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Carsales Staff25 Jun 2015
NEWS

Lexus hover board materialises

Inventive Japanese luxury brand claims to have built the world's first hover board

Ever since the seminal Back to the Future Part II film screened in 1989, starring a baby-faced Michael J Fox, there has been huge amount of nostalgia for an improbable device called the hover board.

The idea of a skateboard without wheels that floats on air is completely farcical yet it hasn't stopped countless inventors attempting to replicate the movie prop.

And now Lexus claims to have created the real thing.

It's a bit too late for an April Fool's joke and Lexus isn't in the habit of drumming up publicity for fake products. Yet with only a few images and short video – which doesn't show the hover board in action – there's still a lot of scepticism surrounding the luxury car-makers' concept.

Lexus claims to have "partnered with world leading experts in super conductive technology" to deploy "one of the most advanced hover boards ever developed".

As the short video shows, there's vapour emanating from within the device, which Lexus says is from the liquid nitrogen necessary to cool the superconductors and permanent magnets that are required to provide magnetic levitation.

But therein lies the issue. For a hover board to work like China's famous mag-lev (magnetic levitation) train, it would need a metal road or surface to travel above, like the mag-lev's track. It's unlikely a powerful array of magnets within a small board can levitate itself and a rider over bitumen or grass.

More likely a desirable object designed to inspire new styles and highlight the brand's innovative streak – most luxury car-makers stick to push bikes and wrist watches – the Lexus hover board features the brand's trademark spindle grille signature shape and is finished with high-tech and indeed natural materials, including bamboo.

"At Lexus, we constantly challenge ourselves and our partners to push the boundaries of what is possible," said Mark Templin, Lexus International executive vice president.

"That determination, combined with our passion and expertise for design and innovation, is what led us to take on the hover board project. It's the perfect example of the amazing things that can be achieved when you combine technology, design and imagination," he said.

It's not clear if Lexus plans to sell the hover board publicly, but global interest in such devices is clearly strong, after a hoax video of skateboard legend Tony Hawk amassed more than 16 million views on YouTube.

There is also the Hendo Hoverboard, which is advertised as production-ready for October 21, 2015. That's the same day that the protagonists of the hugely successful Back to the Future Part II movie arrived in the 'future' from the late 1980s…

Lexus says testing of its bespoke hover board will commence in Barcelona, Spain, in the coming weeks.

What's your take on the hover board – can it be done or is it just a mag-lev novelty that will be limited in scope?

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Written byCarsales Staff
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