New Motor Home Transforms Into Yacht

N E W   Y O R K, July, 21 -- Break out the champagne, we're taking a cruise on the RV this summer. Really.

Motor homes don't usually conjure up visions of a luxurious getaway, but a new amphibious recreational vehicle may give the motor home a new image.

John and Julie Giljam, a married couple from South Carolina, created a first-class motor coach that doubles as a yacht.

The Terra Wind is an amphibious 42 ½ foot motor home. The RV can cruise down the highway at 80 mph, and when it hits water it becomes a yacht … with just a few maneuvers.

Gives New Meaning to 'Off Road'

"It's simple to drive in the water," said John Giljam on ABCNEWS' Good Morning America. "You drive straight into the water, push the marine shifter into gear and put it in neutral and away you go. You are a boat."

The Terra Wind has granite countertops, marble floors, teak cabinets, even a full size Jacuzzi with eight jets. There is a washer and dryer, dishwasher, stove with glass top and convection oven, and a trash compactor on board. The amphibious RV even holds a queen-size bed with a mirrored ceiling.

The RV shown on Good Morning America sells for $1.2 million. The Giljams say the pricing starts at $850,000.

The Terra Wind looks like a motor home, except for the two bronze propellers on the back. The systems on the vehicle are computerized and the dashboard resembles a cockpit with its many controllers.

"It has a camera that's used for backing up and an on-board computer system that's used for navigation purposes," John Giljam said.

Amphibious Vehicles Used for Tourism and War

The Giljams began building the Terra Wind three years ago. The couple has been running a business based on amphibious vehicles for years.

In 1999, their company, Cool Amphibious Manufacturers International, began building the Hydra Terra, a 49-seat vehicle that's used by tour companies.

The Giljams have a patent on the Hydra Terra and a patent pending on the Terra Wind.

Although amphibious vehicles have been around since World War II, when they were first used by the military, the Terra Wind is the first amphibious vehicle of its kind built for personal use.