The Hyundai Kite is an electric two-seater dune buggy concept that transforms into a single-seat jet ski, unveiled at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show. It is not amphibious in the usual sense, where one shape compromises both abilities. Instead, the Kite is built to convert and become an entirely different machine, a buggy on land and a personal watercraft on the water. Here is how the Hyundai Kite works and why it captured so much attention.
What is the Hyundai Kite concept?
Unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, the Hyundai Kite is an electric 2-seater dune buggy that can transform into a single-seat jet ski. It is by no means amphibious in shape or design, as that would compromise each of its capabilities. Instead, it is supposed to transform and become an entirely different machine, which is exactly what makes the Hyundai buggy so unusual among concept vehicles.
How does the Hyundai Kite turn into a jet ski?
The Kite is fairly simple in construction: it has no doors, roof or windows. It uses a brushless electric hub drive on land and an electric water jet drive on water. Hyundai detailed four brushless in-wheel motors for road use and a water jet turbine for the marine mode. There is no clear indication of exactly how the Kite transforms into a jet ski, so we are left asking all the right questions. Where do the wheels go? What about the extra seat? Where is the water drive jet? The official brief is on the Hyundai press site, with hands-on coverage from Electrek.
Who designed the Hyundai Kite?
Designed in collaboration with the Istituto Europeo di Design (IED) in Italy, the Kite is a daring concept that goes out of the ordinary. It was one of the most interesting things displayed at the Geneva Motor Show, and despite leaving us full of doubts, we cannot help but love it. The buggy-to-jet-ski idea reflects exactly the kind of playful, boundary-pushing thinking that makes a concept worth remembering.
Explore real buggies and watercraft
The Hyundai Kite may be a concept, but TheArsenale stocks the real-world equivalents that split the difference between land and water. Browse the watersport collection for personal watercraft, then check the electric jet skis Seacruiser electric watercraft and Searacer electric watercraft, the Q2S electric hydrofoil boat, and for the buggy side, the minimalist Reboot Buggy by Joey Ruiter.
