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“Damn. I popped the car. Anybody got any aqueduct tape?.

Actually, that book is unlikely, according to the designers of the inflatable electric car. The actual that makes up the alfresco of the car, they insist, is bulletproof.

A address in Product Design and Development annual explains, “XP’s Mini Utility Vehicle ancestor cuts costs and time by application 70 percent beneath locations and atypical abstracts that crave simpler branch devices.” It’s also…well…inflatable like a balloon.

“XP’s MUV does not abide of a lot of centralized componentry,” PD&D writes. “In fact, a lot of of it is air application XP’s XPanelBTM technology burden membranes. The bench is inflatable, the dashboard is inflatable, and the centralized anatomy and accustomed racks are inflatable, or a cobweb suspension.” The car reportedly uses a array backpack “capable of carrying about 125 afar per allegation with four passengers,” or best ambit with added fuel-cell ability assemblage that buyers can add and abolish at home. In fact, the batteries themselves can be removed, and agitated up accommodation stairs for recharging, back Chairman Scott Redmond tells PD&D, “the age bracket that we’re targeting appears to not be able to allow a house.”

The car doesn’t allegation abundant ability because it weighs so little, with few adamant structures.

But the a lot of absurd claims about the inflatable car accept to do with its safety. PD&D reports, “According to XP’s accepted simulations, the aboriginal annihilative analysis car will, a lot of likely, survive all annihilative tests.” That’s appropriate – they affirmation that the car will survive blast testing with little or no damage. They assert “The nano-tech bolt is not alone ammo proof, but it can aswell bear crashes by a ample SUV afterwards harm.”

Slashdot comments, “The contempo struggles of the auto industry and a political altitude that supports the development of another activity cars accept accustomed the car a bigger adventitious at in fact hitting the market.”

Autoblog Green, however, is skeptical. They point out, “there doesn’t in fact assume to be a ancestor in actuality abreast from computer renderings. Aswell adverse is the affirmation that it can both accomplish a ambit of 125 afar with four cartage (after which an abetting ability assemblage bliss in and extends that ambit to 300 miles) and contains its batteries in shelves that consumers can remove, bandy over their amateur and backpack up to their apartments to bung in and charge. Considering the weight complex in batteries able of demography you that far, it’s a hypothesis that seems unlikely.”

If you’re in the bazaar for a new car, analysis out the U.S. News rankings of this year’s best cars as able-bodied as this month’s best car deals.