Ok trying to turn that car around in small space can take forever, wasting your time, valuable fuel and tire rubber. Basicly the entire car body would be mounted on a turntable which in turn sits on the chasis. The chasis is symetrical and can drive in either direction. To turn the car round simply unlock and lift the body, rotate it round to face the other way drop and relock it. Now the car can be driven off in it's new direction and the hassle of a 3 point turn in a cramped space has been avoided completely. In more expensive models the turntable will be motorised so you can do the whole thing without getting out of the car.
-- Bronzewing, Apr 01 2004

(?) Fit all cars with these. http://omniwheel.co...wheel/omniwheel.htm
[coprocephalous, Jul 20 2005]

Nissan Pivo concept car http://www.cnn.com/...issan_concept.reut/
No, not a new polish beer, just baked in concept. [squigbobble, Oct 08 2005]

Fit all cars with these http://www.kornylak.../wheels/wheels.html
corrected [coprocephalous]' counter-solution link [pashute, Jun 25 2013]

Do you fancy doing high speed in reverse? how do you reverse the running gear of the car?

Which end steers?

Failing that learn to drive properly
-- engineer1, Apr 01 2004


The idea was that the gear box is in the body not the chasis so when you turn it round, the dirve shafe enguages with the other axel and so the gears are now the other way round as well as the body. Plus I never intended it to be possible to rotate the body of the car while driving, you have to pull up first.
-- Bronzewing, Apr 01 2004


Alternatively, buy a Mini and do a U turn.
-- Ling, Apr 01 2004


Wouldn't the wheel base need to be as wide as it is long? You might as well park it head in. Years ago in a magazine (Popular Science?) I saw a car that had four retractable smaller wheels that came down when you wanted to parallel park. The were 90 degrees different from the tires. You just drove sideways into the parking space. You can buy cars now with four wheel steering that makes parallel parking a breeze even for big vehichles.
-- Nitehawk, Apr 01 2004


why rotate only the body of the car? rotate the whole car around a disk that you jack down. saw somthing like that on scrapheap/junkjard wars i think.
-- nietsch, Apr 01 2004


Way too expensive and complex. To turn the gearbox around, you have to turn the engine around, and the hardest part would be the exhaust, it has to somehow spin around all the wheels and chassis.

Before I'd buy one they have to come up with electronically controlled springs so the suspension setup could be reversed as well, then somone whould have to give me the million $'s to buy the thing, and it also better look good
-- hatch, Apr 01 2004


The solution to this is four wheel independent steering/ You could turn each wheel so it's 90 degrees opposite, and spin the car in place.
-- waugsqueke, Apr 01 2004


Cut two front-wheel drive cars in half just behind the drivers seat. Weld the two front sections together. Now, to change directions, you simply clamber over the seat back into the other drivers seat.

Oh, wait, some crazy kids in Poland already did that...

Never mind.
-- whlanteigne, Nov 03 2004


was hoping this was an idea about a car with DJ turntables on the dashboard so you can mix and scratch while you drive.
-- benfrost, Nov 03 2004


Sometimes I scratch when I drive anyway- oh, I see what you mean, never mind.
-- whlanteigne, Nov 05 2004


Baked (sort of) by Red Green.
-- bdh, Jul 20 2005


+1
-- po, Oct 08 2005


I feel that vote may be in need of justification [po]...?
-- wagster, Oct 08 2005


I disagree :)
-- po, Oct 08 2005



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