Researchers at Southwest Jiaotong University built a real car that floats above the road using magnets. No wheels on the ground. The 2.8-tonne vehicle hovered 35mm above a specially built highway in Jiangsu province and hit speeds of up to 230 km/h during testing.
The road itself has magnets embedded into it. The car has permanent magnets on the bottom. When they meet, the car lifts off the surface and glides forward — almost zero friction, almost zero noise.
Eight vehicles were tested on a 7.9 km stretch of highway. The results were good enough that China is now looking at building dedicated maglev lanes on public roads.
This is still early-stage technology. But if it scales, it could completely change how cars work — no tires, less road damage, lower energy use, and smoother rides.
The future of driving might not involve touching the road at all.
Author: Saikat Bhattacharya
