Riding Across Water

A scene from a science fiction movie has finally become a reality. Lexusannounced in Junehas now reached completion. This project, named "SLIDE," was planned as the fourth installment of the company's global brand advertising campaign, "AMAZING IN MOTION."

The project began 18 months ago with a team of scientists from IFW Dresden, a company specializing in magnetic levitation technology based in Dresden, Germany, and evico GmbH. The Lexus Hoverboard is equipped with two cryocoolers, which cool superconductors within them to -197 degrees Celsius using liquid nitrogen. When placed over permanent magnets, they levitate.

According to developer Oliver de Haas, the magnetic field of the rail is frozen within the hoverboard's superconductor, maintaining a constant distance between the board and the rail, allowing it to float. This force is reportedly strong enough for a person to stand and jump on the hoverboard.

The filming location chosen was Barcelona, Spain. A special hoverpark was created by bringing in magnetic rails, some up to 200 meters long, from the test development facility in Dresden. The video was directed by Henry-Alex Rubin, who has won numerous awards for his documentary and commercial work.

"I've been skateboarding for 20 years, but riding a hoverboard with no friction required learning new techniques from scratch, especially regarding posture and balance. It was an entirely new experience," says professional skateboarder Ross McGranahan, who served as the hoverboard's test rider.

This work is full of highlights, including scenes of riding across water, which is impossible with conventional skateboards, and jumping over the LexusGS FThis is the arrival of a new machine that we definitely want to see showcased at the upcoming Tokyo Motor Show in October.