Flying Car Ready To Take Off

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Posted by timothy on Sunday January 11, 2009 @11:42PM from the fill-up-on-windshield-fluid-please dept.

ChazeFroy writes "The first flying automobile, equally at home in the sky or on the road, is scheduled to take to the air next month. If it survives its first test flight, the Terrafugia Transition, which can transform itself from a two-seater road car to a plane in 15 seconds, is expected to land in showrooms in about 18 months' time. Terrafugia claims it will be able to fly up to 500 miles on a single tank of unleaded petrol at a cruising speed of 115mph. Even at $200,000 per automobile, they have already received 40 orders."

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we will NOT have flying cars by Anonymous Coward · 2009-01-11 23:49 · Score: 5, Insightful

seriously. most people can barely control a car on the ground. or even keep one properly maintained.
and you want to put these folks into the air? over your house? yeah... i don't think so.
thats what you call a 'bad idea'.
cap:unguided
1. Re:we will NOT have flying cars by MoonBuggy · 2009-01-12 00:20 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  There's a quick solution to that problem, and it doesn't even require any technical or legislative changes: don't call it a flying car!
  Even their website doesn't use the term 'car'; it's clearly marketed towards pilots not drivers and they call it a "Roadable Aircraft". It's being sold to people who already fly, but want to be able to get from door to door rather than airfield to airfield - an idea which makes sense to me.
2. Re:we will NOT have flying cars by Lumpy · 2009-01-12 01:02 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  The moller skycar is not even a real prtotype, it's a vaporware fake demo.
  we will NOT have VTOL flying cars. Have you seen what a harrier does to pavement when it takes off or lands vertically? IT even blisters the hell out of super thick concrete. and no fan or turbofan in existence will do a decent VTOL without being 3X the size ofthe aircraft.
  Flying cars will NOT happen. The general public is far too stupid to own one, and you would have to put in safety systems that make the car refuse to move when periodic service is needed. Hell my old Piper Comanche needed it's wings replaced for every 1000 hours of flight, and that was nearly the fricking cost of the aircraft! (which is when I sold it.)
  
  --
  Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Re:Rules? by yabos · 2009-01-12 00:15 · Score: 4, Insightful

In the air they have to obey the same rules as other planes. On the ground they have to obey the same rules as other cars. Simple as that. Also to fly one of these things you need a private pilot's license so it's not like any yuppie with 200K is going to be able to fly it.
Re:Roads do nasty things to vehicles by Viol8 · 2009-01-12 00:50 · Score: 4, Insightful

"That's called evolution, baby! If you're the kind of person who's going to think "hey, that corrosion on the wing supports can wait 'till next year", and your still going to fly the thing, then you deserve what you get."
Yeah , but the people on the ground you land of top of don't.