TECH: Cars That Climb Up Buildings, Act As Balconies...And Drive Too!

[Glenn the Great]

.....Designed by Roman Mistiuk, the Peugeot Metromorph Concept looks like a set piece from Minority Report or the discarded idea for a new Transformers character. That's because the Metromorph has dual modes: One as a battery-powered electric vehicle and the other as... a balcony. Cars that climb up buildings and park themselves right outside your bay window were first seen in the sci-fi thriller Minority Report starring Tom Cruise. The Metromorph, however, has a purpose other than as a landing platform for Tom Cruise during a chase scene.
The idea is that real estate for parking will be scarce in the future, so the Metromorph will go vertical up the side of your building and park outside your apartment, at which point it becomes a balcony. This is where the Transformers bit comes in, though we admit transforming into a balcony isn't likely to scare Megatron into a quivering mass of mechanized steel. Nevertheless, the Metromorph will save the humans by freeing up parking spaces for other uses, like a quidditch stadium or whatever else becomes the national past time in the future.

With space for two, the Metromorph features seats held by rotating arms to keep them vertical regardless of the car's orientation. Two in-wheel electric motors housed in the rear wheels motivate this balcony-on-wheels, while two giant doors will slide up and over the vehicle to allow entry and exit. Is this what the future holds for urban dwellers? Time, and the movies, will tell. [source: autoblog]