The experimental Swiss auto company Rinspeed unveiled a new car this week at the Geneva Motor Show whose body adapts to the number of passengers on board.

The streamlined one-seater, named the iChange, transforms to accommodate three passengers at the push of a button. The idea behind the vehicle is that by maximising its aerodynamic properties at all times, the car will consume less energy.

Rinspeed CEO Frank M Rinderknecht said:

“The iChange is a symbol for the fundamental changes the auto industry undergoes worldwide. And it is clear that only those companies will survive that have innovative answers for the demands of a new automotive era.”

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Rinderknecht believes that the days of gas-guzzling MPVs are coming to an end: “The iChange is a signal for the coming global changes to individual mobility. We need to be ready to meet these challenges with new ideas.”

Rinspeed’s concept vehicle weighs1,050 kilograms. The car is powered by an electric motor which the company claim produces 150kW, capable of propelling the car to a top speed of 135mph and accelerating from 0 to 62mph in just over four seconds. The iChange uses a six-speed gearbox from the Subaru WRX.

The “adaptive body” of the iChange transforms from a teardrop shape to an expanded rear end providing room for an additional two passengers. The car has no doors, but is accessed through its roof and many of the controls are operated by directly with an iPhone, including the locking systems and ignition, making keys unnecessary.

Last year the Swiss company unveiled a submersible car, directly inspired by James Bond's Lotus in The Spy Who Loved Me. Named the sQuba, a vehicle which could dive to a depth of 10m (33ft).

The iChange was developed alongside Swiss engineering company Esoro, with whom Rinspeed have collaborated in the past on several outlandish concept vehicles, including 2004’s Rinspeed Splash, an amphibious car that transforms to become a hydrofoil on the water.