Frank Rinderknecht has done it again. The eccentric Swiss designer behind Rinspeed has just taken a trip into the record books, setting the quickest time across the English Channel in a hydrofoil car. Yes, apparently the folks at Guinness have a category for that, and yes, it's the second automotive crossing in as many weeks.

The Rinspeed Splash (first shown at the Geneva show in 2004) crossed the world's busiest waterway in 193 minutes and 47 seconds, although a technical difficulty encountered in the first leg of the journey sapped quite a bit of speed from the craft for the remainder of the trip.

Despite adequate power from its 140 brake horsepower Weber Motor engine, the Splash had to be specially modified to cope with larger offshore waves. In order to get the craft ship-shape for the open water, Rinderknecht's staff worked with the Swiss engineering specialists at Esoro, and plastics experts Bayer MaterialScience to improve its stability.

Upon completing the journey, the always quotable Rinderknecht proclaimed: "We Swiss are not just good at making the tastiest chocolate; we can also build the fastest hydrofoil vehicle in the world — even though we're not exactly a seafaring nation."