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Hankook Tire just showed off the results of its Design Innovation Project, a bi-annual daydream challenge to come up with the wildest, most futuristic tire concepts imaginable. This year's winners are amazingly sci-fi: Morphing, transforming tires that change with the terrain to drive on pavement, dirt, snow, and even water.
First up is the Boostrac, whose hexagonal treads can expand like a blowfish to dig into steep, rough, loose terrain.
Next is the Alpike, which expands its diameter to increase ground clearance and opens up deep channels in its tread to grip snow and ice.
This is the most bonkers, badass concept of the three: HyBlade, with waterwheel treads and propeller spokes for navigating deep water. So, so awesome.
Wanna see how all three work? Hankook's got a concept video that turns the Transformers-meets-Star-Wars aesthetic all the way up to eleven.
Polaris says the TerrainArmor tires can be punctured by something as large as a railroad spike, or pierced by a .50 caliber bullet, and keep going for hundreds of miles. In fact, the plastic web can sustain up to 30 percent damage and still work. Even if you get a couple of small holes in the tread, Polaris says there’s no need to replace or repair them.