In 2017 Toyota told that they want to prepare their flying car for 2020. Under the SkyDrive brand, they have developed an Toyota eVTOL capable of carrying a pilot inside and taking flight. They are one step closer to their goal of the “flying taxi of the future” they plan for 2023.
Toyota’s flying car, Skydrive is ready for flight
The official announcement came last Friday, when SkyDrive posted a video showing its Toyota eVTOL in operation and taking off / landing vertically. The SD-03 (name of the current vehicle they are developing) was tested at Toyota Test Field in Toyota City outside Nagoya, Japan. For about five minutes, SkyDrive’s “flying car” hovered in the air without apparent problems.
In the tests we see how the pilot takes off with the eVTOL on the test track and rises several meters in the air. After doing a series of roll and turn maneuvers, it finally lands back without apparent problems. This however doesn’t tell us much about the speed it can reach, the weight it can carry or how long it can stay in the air.
Eight engines, four pairs of propellers, four meters and a pilot
SkyDrive / Toyota eVTOL isn’t the first and probably won’t be the last we’ll see. Airbus, Boeing, Uber, Dufor Aerospace or UPS are some of the companies that are working on this concept as well. So how is SkyDrive different? One of the things they mention is having the smallest eVTOL in the world.
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The SD-03 has a total of four pairs of propellers (a double propeller in each corner) and they say it is only two meters high and four meters wide and long. As an analogy, they indicate that it requires only the space of two parked cars to take off and land. Inside it houses a pilot and from the outside they say they have designed it to make it clear the direction the vehicle is following and look as natural as possible.
Regarding its mechanics, Skydrive has a total of eight electric motors, one for each propeller. With this they indicate that they achieve greater stability and above all safety in case of emergency and that part of the vehicle fails. Each corner has two propellers that rotate in the opposite direction driven by these motors. All this through electrical energy stored in the eVTOL battery. Of course, they have not given details about the autonomy, the capacity of the battery or the total power of these electric motors.
When will we see Skydrive in the air again?
The brand has indicated that they will continue to carry out tests over the coming months with the aim of improving Toyota eVTOL and meeting the requirements of the authorities to be able to operate (it is understood that in Japan). They hope that by the end of 2020 they can also fly out of Toyota Test Field. In short, one more that adds to the idea of flying taxis, with 2023 as the year marked on the calendar
