The Swiss design experts Rinspeed have developed a zero-emission vehicle that can navigate underwater! Even James Bond wouldn’t believe his eyes if he saw this car in action. Premiered recently by Rinspeed at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show, this exhilarating vehicle certainly resembled one of the sophisticated inventions in the 007 movies: Based on the Lotus Elise, the sQuba is a futuristic styled amphibious car, that can move not just on the water but even under the sea!Thanks to jet drives in the bow and propellers in the stern, it can “fly” underwater up to 10 meters below the surface. Due to safety reasons, there is no airtight canopy to enclose the driver. A self-contained, on-board system inside the carbon nanotube-based body structure provides occupants with fresh air while submerged.

But this isn’t the only special feature of the car: The sQuba is able to drive autonomously by itself on land by using a laser system to detect obstacles ahead. And best of all: It is a zero-emission vehicle powered by rechargeable Lithium-Ion batteries! Fortunately, you don’t have to pass a special underwater driving test to use the sQuba – but instead of that a diving license is strictly required!
The promotion video of the Rinspeed sQuba

It was a great night for our community: Club of Pioneers celebrated a big party in Berlin and invited some amazing mobility experts: Watch our Videoclip to get an impression of the event, and see more of the fantastic mobility concepts like the Clever, the Ventomobil and the BMW Hydrogen 7... and share in our excitement that Club of Pioneers has been selected as of 365 landmarks around Germany chosen by the initiative Germany - Land of Ideas. Thank you, pioneers!!!We were also lucky to have a live crossing to pioneer Erik Schmitt, Louis Palmer and the Solartaxi in Australia. You can watch their video greeting here.

The hybrid engine is one of the most advanced clean car technologies available at the moment. Therefore, it's amazing that this technology was used in a car developed over 100 years ago! At the LA Auto Show, this car was presented for the first time outside of Europe: Watch our video of the Lohner Porsche!

Since California is host to the most auto manufacturer design studios in the world, the LA Auto Show is well known for bringing new design approaches to the auto industry. The branches have therefore focused attention on the Design Challenge Robocar 2057, which took place at the show recently. Here's our interview with the winner of that challenge: the designers of the Volkswagen Slipstream!Images: Volkswagen

By winning the Green Car of the Year Award with their Tahoe Hybrid at the LA Auto Show, Chevrolet has taken the first steps to establish itself as a green car company.

However, the Tahoe is just one example of the eco-friendly products by this US car manufacturer: We show you more of the green vision of Chevorlet - watch our video to learn about the Malibu Hybrid, the Silverado Hybrid, the Chevrolet Volt and the Exquinox Fuel Cell!

With their all-hybrid vehicle Prius, Toyota hit a real home run. Since the carmaker launched the model, a big green badge has been following them wherever they go. To highlight their image as a green car company, Toyota promoted an even newer green approach at the LA Auto Show: The hydrogen-hybrid fuel cell development program!

On November 15th, the second press day at the LA Auto Show, the automotive branch focused all its attention on the Green Car of the Year Award 2008. According to the Green Car Journal (the leading environmental automotive magazine) the nominees had been narrowed down to five cars for the final round of the award: The Chevrolet Tahoe, Mazda's Tribute Hybrid, the Chevrolet Malibu, Nissan's Altima Hybrid and the Saturn Aura Hybrid. The final decision was made by a jury that included leaders of the nation's top environmental organizations. Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of the Green Car Journal, announced the final decision of the jury: The winner of the award is the Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid!