1. Surface Orbiter
www.uberreview.com
Rick Dobbertin from New York wanted to travel all around the world by only one vehicle. It was impossible with today’s technology because there’s no vehicle that could be driven via land and sea, so he had wait for the car industry to improve a lot. He wasn’t very patient, so invented one on his own. He created the Surface Orbiter from a milk truck, which took him 4 years, $175,000 and 14,000 hours of work. Allegedly, Dobbertin is now working on a new project, called hydrocar.
2. Rocket Bike
www.en.wikipedia.org
Although it’s just a bike, this is one of the most dangerous vehicles that ever existed. Tom Pickens from Orion Propulsions created this weird machine, which is composed of usual bike and rockets on the back side. The rockets are responsible for the incredible bike speeding of 60 meters for 5 seconds. Pickens spent 1250 hours and $750 to create it, but he never offered it for sale. Maybe he doesn’t want to be sued.
3. Tank Chair
www.elitechoice.com
Unlike the previous two examples, the tank chair is much useful. It is not created because some weird guy had too much free time, but because some people in wheel chairs are limited to go only on some kinds of surfaces. The tank chair can go through sand, mud, snow, gravel and whatever else show up on its way.
4. Yike Bike
www.inhabitat.com
The Yike Bike has a look like the first one-wheel bicycles. Actually, this one looks like a toy that could be well used in some occasions, like children’s birthday, for example. But, all of you that have yet decided to buy it, you gotta know that its price is $4,500. The strange vehicle can speed up to 16 mph (25km/h), which is not so impressive for 10 kg weight machine.
5. Monsterbike
www.fmiyar.com
This is another freaky bike. It is three-wheeled vehicle with a monster tyre up front and it is human powered. Strong legs are required for this machine to be moved, making it very unpractical for use. Actually, walking is way faster than this, even if the driver is very strong. However, it could be very funny to try driving this, never mind what your strength is. It was created in Netherlands.
6. Avrocar
www.virtuallystrange.net
In case you were wondering if flying saucers exist, the answer is: yes, they do! This is not built by aliens though, but by Avro Company. The vehicle was 18 feet long in diameter and could carry up to two people. The company first offered it to Canadian government, but after the rejection they received great deal of interest by United States military. However, it proved to be unstable and the project didn’t succeed.
7. Swisscopter Dragonfly DF1
www.flickr.com
This “dragonfly” was created by the Swisscopter company from Arizona, US. It is a helicopter that can carry only one man, but he will have the honor to be in a driver’s sit moved by a pair of hydrogen peroxide fueled rockets. However, that doesn’t demand a lot of driving skills, as there’s just a simple handlebar for adjusting the angle of the blades. Believe it or not, this vehicle is certified by Federal Aviation Administration.
8. SeaPhantom
www.wired.com
The full name of this strange watercraft is Maritime Flight Dynamics SeaPhantom. It is based on NASA’s lighting-body Airfoil design. The advanced technology offers a great speed, similar to that of a helicopter. The driver will enjoy a futuristic cabin with McLaren F1 style sit and two side windows despite the windscreen. Aside of that, the SeaPhantom is full of computers inside. It’s based on NASA’s technology, however.
9. Rodzilla
www.charlottemotorspeedway.com
The Rodzilla is named after its creator and only owner Rodney Rucker. The guy who is well known by his motor inventions decided to build his own car upon a Studebaker from 1928. He just added one 29.3 liters, 12 cylinder engine from M-47 tank and a couple of turbochargers to move this monster vehicle. The seven feet tall car has four sits inside.
10. Elipsis
www.flickr.com
The Elipsis was designed in 1992 by Phillippe Charbonneaux and was presented at the Paris Motor Show the same year. Unfortunately, it ended there as it was never tested on public roads. It has wheels on the sides as well on the front and the back. That allowed the diamond-shaped vehicle ability to turn around its own axis, which would make it good option for the traffic congestion. However, it was never tested and remained just a prototype.
