Photos by Scott Jacobs
Remember the Infiniti Essence? It was the stunning, 592-horsepower concept car from this year's Geneva auto show that had everybody asking, "Is this Infiniti's GT-R?"
We still don't know the answer, but we do know that late last week, the Infiniti Essence arrived in the United States for the very first time -- it's headed to Pebble Beach for the Concours d'Elegance. Inside Line was in Torrance, California, for the official "uncrating." And we have video and photos.
Infiniti had a special crate built just for the Essence, because, well, it had to. At over 77 inches wide (about 3 inches wider than a GT-R), this car won't fit in a standard shipping container. So the Essence travels in its own enormous steel case, and because it's a multi-million-dollar one-off concept, that case is loaded onto a cargo plane rather than an ocean freighter.
It sounds like a lavish existence, but when the Essence shows up in Torrance, all we see is a big gray box strapped down to a flat bed attached to an old International cab. It looks vulnerable. And getting the crate off the truck won't be easy.
Follow the jump for video and more photos.
First, Nissan's logistics firm has to go get a special forklift rated to handle more weight. Note the solid wheels on this forklift.
The firm is used to moving around cars in wooden crates, which weigh a lot less than the Infiniti Essence's steel box. The Nissan GT-R show car, for example, traveled by air in a wooden crate. The main advantage of the steel box, we're told, is that it can be reused.
And indeed this box has been reused. These are the shipping labels from this week's trip from Tokyo's Narita airport to Los Angeles Int'l (LAX). Nissan won't officially say how much the steel case weighs, but there's no hiding these labels.
And below are shipping labels from early July when the Essence flew from Frankfurt, Germany, to Tokyo -- undoubtedly after its appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
As we watch the crate being moved off the truck, we realized just how complex it is. Small access doors allow staff to check the stability of the tie-down points within the crate. This is Andy Parkin, who's in charge of the care and feeding of all Nissan/Infiniti's concept cars that come to the U.S.
The crate also has a larger door that allows walk-in access to the Essence.
For unloading, the whole side of the crate can be opened up via hinged and folding doors.
Even in the safety of its crate, the Infiniti Essence is protected by a car cover.
To get the Essence out of the box, the forklift is used to slide out the crate's separate built-in pallet.
First, though, staff have to unbolt the fasteners holding the pallet in place. In the closer view, you can see just how many bolts secure the Essence to its pallet
Finally, Infiniti's multi-million-dollar concept car is out of its crate.
In Part 2, we'll show you how the Essence gets off its pallet. It's only 6 inches off the ground, but clearance is minimal on this apparent sportscar, and well, most concept cars don't move too well (or at all) under their own power.
stovt001 says:
09:36 PM, 08/ 9/09
Wow. I've never considered the logistics of getting concept cars around. That's quite an undertaking.