Bond would have approved.
What the designers ended up creating is the SmarTruck, a fairly benign-looking black sport-utility vehicle that's based on a Ford F350 heavy-duty pickup. But when it's under fire, SmarTruck can disable intruders with electric-shock door handles, fire pepper spray, spread an oil slick and spew tire-puncturing tacks. The rear roof also retracts to expose a turret with a high-powered laser weapon that's operated with a joystick.
The SmarTruck will be unveiled today at the 2001 Society of Automotive Engineers convention at Cobo Center. It should be among the more dramatic media launches at SAE. A dozen troops with color guard will march onto the show floor, accompanied by a four-piece Army band that will play the national anthem. Forgive Wend if he sounds just a bit disappointed with that approach.
"It's hard to show how this vehicle works," he said. "I don't think Cobo officials will let me spill some oil and throw some tacks. So we'll show a movie on the hour of how this vehicle would be used at an embassy that is being overtaken."
Besides being one of the most unusual concepts at SAE, the SmarTruck is important because it showcases some unusual partnerships. For the first time, suppliers such as Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. and Auburn Hills-based MSX International Inc. worked with the Army to create the high-tech military vehicle. And some of the technology they've developed, such as electronic fingerprint identification, will eventually end up on mass-produced cars and trucks.
One of SmarTruck's advanced features, all-wheel steering, is due out on some 2002 GM vehicles. The company has not yet announced what those vehicles will be, but it's expected that full-size Chevrolet and GMC pickup trucks will be the first to get this "You can dramatically reduce the turning circle of big long-bed trucks and improve maneuverability," said Jack Robinson, director of electronic steering at Delphi Steering Systems in Saginaw. "It works especially well in a parking garage. It takes a big truck and makes it drive like a car."
In addition to glimpses at future consumer trends, Wend says the SmarTruck reveals the direction the Army is taking when it comes to designing new vehicles for ground troops. Mobility is in. Cumbersome tank-like vehicles are out. So are camouflage and Army decals.
"Using the color black was deliberate," Wend said. "Special forces usually have black vehicles. With special forces, you want to blend into the environment. Most of the missions this vehicle would participate in would be in an urban setting, not the jungle. When we go to Bosnia, we bring in a Humvee with a 50-caliber machine gun."
Besides Bond, designers took some of their cues from how the U.S. Secret Service guards the White House. In fact, SmarTruck even resembles the GMC Suburban that sometimes functions as the presidential wheels.
The SmarTruck is equipped with unobtrusive front and rear lights that resemble fog lamps. But when a button on the dashboard is flipped, the lights become so blinding that they disorient anyone outside the vehicle, much as special lighting does to intruders on the grounds of the White House. A pepper-spray canister hidden in the SmarTruck's roof shoots a six-foot spray Visibility is a key consideration, too. Cameras are mounted all around the vehicle. The driver and other passengers can see 360 degrees around the outside of the SmarTruck by using flat-panel video monitors. The cameras, along with the vehicle's cell phone, doors, windows and radio, are all voice-activated.
The vehicle also comes equipped with a black box, like the ones that record mechanical functions and pilot conversations on airplanes.
"The auto companies are very interested in this feature," Wend said. "They are looking at adapting those black boxes for consumer use any day now. They could reduce warranty costs and speed up service by diagnosing and even fixing problems remotely."
