Finding a parking spot is hard enough but finding one large enough for your car is another thing! Now there may be a solution in the future with the Presto concept car.
The Rinspeed Presto transforms itself in a few seconds from an under-3-meter long two-seater roadster – presto! – into a 3.7-meter long four-seater with plenty of room for the rear-seat passengers. The additional space can also be used as a pick-up bed for cargo when the rear-seat backrests are folded down.
This almost magical transformation is made possible by a centrally located electric motor, which stretches the vehicle with the help of two mechanical screw-and-nut gears by exactly 746 millimeters to its full extended length of 3.74 meters. The longitudinal members run on low-friction precision rollers and disappear like a drawer in the rear of the floor pan. Despite its variable length the engineers succeeded in designing the adjustable Presto floor pan with the torsional rigidity necessary for a roadster. To ensure absolute operational safety the extension mechanism also features self-locking safety latches.
A four-cylinder, 1.7-litre common-rail turbo diesel engine in dual-fuel configuration, based on a Mercedes-Benz engine, provides future-oriented and highly environmentally friendly propulsion. The engine runs on a mixture of natural gas and Diesel fuel at a 40 to 60 ratio. Natural gas is a very clean-burning fuel, which consists almost entirely of methane with sulfur content near zero. However, since a Diesel engine has no spark plug to act as an ignition source, operation on natural gas alone is technically impossible.
In its role as a quick, highly maneuverable city speedster the Presto appears stocky yet sporty, thanks to extremely short front and rear overhangs. With a wheelbase of 1’750 millimeters and an overall length of 2.99 meters it can fit even in the smallest parking spaces.
As a four-seater with a wheelbase of 2’496 millimeters the roadster appears much sleeker, poised to strike. The Remus side pipes are more than just a sporty styling element. They also allowed the engineers to avoid a variable and complicated exhaust routing. During the transformation process the body glides past the side pipes without interference. Since the Presto does not have any doors, the upper side pipes are designed to swing out and make entering and exiting the vehicle easier for the little ones.
The entire body of the Presto consists of Pre-Preg-Composite, a modern plastic material rarely used in vehicle design for cost reasons. It offers extraordinary stability at comparatively low weight.
Rinspeed are a specialty car tuner and automotive design company from Switzerland that are best known for their concept cars that they build for the Geneva Motorshow. The Presto was first shown at the 2002 Geneva Motorshow and like all their other amazing concept cars, it got plenty of press attention at the time.
