Oh! Gizmo

By Andrew Liszewski

I definitely think that one day we’ll all have access to some mode of flying transportation, but it won’t look anything like the flying car prototypes we’ve seen over the years, nor will they require the occupant’s to be trained as pilots. But clearly the designers at Moller seem to think differently, and their latest ‘prototype’ was created at the request of a Russian businessman who was tired of having to fight the traffic on his way into Moscow every morning.

Their solution is the Autovolantor, seen here in all its 1/18th scale model glory, which is based on a Ferrari 599 that features a few strategic modifications like an electric drivetrain and the addition of eight rotary engines needed to make it fly. On the ground, the Autovolantor could drive for up to 40 miles on a single charge, and when airborne it could supposedly reach speeds of 150mph for a whopping 15 minutes. And while the prototype will cost about $5 million to develop, if the vehicle ever went into production that price tag could drop to about $250,000. But don’t forget that you’ll also have to pay for insurance, which will not be cheap for the world’s first flying car.

[ Moller - The Autovolantor (PDF) ] VIA [ Motor Trend ]