Go with the Flow

Humans have been utilizing water resources for transportation since the time of the Great Flood, with the earliest boat found in Peru dating back approximately 10,000 years. However, the idea of a vehicle that can move both on water and land was achieved relatively recently. The concept of an amphibious vehicle was first realized by American engineer Oliver Evans in 1805. This fall, the trend has been revitalized, and the experience with amphibious cars is generally positive, although it is still far from being mainstream.

Citroen

Photo: Citroen Above & Under

This year, designer Sangheon Chung proposed the concept car "Above & Under" to the Citroen group, aiming to transform the perception of amphibious vehicles from something exotic to something relevant. "Ambition, emotion, will" - Chung described the target audience for the car. Drawing inspiration from deconstructivism in architecture and incorporating a desire for individualism, which is becoming crucial in the automotive industry, Chung introduces a sports car formula that can also function as a speedboat.

The most remarkable part of the idea unfolds in water, where two cabins become separate movable objects, seabreachers, with autonomous control, transforming into electric motor racing cars cutting through the water surface at high speeds. Add to that the cockpit design, whose transparent roof opens by sliding backward! By the way, despite almost space-age innovations and conceptual extravagance, the French charm and elegance inherent to Citroen are still preserved.

Sangheon Chung's experience is impressive, with a portfolio that includes designs for KIA, Hyundai, Genesis, and a promise to soon unveil an updated concept for the legendary Toyota Celica.

Mazda

Photo: Mazda TONBO

Working for Mazda's European division, DedekDesign expanded the concept of a water vehicle to a 3-in-1. TONBO can move on water like a boat, with a hull designed for attaching sports equipment such as surfboards or kayaks, and overall, the concept's engine operates on water.

With a careful approach to both water and the environment, developers led by Jan Dedek have also added an "anti-vandal" parking system. It is designed to ensure the proper treatment of the transport environment towards the external surroundings, soil, grass, etc. Unfortunately, this elegant development is still far from realization, mainly due to the high cost of implementing water engine technology. However, Mazda is working on certain advancements for serial use.

Watercar Electric Vehicle

Photo: Watercar Electric Vehicle on floating mode

This is an uncompromising approach to design, as the developers themselves testify. That is, no moves towards the beautiful, only pragmatism. In fact, it is more of a land boat than a car capable of floating. Five seats, as in almost any car, but the driver's position is in the center. Opposite him on the left side is the only door, so it's somehow awkward to say "get into the car"; it would be more appropriate to say "board the vessel." The maximum speed on water is higher than on the road, namely 90 kilometers per hour on water and 65 kilometers per hour on land, so the priority is to move on water. 

Photo: Watercar Electric Vehicle on land mode

By the way, for moving on roads, there are safety belts, headlights, brake lights, and turn signals, so there seems to be no reason to refuse registration and license plates. Literally unsinkable (because the aluminum hull is filled with foam), the vehicle weighs only 820 kg. Yes, and most importantly, on water, this thing doesn't look like a floating car at all. But on land, it's a hundred percent like a boat on wheels.

Gibbs Humdinga

Photo: Gibbs Humdinga

And now, a serious boat for serious folks. Sir Richard Branson himself owns such a water off-road vehicle capable of overcoming storms and roads laid by loggers in the mountains because it also has 4x4 drive. The Gibbs company has several developments in the "amphibious" class, but the Humdinga is clearly the flagship, accelerating to 100 km/h in just a few seconds. It won't go any faster, but for you and your five or nine (depending on the configuration) companions, it will be enough to cut through strong ocean waves at full speed. It will conquer the path to adventure while maintaining comfort, like in a car salon, except for adjusting the black butterfly, Mr. James Bond. And of course, the number of these amphibious monsters is very limited, so if you ever see one on a canal or highway, consider yourself lucky. And if you see it in your own garage, then you're really lucky. Send photos; we'll print them.

Amphicar Model 770

Photo: Amphicar Model 770

This is certainly not a rarity compared to the other participants in the overview. The Amphicar can rightly be considered a true worker on both roads and waters. If its delicate figure reminds you of a Trabant or Volkswagen Beetle, it's entirely accurate. This is also a people's car that revolutionized the automotive industry.

3,878 units were produced over four years, from 1961 to 1965, at the Quandt Group plants in Lübeck and West Berlin. However, the majority of Amphicars were sold in the United States. 97 cars were built with right-hand drive for the roads of the United Kingdom, where the Amphicar "swam" three years after its inception. In September 1965, this happened literally – two Amphicars crossed the English Channel.

Pop culture treated the remarkable car very kindly, despite not being very practical for regular use (for example, after each water outing, 13 of the amphibian's components had to be lubricated, and to reach one of them, the rear seat had to be removed). The quirky body, not very photogenic headlight design, and grille did not prevent the Amphicar from appearing in over 10 films and TV series, including the iconic Avengers and the third part of the Pink Panther. In The Simpsons, there is an episode with an antique slide about the "aqua cars" factory in Springfield, showing how Amphicars actually descend from the assembly line into the water.

Amphicar even made its way to Disneyland: in 2015, the Boathouse park in Orlando, Florida, offered road and water tours for groups of up to three people. The most famous owner seems to be President Lyndon Johnson, who, while driving guests around his estate in the amusing car, humorously mimicked brake failures and plunged into a pond.

Sentimental Americans remain the most devoted fans of Amphicars, organizing regattas across the country. The most famous one is in the Great Lakes state, Ohio, at St. Marys State Park.

Rinspeed sQuba and Splash

Photo: Rinspeed sQuba and Splash

Among the most well-known followers of the floating car concept, the Swiss company Rinspeed holds a special place. Thanks to two genre record-breakers – the foil car Splash from 2004 and the practically submarine on wheels sQuba, which was launched into water (and under it) in 2008.

However, times have not been kind to the search for ideas. Currently, the bureau is more focused on utilitarian concepts, designing bus parcel lockers, AI-controlled urban transport, and a concept of "sleeping on wheels," complete with a small garden with houseplants.

HEPAV

Photo: HEPAV

The extremely ambitious idea of a velomobile also had to be tried on water. Unlike common park hydro-bikes, the Human Powered Electric Amphibious Vehicle – a technologically complex project whose creator was inspired by Jules Verne's ideas instead of romantic outings on the pond.

The combination of human power and electric generators and engines seemed successful, but no evidence has surfaced, except for amateur footage somewhere in the summer on a small lake.

The inventor from the Czech Republic, David Buchwaldek, claimed that his brainchild could move between islands, even with just a small propeller at the back and a small draft. Unfortunately, the fate of HEPAV is currently unknown. We hope it didn't become the unsung yellow submarine.