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| Prototipo Topolino |
A prototype of the Fiat Topolino "senza ruote". The model year is approx. mid-1950s.
The Cadillac Motor Car Division of the US auto maker General Motors Corporation investigated wheel-less cars. This concept ad for the 1955 model year was not used.
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| Cadillac Series Sixty Special concept car |
Noted: the other models in the ad still have wheels.
I wish they had continued the development of those WVs. It would be so great just floating over the road, no bumps, no potholes, no flats...
ReplyDeleteI assume that they were using production models and converting them to wheel-less. The overall body styles look great, especially for the mid-1950s. They did not go with the "futuristic" look as they did with some of their concept cars. These were regular models, just that they had no... wheels! Just float!
ReplyDeleteThe ideas were very valid. The tech that was available in the 1950s was not up to making those WVs happen. With today's technology? They could be so!
ReplyDeleteThere are certain technical challenges to be matched: lift a vehicle, keep it stable / balanced, move it in different directions, control the motion, and more...
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you guys. Great designs. As you point out, even today's technology is very short of execution. How do you lift 2K+ kilos, and control it? There have been some successes with very small objects, and only in place.
ReplyDeleteI will keep looking; that is what we do here. We look and we look, and we look until we find something. Sometimes, a cul-de-sac is that "something". Sometimes it is not.