Building the RIDICULOUS
Six fully-electric mutant vehicles will merge to form the TechnoGecko! When all modules are completed, each will have the ability to split apart with independent operation then come together to form a mega-art car, the TechnoGecko, and move as one. This project was started in 2018 and is being completed in stages with one vehicle / module completed at a time.
2023: we’re at 2 (Robot Head and Dance Floor) of the 6 vehicles completed, current capacity at 120 burners. In the videos below see what it currently looks like and what the overall vision is over the next few years!
We have tons of cool features already completed including electric motor with vehicle batteries (no engine), waypoint technology for autonomous driving, wheels that can turn on a dime, and a RC controller in lieu of a steering wheel.
It's a community project by the Dreammakers, the same team that brought you DiscoFish.
2019 Recap Video:
Overall Vision:
Current Specs:
Notable features on what is currently built. 4 more vehicle modules (and many additional features) to add.
Current progress on the TechnoGecko — 2 of 6 modules done // Current capacity at 120 burners
Not your Average Art Car
TechnoGecko has a lot of cool tech that sets it apart from the rest of the art cars and mutant vehicles. We hope the tech enthusiasts, tinkerers, dreamers, and makers appreciate the awesome and ridiculous features!
CUSTOM BUILT CHASSIS
We made it — as in fabricated it from the ground up, as in welded steel from scratch. When we went to the DVM they had to provide us with a VIN number. We were proud. Most mutant vehicles or art cars use the base of an existing vehicle (like a bus, fire truck, car, etc.) and then make their ‘mutant vehicle’ come to life by adding features around that base. We did that for our last mutant vehicle, DiscoFish, but wanted a bigger challenge with TechnoGecko so it’s custom!
NO GAS & NO ENGINE
It’s electric, we don’t have an engine on any of the modules. We have battery engineers on our team that specialize in integrating car batteries on our frame and with our technology. Because we use batteries we have an electric motor on each vehicle module (dance floor, robot head, etc.) so they can move together as well as independently. The photo below is the vehicle battery setup prototype with the wheels. We tested it before mounting it into the custom built steel chassis. Learn about being all electric here!
WHEEL PODS
Our wheels can turn on a dime. We can go from moving horizontal to vertical with the push of a button or move of a joystick! No theoretical parking spot too tight for this slithering beast!
NO STEERING WHEEL OR DRIVER SEAT
Nope, no steering wheel on TechnoGecko. We use a RC remote controller to move it while under human supervision. That means we also don’t have a drivers seat! The ‘driver’ can be walking outside the vehicle, cruising up top, or situated elsewhere.
AUTONOMOUS DRIVING
When using waypoint technology the vehicle will slither from the current location to a preset destination. It moves on its own and avoids obstacles in accordance with the built in tech. Learn more about the LIDAR integration here.
Why We Build
We are builders, dreamers, creators, innovators, engineers, coders, artists, fabricators, welders, electricians, seamstresses, entrepreneurs… to ask why we build is to ask why a bird flies.
Building is Our Culture
We celebrate building. We see builders as the unsung heroes who create the future. We build to connect with people, as a sport with our besties. We’re technically advanced. We thrive on complexity. We analyze, we learn, we create. We dream what can’t be seen. Engineering creations pour out of us, with work and play becoming
indistinguishable from each other. We smile when others declare our ideas ridiculous – then we know we’re onto something good.
Inspire Our Children
"I have two young daughters, and they have grown up in a world of building. I wanted them to see that one could take a very normal looking bus and turn it into something fantastical. One day, on the highway, my daughter pointed ahead – “Look Papa, Another DiscoFish!” We caught up, and sure enough, it was another white E350 21 person bus, just like the base platform for DiscoFish. My daughter stared, incredulous, "Well? Aren't they going to do something with it?" Because, for the daughters of mutant vehicle builders, molding the common world into magical dreams is what we do." -Michael Worry
The Joy of Being Unreasonable
The next generation needs to see that life doesn't come in a shrink wrapped package from Amazon. We want people to know that the bigger and more ridiculous the dream, the more creative, talented, and brilliant people will be drawn to make it real. We say too much of society is focused on being reasonable, limiting thinking to what we can buy, looking for simple answers to complex problems, and being wastefully anxious trying to be normal. We want our community to share in the excitement and joy of being completely unreasonable, to know the power of bringing into reality that which many would consider impossible.
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We need you
TechnoGecko only becomes a reality on the Playa because of the donation of talent, time, sweat, materials, and money from passionate people like you. Join us!
If you have extra cash, cryptocurrency, or stock, please donate it to our 501(c)(3) (DreamMakers) tax-free.