Aquaticar is the world’s first underwater driving experience. Guests drive futuristic, submersible vehicles powered by a Bubble Engine™, through a themed underwater world. The theme can be anything one could imagine-from a coral reef environment teeming with fish, to a rugged Mars landscape.
We interviewed Hannah de Bie, VP of Marketing and Communications, to learn more about this unique amusement park attraction:
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| Artist Rendering, Aquaticar |
Why was Aquaticar developed?
Sub Sea Systems’ mission has always been to make the underwater world accessible. The creation of the Sea TREK® guided helmet diving experience has enabled millions of guests to walk on the seafloor, face-to-face with fish and sea life. The program, however, is limited to a relatively small number of guests each tour. This makes it difficult to incorporate the experience into large water parks or theme parks where volume is critical.
The Aquaticar concept was developed to integrate a unique underwater experience similar to Sea TREK, into a high-volume setting. Depending on the number of cars on the track, the Aquaticar ride can accommodate 400+ guests per hour, making it a viable consideration for water parks and theme parks.
Additionally, the Aquaticar environment provides a blank canvas for water parks to tell a story. Traditionally, the main attractions at water parks are water slides, wave pools and lazy rivers. These staple rides don’t lend themselves to telling a unique story or engaging customers in the theming of the park. Aquaticar will immerse guests in the story the park wants to tell – perhaps a treacherous drive through a desolate landscape, or a spooky ride through a "haunted" underwater world.
The Aquaticar concept was developed to integrate a unique underwater experience similar to Sea TREK, into a high-volume setting. Depending on the number of cars on the track, the Aquaticar ride can accommodate 400+ guests per hour, making it a viable consideration for water parks and theme parks.
Additionally, the Aquaticar environment provides a blank canvas for water parks to tell a story. Traditionally, the main attractions at water parks are water slides, wave pools and lazy rivers. These staple rides don’t lend themselves to telling a unique story or engaging customers in the theming of the park. Aquaticar will immerse guests in the story the park wants to tell – perhaps a treacherous drive through a desolate landscape, or a spooky ride through a "haunted" underwater world.
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| Artist Rendering, Aquaticar Track |
Who came up with the original concept?
Sub Sea’s president, Jim Mayfield, came up with the original
Aquaticar concept. (The man never sleeps!).
What stage of development is Aquaticar in currently?
After 2 years of development– from concept, to engineering feasibility and drawings, to months of testing in the community pool with numerous prototypes– we finally have our first production vehicle and segment of track. We’re excited to debut the product at the largest industry trade show in the world – the IAAPA expo in Orlando, Florida (Booth #467!).
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| Underwater Testing |
As with most of what Sub Sea Systems creates, there has never been anything like it before. And with a never-before-seen product, there are very few components that can be purchased “off-the-shelf.” Goodyear surprisingly doesn’t make tires for an underwater vehicle! The majority of the components have to be custom fabricated, which is time consuming (and expensive).
Another challenge, however much more fun, is the R&D. For example, our production team built a custom acrylic water tank, just to test the rotors for Aquaticar. Our engineers would fill the tank, drop in the rotor, turn on the air and count rotor rotations, while measuring torque. We went through 4 iterations of the rotor before developing a version that harnessed the right amount of bubble power with the least amount of water drag.
We also found a very supportive partner in a local community parks department, who granted us access to a heated pool during winter for our test drives. On some mornings, we were even driving the car among very patient water aerobics class participants!
Another challenge, however much more fun, is the R&D. For example, our production team built a custom acrylic water tank, just to test the rotors for Aquaticar. Our engineers would fill the tank, drop in the rotor, turn on the air and count rotor rotations, while measuring torque. We went through 4 iterations of the rotor before developing a version that harnessed the right amount of bubble power with the least amount of water drag.
We also found a very supportive partner in a local community parks department, who granted us access to a heated pool during winter for our test drives. On some mornings, we were even driving the car among very patient water aerobics class participants!
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| Aquaticar Wheels and Rotors |
How will Aquaticar “work”?
A proprietary Bubble Engine™ that harnesses the uplift force of air bubbles powers the Aquaticar vehicle. The vehicle travels along a specialized track, where it triggers a mechanical air register every 10 feet, releasing air beneath the vehicle. The air powers the engine and provides fresh breathing air to the canopy. Drivers can steer the vehicle within the track, but cannot steer outside of the course.
The underwater ride time will range between 2-5 minutes. Drivers remain dry from mid-chest up, and wet from the chest down.
The underwater ride time will range between 2-5 minutes. Drivers remain dry from mid-chest up, and wet from the chest down.
How can I find out more about Aquaticar?
You can see an Aquaticar vehicle on display at the IAAPA trade show in Orlando, Florida, November 14-17th – booth #467. Follow the Aquaticar Facebook page for a live video during the show! Also, visit aquaticar.com for more information on this exciting new underwater adventure.
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| Jim & Kyle Mayfield; Aquaticar in Production |
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