The dusty pages of automotive history are crammed full of madcap inventions which never quite caught on -- the Sinclair C5, the Segway, the tilting three-wheel Carver... the list goes on.
However, despite their lack of commercial appeal, these motorised follies often provide rare glimpses into the future of wheeled transport. Take the Renault Twizy -- is it all that different to the commercial disaster which was the Sinclair C5?
This brings us onto the Gibbs Quadski, a new amphibious quad-bike from the company which gave us the Mazda MX-5-based Gibbs Aquada. And, undeterred by the lack of success with which the old Aqauda met, Gibbs is putting the Quadski into production in the USA later this month.
On dry land, the Quadski is just like a normal quad-bike (i.e. a four-wheeled death trap which will roll over and kill you at the first given opportunity). However, when you get to the wet stuff, you simply drive into the water, press a button and, hey presto, you have yourself a jet-ski.
The power comes from a 1.3-litre BMW motorcycle engine which develops 175bhp. This translates into a top speed of 45mph on both land and water.
When it goes on sale in the USA, the Quadski will cost $40,000 (£26,000); however, there are no plans to bring it to the UK.
Images © Gibbs/Rex Features
