Tuesday, June 17, 2008

BMW's Lightweight Cloth Car

Early last week, German giants BMW unveiled the GINA Light Visionary Model, a highly anticipated concept set to transform the boundaries of traditional car design. 'GINA', an acronym for "Geometry and Functions In 'N' Adaptations", has a seamless outer skin made entirely from a textile fabric (polyurethane-coated Lycra) pulled taut around a moveable frame of metal and carbon fiber wires. This lightweight design requires far less energy to produce than traditional BMW models and the overall car weight is significantly reduced, making it far more fuel-efficient.


Say what you will about the Lycra; I like this car.

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