- Tomcar
The Tomcar is a type of
off-road utility vehicle.The Tomcar was designed originally to bridge the gap between
all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), which are very maneuverable but also dangerous [ [http://www.abc.net.au/rural/nt/stories/s1018132.htm NT Country Hour - 30/12/2003: ATVs are dangerous for your health ] ] as they do not feature arollcage orseatbelts and which cannot be driven for long periods, andsport utility vehicle s (SUVs), which are less adept at off-road work, and more expensive.The Tomcar’s rigid one-piece
steel frame was originally designed and built for theIsrael Defence Force s, and has grown commercially from within the high performance motor sports community. The Tomcar is made in one, two and four seat models, and is powered by both unleadedpetrol &diesel engines. It also uses a CVT transmission system, and a chain driven final drive system, giving the cars a total ground clearance of 38cm (15") [Diesel Builder Magazine Oct. 2007] .The Tomcar's chain-driven swing arms increase
ground clearance & suspension articulation, and they also create "anti squat" orlift (force) .Under acceleration, a vehicle normally squats in the rear due to the physics of conventional drive-trains. In the Tomcar that torque is displaced causing the swing arms to be “pulled” down and under the vehicle, creating rear-end lift.
The Tomcar was developed in
Israel over the last 15 years, and was designed to fit into a Sea Knight or Chinook helicopter [ [http://www.atvmag.com/article.asp?nid=468 ATVmag.com - The Official Website of All-Terrain Vehicle Magazine ] ] . It is currently used by the Israeli military to patrol its borders and carry out various military missions. The Tomcar is also available to the public for both commercial and recreational use.References
ources
* [http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,21705559-5010760,00.html Courier Mail - Saturday 12th May 2007]
* Janes Defence Weekly Vol. 42, Issue 25,22 June 2005
* TV News broadcast - Eyewitness News, Channel 5 KSL, Utah USA, Summer 2004External links
* [http://www.tomcar.com Tomcar.com]
* [http://www.tomcar.com.au Tomcar.com.au]
* [http://www.tomcar.ca Tomcar.ca]
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