Some concept cars are out there, but the GINA Light Visionary Model concept from BMW is way out there. GINA stands for “Geometry and Function in “N” number of Adaptations.” According to Chris Bangle, Director of Design BMW Group, this means “that there’s a lot of change possible.” The groundbreaking change in this concept is the elimination of the current solid, metal material skin on the car. GINA changes that skin into a cloth that provides the ability to move (unlike current cars), to be lighter, to be made in an easier way, or more. The moving bit is really interesting. Doors open with hinges now; on the GINA concept, the cloth bends and the door bends open. Headlights now are always there, even when they are off; GINA ’s cloth would actually cover the headlights when they aren’t in use. The rear lights function in a similar manner. Since rear lights are used more often and not a feature one can turn on or off, the cloth covering the lights would be translucent so the light would shine through when on, but be unnoticeable when off. These are just a few of the features that have been tested now. Of course this is only a concept car, but could you picture the day when you are driving around in a cloth car; that’s a little far-fetched, but anything is possible in the future.

Yahoo Auto’s feature on GINA

Autoblog’s photo gallery of pictures

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