Rinspeed X-Trem Concept (1999)

Rinspeed X-Trem Concept

In the words of Frank M. Rinderknecht founder and owner of Rinspeed Inc.: "Pick-up vehicles are - especially in the U.S. - very popular. However, many times I remarked that these kind of cars were pulling a trailer loaded with objects for sporting activities or for the job. Yet, the pick-up bed stayed empty for most of the times. The actual vehicle was not being used for what it was designed for". In the analysis of this fact it became quickly obvious that the obstacles of the height of the bed and the tail-gate were not easy to overcome. How - for example - does one load a motorcycle quickly and safely on the bed?

In order to accommodate all aspects of life - from the sport to leisure activities to the job and public services - a universal lifting device had to be developed: the

"X-Tra-Lift"

Equipped with this unique loading device, any new or used pick-up truck can take all kinds of goods or platforms. These goods are swiftly loaded by an electrically or hydraulically powered swivel crane - which at the same time can be designed as a anti-roll-bar - from the ground to the bed and of course unloaded the same way. The obstacles of the weight, loading height and tail-gate are easily overcome.

The universal conception of this lifting system allows an extensive and comprehensive use as a multiplex system. The car transforms itself easily from a sport to a leisure as well as to commercial vehicle and back.

Frank M. Rinderknecht: "Due to our invention, the use of the pick-up truck is considerably enhanced and enlarged. The vehicle now can be loaded swiftly, easily and without effort and therefore can be used in every aspect of life".

As innovative the "X-Tra-Lift" presents itself, as futuristic and avant-garde the latest creation of Rinspeed Design, the X-Trem, is concepted. One of the most remarkable features is surely the fact that the Rinspeed X-Trem complies with valid European Union legislation and is a fully-fledged road-going design. "We wanted to build an exclusive car, but one that could be taken out on the roads as well as acting as a pilot project at exhibitions." This ambitious target has certainly been achieved.

One of the world's smallest, yet functional hovercraft is loaded as a special "presentation cargo" on the Rinspeed X-Trem. This air propeller driven and hovering fun vehicle can be piloted easily over all kinds of surfaces: water, land, sand and snow.

The technical features

Under the wide engine cover which electrically tilts forward, power is supplied in plenty by a 5.5-litre-aluminum-block V8 engine from Mercedes-Benz, it develops no less than 347 bhp. This engine, coupled to an automatic transmission, whisks the four-wheel-drive two seater - the base consists of an extended chassis from the Mercedes-Benz M-class - from a standstill to 100 km/h in only 6.9 seconds, with a top speed of 235 km/h attainable when conditions permit. The torque is herculean: at 3'500 rpm already the maximum of 520 Nm is developed.

The technical base of the M-class by Mercedes-Benz inspired the typical "four-eyes-face" of the DaimlerChrysler Group - known from the model E- and CLK. The pronounced engine hood links unmistakably to the typical design lines of the American offshoot Chrysler.

The composite body gives the X-Trem an exceptionally rigid structure and a gross weight of only 1'860 kilograms, with the result that its power-to-weight ratio would be the envy of many a driver of exclusive Italian sports cars.

The two windshields are electrically adjustable and move in and out of the powered engine hood in order to protect the passengers from unpleasant wind drafts.