The Rinspeed Splash is an amphibious concept car presented by the Swiss company Rinspeed at the Geneva Motor Show in 2004. On land it is a light sports car; in water it unfolds hydrofoils and skims above the surface like a speedboat.
Rinspeed Splash at a glance
| Maker | Rinspeed, Zumikon, Switzerland |
|---|---|
| Presented | Geneva Motor Show 2004 |
| Weight | 825 kg |
| Body | largely carbon fibre |
| Engine | 750 cc two-cylinder turbocharged |
| Fuel | natural gas |
| Power | 140 hp (104 kW) at 7000 rpm |
| Land speed | nearly 200 km/h |
| Water speed | 45 knots |
| 0–100 km/h | 5.9 seconds |
| Hydrofoils | unfold at a water depth of 1.3 m |
| Channel crossing | 3 h 14 min for 36 km, 2006 |
The English and German articles give the water speed in different ways (45 knots and 80 km/h); this page quotes the English figure for the foils and the German description of the mechanism.
History of the Rinspeed Splash
The Splash was built for the anniversary of Rinspeed’s tenth concept car and presented at the Geneva Motor Show in 2004. It weighs only 825 kg, a figure made possible by the car’s special “skin”, which is largely carbon fibre. The engine is a 750 cc two-cylinder turbocharged unit running on natural gas; it produces 140 hp at 7000 rpm and takes the car from rest to 100 km/h in 5.9 seconds. On land the top speed is nearly 200 km/h.
On water the car is driven by a propeller that lowers itself once the water is 1.1 metres deep, and it is steered with the ordinary steering wheel. At a depth of 1.3 metres the driver can unfold two hydrofoils from the sides of the body, extended by an electronic hydraulic system, and the Splash then glides about sixty centimetres above the surface as a hydrofoil boat. In that mode it reaches 45 knots on water.
The car is not a one-off show piece only. In 2006 Rinspeed used it to set a world record for crossing the English Channel in a hydrofoil car, covering 36 kilometres in 3 hours 14 minutes. The Splash also appeared in an episode of the television programme Top Gear, which made the amphibious idea familiar to a wide audience.
Design and features
- Hydrofoils: two wings unfold from the sides at a water depth of 1.3 m and lift the car about 60 cm above the surface.
- Lowering propeller: a propeller drops into the water at a depth of 1.1 m and drives the car, steered with the normal wheel.
- Carbon body: the lightweight skin keeps the whole car at 825 kg.
- Natural-gas engine: a 750 cc turbocharged twin with 140 hp.
- Records and television: a Channel crossing in 2006 and an appearance on Top Gear.
Rinspeed Splash versions
- Splash (2004): the concept as shown in Geneva.
- Road mode: nearly 200 km/h on land, 0–100 km/h in 5.9 seconds.
- Hydrofoil mode: 45 knots with the wings extended.
The underwater companion to the Splash is the sQuba, and the Chopster shows the other side of Rinspeed’s work, bodies rather than engineering. The rest is under Rinspeed.
Video: Rinspeed Splash: Sports Car & Speed Boat
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Rinspeed, English Wikipedia: engine, weight, speeds, record
- Rinspeed Splash, German Wikipedia: carbon body, propeller and hydrofoils
