Rinspeed · 2005–present
Rinspeed zaZen
Rinspeed Inc. is a Swiss concept car manufacturer founded in 1979. Rinspeed often show their designs at CES in Las Vegas and the Geneva Motor Show.
Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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History
Rinspeed Inc. was founded in 1979 by Frank M. Rinderknecht and by the 1980s, Rinspeed had become the exclusive Swiss importer of AMG and AC Schnitzer vehicles. Rinspeed became synonymous with launches at the Geneva Motorshow, their first unveiling was, a turbocharged, modified Volkswagen Golf GTI with squared grille and headlamps. In 1981, Rinspeed returned to the show with a more heavily modified Golf called the Aliporta, featuring gullwing doors similar to those on the DeLorean. In the following years, Rinspeed showed concept Porsche's at the Geneva Motorshow including a heavily modified 930 Turbo known as the Rinspeed R39, at the time becoming a unique convertible 911 Turbo that was not in mainstream production and a R69 Turbo concept, a 911 Turbo coupe inspired by the Ferrari Testarossa. It is estimated 12 of the R69s were produced. In the early 1990s, Rinspeed collaborated with Swiss artist Rolf Knie who hand painted a horse inspired design onto a Nissan 300ZX. Alongside the unique art, the Nissan was heavily modified with parts from suppliers including HKS. Moving through the 1990s and 2000s, Rinspeed continued to demonstrate heavily modified and unique concept cars including futuristic aluminimum bodied sports cars such as the R Roadster, the single seat kompogas powered Advantige R1, a Bugatti EB110 called the Cyan, and a two door, low roof Porsche Cayenne. In 2006, Rinspeed achieved the world record time for a hydrofoil crossing the English Channel utilising their Splash concept vehicle, taking 3h 14 minutes to cover 36km. Rinspeed continued with their amphibious car concepts in 2008 with the Squba, the world's first car that can be driven both on land and underwater. Rinspeed were inspired by the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me. The chassis from the
Concept cars
=== zaZen === The zaZen is a concept car shown for the first time at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show. It is based on the Porsche 911 (997) Carrera S platform and developed in collaboration with Bayer MaterialScience. The zaZen is powered by a flat-6 engine that has a displacement of 3,824 cc (233.4 cu in) and develops a maximum power of 355 bhp (261 kW) at 6600 rpm. The car is able to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) in 4.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 182 mph (293 km/h). sQuba. Built around a Lotus Elise, the Rinspeed sQuba is a concept car that can 'fly' underwater and has zero emissions. It debuted at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show, 30 years after its inspiration: the movie The Spy Who Loved Me. The sQuba was featured in the first episode of 14th season of UK motoring show Fifth Gear. Splash. The Splash is a concept amphibious vehicle with a hydrofoil design capable of 45 knots on water or nearly 200 km/h (120 mph) on land. The concept weighs 825 kg (1,819 lb) and is propelled by a 750 cc two cylinder turbocharged engine burning natural gas which produces 140 hp (104 kW) at 7000 rpm, allowing it to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 5.9 seconds. It premiered at the 2004 Geneva Motor Show. The Splash was featured in an episode of Top Gear. In 2006, it set a record for crossing the English Channel in a hydrofoil car, making the journey in 3 hours 14 minutes. iChange. The iChange is a concept car that changes shape and configuration based on the number of passengers inside, up to three. It was unveiled at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show. The car features are controlled by an Apple iPhone and it is powered by a 150 kW (201 hp) electric motor. The iChange has a 0–100 km/h (62 mph) speed of slightly over four seconds, and can hit a top speed of 136 mph (219 km/h). UC. T
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More photos
Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1163154CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RinspeedCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1334478929 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rinspeed_zaZen.jpgCC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo: Max Schmitt · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.