(Please note– the Dymaxion travels occasionally for shows)
Backwards To the Future
Lane Motor Museum Announces Completion of Classic Dymaxion Replica and Appearance at Amelia Island
After eight years, Lane Motor Museum is pleased to finally announce that its replica of Dymaxion Car #1 is complete and will go on display starting Feb. 26, 2015.
Three Dymaxion Cars were produced between 1933 and 1934 by famed futuristic visionary Buckminster Fuller. The Dymaxions were legendary for being far ahead of their time in both design and technology. The three-wheeled Dymaxions, powered by a Ford V-8 engine, could achieve 30 mpg and carried up to 11 passengers. The Dymaxions were teardrop-shaped for aerodynamic efficiency and could reach speeds of 90 mph. The cars also featured front wheel drive, a rear-mounted engine, and rear wheel steering.
As advanced as the Dymaxions were, the project failed to attract sufficient funding to continue, and the project stalled. Two of the cars were sold; one was destroyed in a crash, the other in a fire.
The sole remaining, non-running, original Dymaxion rests at the National Automobile Museum in Reno, NV. Now, thanks to a dedicated team of restorers and mechanics, Lane Motor Museum has one of their own. After undertaking the project in 2007 and after taking many twists and turns, the retrofuturistic Dymaxion is back and here to stay.
“The Dymaxion just makes sense for us to have at the museum,” said Director Jeff Lane. “The design is well ahead of its time and it looks definitely fit the uniquely different philosophy we build our collection around. After doing lots of research, we decided that Dymaxion #1 was the best fit for the museum and now it’s here.”
In 1934, an original Dymaxion was driven on a road trip to Connecticut by famous designer Isamu Noguchi, who helped design the wonder car. This year, Lane Motor Museum Director Jeff Lane will be driving Lane Motor Museum’s example on a road trip of its own from Nashville to make its debut at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance in Florida on March 15, 2015.
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