Lexus allows you to float to work

EVERY child (and every adult with an inner child) has lusted after a hoverboard ever since Marty McFly used one in the 1989 classic,

For those who missed the movie, Marty’s ride was a skateboard that floated along on a gravity-defying magnetic cushion in place of wheels. Now car company Lexus has come a step closer to turning sci-fi into reality by building a prototype Hoverboard.

Magnetic levitation with liquid nitrogen-cooled superconductors allow the board to glide a few centimetres above the ground, giving frictionless movement of a kind that had been thought impossible.

Known better for its cars that run on wheels, Lexus has created the Hoverboard concept as the latest project in its ‘Amazing in Motion’ campaign, demonstrating its commitment to pursuing new possibilities in advanced design and technology.

Mark Templin, Executive Vice President, Lexus International, said: “At Lexus we constantly challenge ourselves and our partners to push the boundaries of what is possible.”

“That determination, combined with our passion and expertise for design and innovation, is what led us to take on the Hoverboard project. It’s the perfect example of the amazing things that can be achieved when you combine technology, design and imagination.”

Although a completely different form of transport, the Hoverboard shares design cues with today's Lexus cars, including the signature spindle grille.

It has also been made using some of the same materials, both high-tech and natural, such as bamboo.

For now the Lexus Hoverboard is just a prototype and isn’t scheduled for sale. The prototype is being tested in Barcelona in the coming weeks prior to the campaign’s launch this summer. In the meantime, check out the teaser video on Toyota GB’s Vimeo channel: https://vimeo.com/user9210540