"WaterCar" - Amphibious power boat

Just adding this WaterCar post for future reference.
If you have a spare $150k, you can get a great day out on sheltered waters, and you can drive it straight to the Ramp from your home.



WaterCar ™ The World's First Street-Legal Boat https://www.watercar.com/#learn-more

 

This might be ok in fresh water, but I don't think that this water car will be very happy if it is introduced to a salt water environment, no matter how well it is washed down afterwards.

 

If you look at the specs in their website, Its made out of marine grade aluminium. They give a 5 year warranty on the hull

 

The yearly insurance premium would hurt; the maintenance bill would hurt; but that jeep looking thing could scare the crap out of some unawares people, ha. I'd make a floating trailer to keep fishing folk out the back, no bait stink, squid ink, slime or scales in the car. Also a floating caravan/houseboat could be nice. A floating cruising bus would be better - longer WLL.

 

I am sure that the 'hull' would be fine - but I would be concerned about all the other bits like the steering, suspension, hydraulics perhaps, re the effect that the salt water will have?
As Seasquirt notes above, it will require a lot of maintenance.

 

Huh? That "JEEP" looking thing is NOT the product. If you actually watch the video, its just a comparative object.
The BIG picture is the actual craft.

 

Same deal with the boat looking thing, sans houseboat/caravan. As a kid I liked the idea of an ex army - army duck. But way expensive and cumbersome. Several VW Beetles have been marinised, not all successfully.

 

Google splashtours Rotterdam or Wasserbus Hamburg

 

Australian crocodile tour bus; a bit more room to relax, party, fish, etc. Not likely to become common though. Maintenance $ !

 

A rather misleading advertising as the first road legal boat. There have been many through the years, starting in the early 1800s with a steam power car propelled by a paddle wheel. WWII saw the development of more practical amphibious vehicles.

 

True. With a top speed of 25mph, you wouldn't want to go on any major road. Driving 100 metres or so to where your car is parked from a busy ramp could be handy though,
I find the "no trailer" option very attractive

 

Technology is developing faster than law. Quads are agricultural tractors, etc.
Mr. Gibbs story should be interesting .

 

The AmphiCar has been arounfd since the 1961. It is also street legal. Not as fast or as big as the WaterCar but it has a big following in the USA Amphicar - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphicar Made in West Germany, so I imagine there are quite few in Europe and elsewhere. Even Disney World in Orlando has some. In Seattle there are some entusiasts who turn out for the Annual Opening Day of the Boating Season with their AmphiCars . Actually Opening Day a misnomer, because in Seattle the boating season is year round. At the opening day in 2006 I counted 6 of them.


Plus there is an Amphibious car in theUK that was featured on Television. Amphibious car sets sail at Great British Car Journey https://greatbritishcarjourney.com/amphibious-car-sets-sail-at-great-british-car-journey/