This concept car is not from a car manufacturer but is instead from Kumho, a Korean tyre company. It is more of an idea concept instead of a working concept prototype, but the ideas that Kumho have for the car of the future are rather interesting. The concept car is called the Kumho Epoch.
For a start, the chassis of the Epoch is supposed to be grown from bamboo, which provides an immediate carbon offset. Its body panels are made of recycled tyre tread rubber. The car moves via in-wheel power, however it is far from what we’re used to with in-wheel propulsion like the Mitsubishi i-MIEV.
Instead, the Kumho Epoch uses Maglev units, or Magnetic Levitation units integrated into the four wheel hubs. This means zero friction, and maximum torque across the entire speed range.
The tyres used use EAP technology, which stands for Electro Active Polymer. The tread and shape of these tyres can be changed on a fly by passing an electric current through the rubber, thus enabling the tyre to have different characteristics in different situations. Grooved during wet, slicks during dry, and varying thickness to switch between performance and comfort is an idea.
The interior rubber uses Kumho’s scented rubber technology which uses heat-resistant oils to give the rubber scents such as lavender, neroli or jasmine. This technology has already been used for a production tyre – the Kumho ECSTA DX Aroma.
One more shot after the jump.
Click to enlarge
After dabbling for years in the IT industry, Paul Tan initially began this site as a general blog covering various topics of personal interest. With an increasing number of readers paying rapt attention to the motoring stories, one thing led to another and the rest, as they say, is history. An avid electronic gadget aficionado as well as big-time coffee lover, he's also the executive producer of the Driven motoring TV programme.
Rubbish design! Tyre manufacturer, the tyre look obviously biggest! If ask spark plug producer to design their car, the spark plug may be as big as the engine!
hehe..too many ideas, chasis grown from bamboo?…hahaha…very kereta lembuish concept..nice try..
one time get fire whole car gone….
fuyyo~
hujan, panas, hujan, panas…soon the body rubber will harden and disintegrate?
if it got some electrical problem during heavy rain, the tyre thread would posses a threat?
btw, the maglev, where it is situated. i don’t quite understand.
ala~ kn prototype je
wow…….no word can describe this car..or is it no a car?
guys, its a concept car from a tyre maker. A TYRE MAKER.
I suddently think that a paultan.org concept car is gonna be a 21 incher, 250 bhp mininum, sportier then a skyline and sharper then a ferarri, plus an onboard computer that have satelite modem access so that you can go online on almost every corner of the world to update your blog, an onboard computer controlled digital camera with anti shock auto lockdown and 10megapixel 20x zoom mounted on the roof of the car to snap any wierd car you will possibly seen on the road, and finally, a vegetable oil enabled burner to power all the stuff above.
wow! burning rubber smells nicer!
when will coloured tyre being sold ??
after every 10K km, its will change its skins to another shade…
I’ve never liked concept cars. I know that it is the future and all that, but some are truly outrageous, and very unlikely to see production.
Many concepts in Auto shows are without engines, and are just for show. Unless there is a very high likelihood that it will go into production with little alterations, these cars will remain, a mere concept, and there is really very little to talk about them.
lets be a bit open minded..will we?…many things seen impossible decades ago…r possible now…cars parking itself…braking itself..these ideas were seen crazy in te beginning…who noes 30-40 years from now…those magnetic levitation might be a standard feature..n etc….many things started once as concepts r reality now…
Do you need to balance the car every 10k? haha Car!
bigfish, it looks exactly like the one seater prototype cars used for eco-challenges today. its a very tiny car, hence the wheels look large. It is also similar to single seater race cars. Is that a rubbish design? and why so?
i think its a brilliant concept, taking into consideration the environmental and safety concerns of the future. very good effort
so do you just crash when running out of electricity?
Maglev wheels?? Hmmm… As there is no direct coupling to any axle or spindle, how do they brake? Any idea Paul?
they better stick back to what they do best .
koreans…
Heh heh. I first thought the right hand side of the photo was the front end of the car and thought whoa this car looks like a cockroach. But then I noticed the beam from the headlight on the other end…
Doesn’t look too nice but hey, it’s their money. They can spend it anyway they like.
This is one of the more interesting concepts I’ve seen in quite a while. If we can manage to make this a reality in the future, friction or gear change could be a thing of the past, as well as choosing the right sort of tyre. To add to that the car is made from organic stuff as well as recycled rubber… I say this is a good thing and they’re going in the right direction. I only hope I live long enough to see cars with this tech on the roads (and own one)