Those without cars often face a common predicament when going to work: “Will I take the bus or the train?” For citizens living in Adelaide, South Australia, there doesn’t seem to be much difference. Check out Adelaide’s O-Bahn Busway: Ever since its first passenger ride in 1986, the O-Bahn Busway has confounded both passengers and…

Those who suffer from acrophobia now have another reason to fear this vertically-inclined planet. After fourteen years in production, the world’s steepest funicular tram——the Stoosbahn—is now complete. Connecting the town of Schwyz to the mountain village of Stoos in Switzerland, the €44.6m tram (approximately $52.55m) travels 1,300 meters above sea level at a dizzying incline…

It looks like Bridgestone is flexing its biceps at Nexo by creating airless bicycle tires that won’t go flat, even when punctured. Unlike conventional tires with an inner tube filled with air to maintain rigidity, Bridgestone’s “Air-Free Concept” wheels feature thermoplastic resin spokes to maintain shape and support the weight. The tires are stretched around the inner…

When it comes to ‘garage inventors’, few people carry the title as well as Colin Furze. The plumber-turned-viral YouTube video star out of Stamford, Lincolnshire has created everything from the world’s fasted pram to a hoverbike in his humble UK-based garage workshop. And while he probably worries his friends and family sick, he’s showing no…

From mechanical wings to jet packs, man’s desire to fly stretches back centuries. But, like flying cars and teleportation, it’s a concept that’s still just beyond our grasp. But for the particularly gutsy extreme sports enthusiast, Hoversurf’s Scorpion 3 Hoverbike just might carry over any fleeting flying desires in the meantime. Built as a combination…

Whether or not Apple actually makes a self-driving car for the masses or not, perhaps just as interesting is what the company would envision a car in 2020 to actually look like—you know, considering that it would be chiseled away by a team of the world’s most elite industrial designers. To give them a boost,…

In the history of industrial design and engineering, perhaps no other industry is as storied and colorful as the automobile. While we may be on the cusp of a future consisting of self-driving cars that we can experience through virtual reality before purchasing, it’s the marketing and sales tactics that reflected consumer needs and buying…

It was only two weeks ago when LEGO released their extremely detailed “life-like” replica of the iconic Porsche 911 GT3 RS with a 2,704-part build sequence modeled after the real-life vehicle’s assembly process. Although the $299 kit is already out of stock, LEGO wants to settle your woes with yet another impressive automobile kit modeled…

Back in April, the LEGO design team unveiled their latest 2,704–piece LEGO Technic model in the form of a life-like” replica of the iconic Porsche 911 GT3 RS with a build sequence modeled after the real-life vehicle’s assembly process. To keep the LEGO build process as close as possible to the same real-world assembly process…

Like others in the design profession, industrial designer Joey Ruiter approaches the design process as a path that leads him around the obvious to a place that reveals the unexpected. In his case, however, the design process rarely starts with a pen and paper; it starts by taking an existing machine and stripping it down…

Jack Lennie is a recent Edinburgh-based product design graduate with a first class honors degree, a SolidWorks certification and a national award under his arm. He also just released a downloadable build kit for manufacturing a motorcycle in nearly any modern workshop. Not bad. Designed to breathe a “new lease of life into damaged or…

Between news of the Apple Car, the introduction of hands-free driving from Tesla and Google’s continued development of self-driving cars, 2015 shaped up to be one of the most interesting years in recent memory for the automobile – yet, 2016 is already shaping up to be even crazier. Not one to be left behind automakers, Goodyear…

Rarely do we ever hear “mobility scooters” and ” Harley-Davidson motorcycles” in the same sentence, but now that we have, we can’t help but wonder how or what a mash-up of the two might look like. In any case, it would probably be very close to the recently-redesigned Afiscooter SE mobility scooter from Studio Lama.…

When it comes to NFL commercials, one only needs to be pointed to a long-running list of legendary Super Bowl ads to be reminded of how much money is spent on campaigns. To help kick off the new season, Honda has paid $5 million USD to air a total of 8 minutes of their new…

Although not everybody is a fan of electric cars and motorcycles, it’s hard to deny that some of the most exciting transportation design concepts in recent memory have been coming from those that are further exploring this new frontier – a frontier that allows designers to strip away many of the components that are necessary…

Since being founded in the spring of 1906 by Charles Stewart Rolls and Sir Frederick Henry Royce, British car manufacturer Rolls-Royce Limited has always been known for superior handmade quality and superior engineering that has led to multiple land and air speed records. Even as more automakers continue to turn to automating their assembly lines…

Of all of the ‘futuristic’ gadgets that popular culture has dangled in front of consumers without the satisfaction of it being real, the Back to the Future hoverboard (okay, and self-lacing shoes) rank among the highest in the list. While we’ve seen various attempts to create hoverboards over the years – as evidenced by a…

Known for his prolific automotive art and custom car designs, Steve Sanford’s work has been commissioned over the years by custom car builders and car enthusiasts alike – not to mention he’s also helped inspire generations of car designers through his unique rendering techniques. But not only has Stanford been able to make a name…

Back in August of 2013, Elon Musk released a white paper on the Hyperloop, a concept for a high-speed ground transport that could – in theory – transport individuals from San Francisco to Los Angeles in just thirty minutes. The sci-fi concept, which has unsurprisingly sent ripples through the design and technology communities, has had…

Ladies and gentlemen – start your engines or as Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap would say “These go to eleven!”. This is Fiat S76, more famously known as The Beast of Turin from 1911 and it easily goes to eleven and beyond. This magnificent car was built during the short Edwardian (or Brass) Era, spanning…

Despite having some of the more interesting onscreen visuals we’ve seen in years, it’s likely that the 2010 film TRON: Legacy might not be in your Top Ten Films of All Time list. However, it’s hard to deny that – in addition to the unique visual effects – one of the most memorable aspects of…

Between the trends of both designing products outside of a company’s product category and the rise of privatized space exploration, it was only a matter of time before we started seeing designers (and their brands) come out of the woodwork with their own take on spacecraft designs. While well known industrial/concept designers such as Scott…

Thanks to the internet’s interest in never-ending, looping cat fails and Russian parkour accidents, the GIF file format has surged in popularity over the past few years – however, when put into context for a sales or marketing tool, the GIF can be a powerful communicative medium for explaining a process. Among others who have…

As cycling continues to increase as a standard form of transportation around the world, we’ve also naturally been seeing an increasing amount of accessory designs that aim to make riding a bike to work or to meet up with friends at the bar a more personal experience. Among other companies aimed at making the cycling…

Considered to be one of the most iconic designs from architect and designer Buckminster Fuller, the Dymaxion #1 is one of three cars that were designed by the late designer in the 1930s. Although the zeppelin-esque design of the car is well-loved and has been etched-in to nearly every industrial design history book or class…

With a base price of $845,000 (yes, that’s before any options), Porsche’s 918 Spyder hybrid supercar is certainly not an everyday cruiser that most would expect to see on their daily commute. As a matter of fact, the company is only planning on producing 918 of them this year alone worldwide. But perhaps what the…

Previously, we’ve already seen how car manufacturers are able to bring their customers into their manufacturing process by way of virtual reality. Considering that the future consists of various head-mounted displays and other VR-tech including the Microsoft Hololens, the Oculus Rift and Magic Leap – among others – we may as well start to fabricate…

When he was on pace to become the youngest head designer ever at General Motors, John Delorean boldly decided to ditch the car giant and set out on his own path to establish his own car company that would later become Delorean. After setting up shop in Ireland, Delorean developed what would later become one…

Back when it was announced that Apple had hired Australian industrial designer Marc Newson to join their notoriously tight-knit Industrial Design team, there was plenty of speculation about why Apple had made the decision. Amongst other theories was that Newson and Ive just simply wanted to work together in the same environment, however it is…

American Wrench and William “Iron Bill” Shatner have teamed up to create the Rivet, a type of vehicle they have called a ‘Landjet’. “Designed from the ground up as a 3 wheeled vehicle, with its exposed cockpit and command center, seating fit only for a captain and the harmonious roar of its brute V8, piloting Rivet…

When it comes to transportation design, it used to be that one only needed to attend an exterior design sketching class to notice that the majority of those in attendance were likely car-obsessed males. However, as more women crossover into design and engineering roles that were previously held by their male counterparts, we’re also starting…

Fresh off the heels of last week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2015) in Las Vegas, the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit is in full-swing today and is swapping in-dash computer announcements for supercar unveilings. The first car to take the Detroit audience by storm this morning was one that has been rumored…

As bicycles increasingly become the go-to transportation of choice for urban dwellers, pre-existing problems that have plagued cyclists for years become highlighted and with them (hopefully) new and better solutions to make riding a better experience. Take for example the problem of commuting with a messenger bag, backpack, or gym bag. While messenger bags by…

After School Smack is a new feature here on SolidSmack where we talk with current design students about the current happenings of their budding design careers. We’ll discuss everything from how they’re approaching the wide-open field of industrial design to how they’re keeping their portfolios fresh and their mind in the game. To kick us…

Every once in a while we hear about a Maker with zero previous making experience come by and run circles around those who have been in the business of making for years. Ivan Sentch of Auckland, New Zealand is one of those Makers who only last December picked up his first 3D printer for $499.…

…Okay the title is partially misleading, but is somewhat true: if your ‘vision’ of what a 2014 Lexus IS F Sport should look like is chosen, ONE of the prizes is a one year paid lease for a 2014 Lexus IS F Sport—plus, an all-expenses paid trip to see your design revealed at the SEMA…

Outside of Need for Speed and other driving simulator videogames, the knowledge of ‘real’ manual transmission driving is dying out with younger generations of drivers. Ford engineer Zachary Nelson is aiming to change all that with a new 3D printed shift knob that tells you when to shift based on haptic feedback—essentially creating the physical…

Consider it a Pinewood Derby for the 21st Century Maker…YouTube and 3D Printing included. As a way to kick off the 2013 IDSA International Conference (August 21-24), the IDSA is sponsoring the Launch Day Challenge consisting of 3D printed cars to be launched down a ski-slope track. Here’s how to enter.

Luxury camping? Sounds like an oxymoron, yet we have been seeing an increasing amount of modified trailer solutions that throw the term ‘roughing it’ into…well, the rough. Among other crazy/functional designs floating around right now are the recently released camper concepts from BMW’s Mini. In an age where camping without any charging cables for a…

Philippe Starck once famously said that there should be no cars on the road—-only motorcycles. While some soccer moms may disagree, his theory is valid: less pollution, more space, and dare I say it—more badassery. With all the recent developments of augmented reality-based windshields seen in concept cars in the past few years, it was…

For those used to cycling on busy city streets (NYC comes to mind), the need for swift reaction times could be compared to that of catching a fly with your bare hand. With maniac cab drivers and aloof SUV drivers running up and down Broadway, sometimes a simple hand signal doesn’t do the trick…especially at…

Opening tomorrow and running through the 14th, the Salone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano (The Milan Furniture Fair) is bound to have a few surprises that we’ll report on over the week. This showcase of all things product design has also been an outlet for famed British designer Ross Lovegrove to show off his latest…