The Door is Gone.

[10 Wheels]

Neat idea.
http://www.disappearing-car-door.com/

[crtreedude]

Yep, I bet if people led with their bodies they would think before exiting the vehicle...

[dobber]

Just what I want, something else made more complicated, expensive and eventually breaking down.

[AndrewP]

Much the same as the rear side doors on the minivans. I dont thinks this is done for the benefit of cyclists, but for easier exit and entry in cramped parking lots.

[syn0n]

"We eliminated the B pillar", etc.

Yeah, that's exactly what I want: a heavier car with decreased structural integrity. I doubt it handles very well when the road is a winding one. The minivan-style sliding doors make more sense, and a car that uses sliding doors alone is the Peugeot 1007:

http://i32.tinypic.com/nch4ep.jpg

Same result, pretty much, with less engineering fuss.

[Rollfast]

"We eliminated the B pillar", etc.

Yeah, that's exactly what I want: a heavier car with decreased structural integrity. I doubt it handles very well when the road is a winding one. The minivan-style sliding doors make more sense, and a car that uses sliding doors alone is the Peugeot 1007:

Same result, pretty much, with less engineering fuss.

How do you manually release the door in an emergency? What if the battery is dead...how will one open the car?

[bigboots]

I know a better way to make a car door disappear, get rid of the car and ride a bike!!

[Rollfast]

I made Mustangs disappear when I did drive. It gets old. Highway free since Dec. 27, 2005.

[StrangeWill]

How do you manually release the door in an emergency? What if the battery is dead...how will one open the car?

Usually there is a manual release on electronic doors (Viper doors are electric now), however if you mean in an accident... it's easy for current doors to become jammed and not open anyway.

[randya]

http://www.motorcycle.com/images/content/Event/c1-1t.jpg

http://www.detlefs-rentals.com/BMW_C1/c1_silver_G03.jpg

[Lt.Gustl]

The original, I was really hoping that BMW would have a larger displacement version of the C1, there excuses for not importing were ridiculous.

http://www.realclassic.co.uk/bikepix/quasar06062003.jpg

Also the Kaiser Darrin, four wheels with a "disappearing" pocket door, no silly mechanical nonsense involved.

http://www2.uol.com.br/bestcars/carros/classicos2/kaiser-darrin-4.jpg

[randya]

The original, I was really hoping that BMW would have a larger displacement version of the C1, there excuses for not importing were ridiculous.
I think it's totally out of production now, even in Europe; and I agree that not allowing import into US is ridiculous. This applies to a lot of other larger conventional scooters readily available in Europe as well.

[syn0n]

How do you manually release the door in an emergency? What if the battery is dead...how will one open the car?
You pull it open. The electric assist is just that - assist.

[hotbike]

Eliminated the B-Pillar?
What happens if the car gets T-boned?

The B-Pillar, IIRC, is the one thing auto body shops look at when determining if a wreck car can be repaired, or if it's "totaled". B-Pillar is very important to structural integrity.

If a body-shop orders a new front-end, it comes without a B-pillar. If the body-shop orders a new rear quarter panel, it comes without a B-pillar. If your car needs a new B-pillar, you need a new car.

[slagjumper]

So once these become popular, cyclsits will be able to simply hit the inattentive driver, knocking them sensless. I'd rather hit some soft tissue than a steel door edge.

[GreenGrasshoppr]

After that one time when I was doored, the door was gone too.

Only slight damage to my mtb, and I was lucky to fly in a parabolic curve and land in push-up position, so all I got was some muscle soreness for a few hours.

[Bikepacker67]

I'm sorry, but this just proves that some engineers have too much time on their hands.

Can you imagine what would happen in a torrential rainstorm?

[Allister]

Did I accidentally stumble into a sceptic's forum?

[StrangeWill]

Can you imagine what would happen in a torrential rainstorm?

Being as you can afford a car like this in the first place.... you buy another one.

[TRaffic Jammer]

It means the age of Transformers is just about here.