a suspension clip that’s got four pedals, each of which contains a roller for free rotation of the sphere. Breaks and assisted steering work on this as well, as each clip is also connected to the main electrical system.

Refueling of this amazing machine happens via the network of wires that, when the vehicle is parked on it’s special “electro-floor”, connect to a working electric channel which connects to sockets that you can plug in using your regular electric plugs.

So simpo!

Designer: Kristina Magnitskaya

It was originally created back in 2008, but Benedict Radcliffe is now hoping to sell his wireframe Lamborghini Koenig Countach sculpture for a mere £40,000, or about US $65,000. The 6ft wide, 14ft long Lambo is made from 160ft of 10mm steel rod which was painstakingly bent and welded to produce a rather striking piece that looks like it’s waiting for a pass through Pixar’s RenderMan to be complete. It’s unfortunately completely undriveable given it lacks a wireframe engine, and is painted a rather, um, striking tint of fluorescent orange, but finding a way to make the Countach look kind of cool again is an impressive feat.

[ Benedict Radcliffe's Lambo! 2 ] VIA [ Times Online & Autoblog ]

And once you’re on that train, you can open your door and talk to your fellow SNAP pilot along the way to your train’d location. Or keep it closed. Eat your sandwich in there in peace, probably.

What’s more? The SNAP singular vehicle option is similar to a two-wheel motorbike, shelling out tight turns like they were french fries. Adjustable track width back wheels for stability, giant front wheel for ease in leaning. Moveable chassis allow for connection to the locamotive. The train travels with multiple SNAPS at a time for a slightly more gas-friendly and environmental option.

SNAP races are a definite must when these fabulous machines come to fruition. I say so.

Designer: Vít Bechynský

By Evan Ackerman

I honestly don’t know whether this thing is totally stupid, or totally brilliant. The MapLock is like a bike lock, except it’s made for your GPS… It clamps onto the face of your GPS device (adjustable to fit most sizes), you loop a steel cable through your steering wheel, and then lock it all down with a key and you’re good to go.

As MapLock points out, if you just take your GPS off the windshield mount and hide it, a clever thief can spot the mount and infer that you’ve got a tasty GPS stashed away somewhere. If you do take the windshield mount off, a cleverer thief will spot the marks left by the suction cup. And even if you take the whole kit and caboodle with you when you leave your car, someone might spot the telltale signs and break in anyway. OMG PANIC!

So, the MapLock seems like a totally brilliant idea: show potential thieves that your GPS is safe and secure, and they won’t bother breaking into your car to go after it. But still, it’s a relatively complicated cable lock for your GPS, and that just seems silly. Here is what I would buy: a system that I can use to lock my GPS to my dashboard semi-permanently while still keeping the GPS usable. Someone get on that, won’t you?

The MapLock (patent pending) will be available in 5 exciting colors for an unspecified price at an unspecified time.

[ MapLock ] VIA [ Navigadget ]

By Evan Ackerman

You can have your exotic cars, and you can have your eco-friendly cars, but no, you can’t have concept cars. Not yours. These flights of imagination are never for sale, are rarely street legal, and often don’t work at all. But damn are they cool looking, and their very unobtainability and uniqueness make them that much more interesting.

OhGizmo was at the LA Auto Show yesterday, and we’ve got a bunch of pictures of concept cars for you from the likes of Honda, Audi, and BMW. Check out the non-gallery plus links to high res versions of the pics, after the jump.

Audi e-tron Concept

This concept from Audi, based on the sexy R8, is a pure electric sports car with four (four!) electric drive motors, one at each wheel. That works out to 313 hp and 3,319 (that’s not a typo) lb-ft of torque. What does that much torque get you? The ability to accelerate from 40 to 75 mph in about 4 seconds, not to mention being able to control the torque at each wheel individually, which Audi says “allows for dazzling dynamics and an undreamed-of level of agility and precision when cornering.” The batteries are water-cooled and actually help heat the interior of the car while offering a useful range of about 150 miles. And best idea ever: it charges wirelessly through the magic of induction.

Subaru Hybrid Tourer Concept

The gigantic gullwing side doors are obviously the coolest feature of the Subaru Hybrid Tourer, so it stands to reason that Subaru has stated that the doors are the one thing that will definitely NOT show up in any of their production cars. Oh well. Otherwise, um, it’s sort of a hybrid and has red tinted windows that Subaru says reduce eyestrain but will probably just fill you with rage.

Cadillac Converj Concept

The Converj is an extended range electric vehicle, meaning that it runs on batteries until it’s out of battery power, and then it kicks in a gas motor to recharge itself. The inside makes “broad use” of renewable materials, there are OLED displays, and cameras instead of side mirrors (like on pretty much every other concept car in existence).

Volkswagen Up! Lite Concept

As a concept, the Volkswagen Up! Lite is the world’s most fuel efficient and sustainable car (or so they say), consuming 70 mpg on the highway and emitting 65 g/km of CO2. It’s a hybrid that uses a 2 cylinder turbo diesel engine, electric motors, and a 7 speed gearbox, and somehow weighs only 695 kilograms. The Up! Lite goes 0-60 in 12 seconds and tops out at 100 mph. You’ll notice in the pics that the radiator grille opens and closes, which lets it cool the engine only when necessary to preserve the aerodynamics of the car. Instead of a gear knob, there is a “manual control ball” which you move back and forth like a computer mouse to shift gears. When the car is parked on a hot day, a vent opens at the back of the roof to let hot air naturally rise up and out.

Lexus LF-Ch Concept

I guess some of these cars offer more in the way of “concept” than others… The Lexus LF-Ch is nice looking, is a hybrid, and has a bunch of LED lights and an integrated iPhone dock. Yay? I do like the color, though.

Scion xB DJ 2.0 Concept

It’s got a roof that folds out into two gigantic speakers (the whole system totals 2000 watts) and a dance floor in the back with integrated disco lights. Plus a DJ mixer. What more do you want, the kitchen sink?

Scion Kogi xD Mobile Kitchen Concept

Well, here you go, it’s the kitchen sink, with a reverse osmosis filter installed on it. Plus there’s a fridge, cutting board, ice chest, and tailgate barbecue grill. There are cooking utensils in the left tail light and condiments in the right, and even a couple LCDs so that you can watch the Food Network.

Volvo S60 Concept

Not bad for a Swedish (okay, no longer Swedish) turbo brick, right? The rear passenger doors on the Volvo S60 concept open by sliding backwards like a minivan door and then opening outwards. Like most of these four door concepts, there’s no central door pillar. The front headlights are styled to represent two Viking longboats sailing side by side. The center console is handmade Orrefors crystal (seriously, they have pics of the process), whatever that is.

Lincoln C Concept

The Lincoln C is supposed to be a car that’s small on the outside (smaller than your average Lincoln, anyway) but big on the inside, and it even kinda works, due to its impressive width and apparent lack of trunk space. It’s also got an all glass roof, which helps. The distinctive seats are “crafted from luxurious, chromium-free leather and filled with soy foam.” Yay, edible seats! The steering wheel is hubless, which is kinda neat, and there’s also a roof-mounted webcam for some reason.

Honda P-NUT Concept

Honda’s “P-NUT” stands for “Personal Neo Urban Transport.” The car only seats three, but thanks to the center driving position everybody gets a huge amount of leg room. The powertrain is designed to be modular, running from a small gas engine to a pure electric powerplant. There’s a heads-up display for the driver, but not too many other details… Honda spends most of their press release talking about how stylish the P-NUT is, instead of what they should be discussing, which is why on earth they decided that P-NUT was a good acronym for a concept car.

BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept

The BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept is a plug-in hybrid that uses electric motors and a three cylinder turbo diesel to go from 0-60 in 4.8 seconds with a 155 mph top speed, all while getting over 60 mpg. The rear lights act as wings to help maintain smooth airflow around the car, and the front grille opens only when necessary to cool the engine, further reducing drag. There’s a 3 dimensional heads-up display above the instrument panel, and the car is smart enough to adjust its energy consumption based on your location and what it knows about your driving habits. And just look at this thing, it’s absolutely spectacular in that overblown way that makes concept cars so awesome:

I’ll be putting together galleries of exotic cars and innovative eco-friendly cars from the show over the next day or two, but in the meantime, here are some tidbits to tide you over…

Best Booth Experience:

Kia, who was serving peach cobbler with ice cream for lunch. Did I mention that Kia makes the best cars ever? I LOVE KIA!

Worst Swag:

Mazda Concentrated Zoom-Zoom Energy Drink. For real.

Weirdest Car Costume:

Mini on a leash.

The LA Auto Show is open to the public from December 4th to the 13th.

[ LA Auto Show ]