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Spanish company IFR Automotive has unveiled the Aspid at the British Motor Show. The Aspid is a new ultra-lightweight sports car. The Aspid (Spanish for viper, ahem) features a 2-liter I4 engine in two versions able to produce 270 and 400hp, the latter thanks to supercharging. This powerful engine, mated to a 700 kg (1,543 pounds) weight provides spectacular performance. The 270hp version runs from 0 to 100 km/h (62mph) in 3.7 seconds, and 2.8 for the most powerful version. IFR also announced the estimated consumption figures, that would be vaild only if owners keep the Aspid at speeds roughly around the EU mixed cycle. In that case drivers might manage 4.8 and 5.5 l/100 km, which translates into 49 and 43mpg (US) respectively.

According to the manufacturer, the Aspid is not a simple toy to take for a drive out for track days, but it's a capable road vehicle, something hard to tell from its design. It's almost completely made from aluminum and carbon fiber. It also sports plenty of gadgetry: GPS, GPRS, a complete HiFi system, USB, Bluetooth, Wi-fi, and Ethernet connection, because the Aspid gathers data you can download regarding the car's performance. And all this gadgetry, as well as most of the electric systems have been simplified to a maximum level to reduce weight. Impressed? They're taking orders already.


[Source: IFR via Autoblog en Español]

Click on the image for more shots of the Future Chair wheelchairs

While many engineers are looking towards carbon fiber as a way to lighten up our automobiles, with very good reason, others are using the lightweight composite material in human-powered vehicles, like bicycles and... wheelchairs. Not only is carbon fiber lightweight, it's also quite strong and the weave of the material makes a big difference as to how the material responds to vibration and harshness, so the wheelchair can be "tuned" for a specific user. All this technology leads to a wheelchair from Future Chairs which weights just 13.9 pounds, though it's pretty expensive at ₤2,595 and is only available in the UK.

While on the subject of wheelchairs, take a look at the prototype Dreamfit motorcycle which was designed specifically for paraplegics. So, it's not made from carbon fiber, but it does feature stabilizing wheels and thumb shifters along with a system designed to keep riders with poor lower-body strength mounted on the seat properly. The company also makes ski boats and hovercrafts for paraplegics. Seriously, how cool is that?



[Source: Gizmag]

Tom Cruise is on the top of list to get Ducati's new $72,500 superbike, the Desmosedici RR, which was released this week. The bike uses lightweight but strong titanium, magnesium and tres green carbon fiber. Specifically, the rear seat support is made from high-temperature resin type carbon fibre, only found in racing bikes. The tail also includes a ceramic carbon fibre composite cover, the same technology used in F1 cars.

Tom has received some criticism in the press recently because of a video circulating the internet. We hope being the first to own one of these limited-production (only 1,500 will be made), 200 MPH bikes will cheer Tom up a little. Enjoy the video below the fold of Tom on a bike and lots of gun play in the movie Mission Impossible 2 directed by John Woo.

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[Source: ABC News]

There are plenty of established ways to get a three-dimensional structure made. Many people beat on metal for days with hammers and dowels, some spend huge amounts of time massaging wooden panels and strips while still others create elaborate molds for fiberglass or even carbon fiber. Is there an easier way? If so, why do you care?

There are many reasons to create a three-dimensional structure. A few that come to mind that have a "green-transportation" purpose are for creating devices to cheat the wind like a bicycle fairing or an automotive body appendage. Here is an instructable which shows you just how to create such a fairing for your bike using some plastic sheeting and a few other miscellaneous items. The author also claims that he is working on a "wind-powered bicycle" which sounds rather interesting.

[Source: Instructables]

While some of Nissan's green moves include forays into diesel technology (see these posts on the Titan and the Forum concept), the company is also working on a foolproof way to increase MPGs: reducing weight. According to a story in DowJones, Nissan is working to slash the average weight of its vehicles by 15 percent (compared to 2005 model year numbers) over the next seven years. The cuts will come "by rethinking vehicle design, using light weight materials and encouraging parts suppliers to also pursue the new efficiency targets."

While Autoblog greeted this news with an eye to more "compelling driving dynamics" (something I don't discount), this news is really a win for the auto industry as a whole. Nissan isn't some niche company making 100 cars a year, and if they seriously get into lightweight materials like carbon fiber panels, the cost for those expensive parts should go down for everyone. Now that's exciting.

[Source: Chris Oliver / DowJones via Autoblog]