AUTONEWS

eXasis concept: a transparent laboratory on four wheels

In its more than four decades of activity, the Swiss company Rinspeed has got us used to showing decidedly strange creations, but which have always had a principle of technical, technological and conceptual innovation.

The 2007 eXasis is a doubly good example of this philosophy, because a few years before the race for sustainability, it was already proposing an idea of ​​reducing consumption and emissions, including industrial ones, based on advanced research into synthetic materials.

The eXasis concept was presented at the 2007 Geneva Motor Show, celebrating two anniversaries: the 30th anniversary of the company founded by Frank M. Rinderknecht and the 40th anniversary of the first 'glass car' made by Bayer, a partner in the project (actually the car was not glass, but clear plastic).

The German multinational, known to most people as a pharmaceutical company and more specifically for Aspirin, also has an important biochemical division focused on plastics called MaterialScience, which had already begun in the 1960s to imagine synthetic bodies that could replace metal, saving weight and simplifying production.

The talents of these two companies have come together in eXasis, which was developed with the help of another Swiss advanced engineering company, Esoro. It combined a lightweight structure and efficient mechanics with a transparent body made by Bayer, and the platform itself was made from Makrolon, the trade name for the German company's polycarbonate.

In addition to the aesthetic effect, the Rinspeed prototype had really interesting figures: the small 750 cm3 Weber engine, powered with bioethanol, offered a generous power of 150 hp, more than enough to move just 750 kilograms, so the weight-to-weight ratio final power was only 5 kg/hp.

Mounted in the rear, above the transmission, the engine also helped balance weights when riding at full load, while occupants sat in a row on specially designed Recaro seats.

These benches were made of Makrolon, the result of a special study on the arrangement of the transversal elements, which gave them adequate strength and reduced weight. The headrests and armrests were made of transparent Technogel.

The chassis was made of aluminium, while many chrome-effect interior elements were actually made up of materials made from water-based alloys, soft to the touch, but more respectful of the environment than those on the market. Makrolon was even used to decorate the 22-inch, five-double-spoke AEZ forged wheels, shod with high-performance Pirelli P Zero tires.

The eXasis also had sophisticated digital instrumentation that was ahead of advances in the automotive industry, with two transparent indicators and two screens to control vehicle functions.

These were made of hollow Makrolon, covered with a layer of Baytron, an electrically conductive material, which made it possible to make tactile 'virtual' switches.

Autonews