LAS VEGAS (Nov. 5, 2013) – Dive into an underwater adventure with the 2014 SpongeBob Highlander: Tanked Edition, revealed for the first time at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas Nov. 5-7.
About 115 individual fish will swim in the 800-gallon custom tank designed by Animal Planet’s “Tanked” co-stars Wayde King and Brett Raymer in partnership with Toyota and Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants.” King and Raymer co-own Acrylic Tank Manufacturingand build more than 200 projects a year for top celebrities, luxury hotels, casinos, Fortune 500 businesses and private homes.

The aquarium tank begins behind the front two seats of the all-new 2014 Highlander SUV and stretches the length of the vehicle. More than 32 species populate the saltwater setting, including starfish (like the SpongeBob character, Patrick), squirrelfish, Fiji foxface, flame angel, clownfish and pilot fish. A custom-built, complex filtration system includes an overflow system, sterilizer, UV filter, temperature regulator and additional elements. The fish arrived from Los Angeles and had two days to acclimate to the tank before the watery showcase.

The SpongeBob theme carries throughout the interior details and the exterior wrap of the vehicle.

“Brett and I love the challenge of designing aquariums in every shape and size and welcomed the opportunity to bring living art like this to SEMA,” King said. “The teams at Toyota and Nickelodeon gave us great platforms in the Highlander and SpongeBob SquarePants to create something fun and inspiring for fans.”

The “Tanked” episode is expected to air in March 2014 on Animal Planet and also will highlight the features of the new Highlander, including distinctive new styling, smart storage and tons of technology.

“When we talk about the size and versatility of the new 2014 Highlander, we now can add how many fish swam inside one,” said Jack Hollis, vice president of marketing for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. “The ‘Tanked’ designers and Nickelodeon combined the mystery of the ocean and the fun of SpongeBob into a Highlander everyone will be talking about at SEMA.”

After the SEMA Show, the 2014 SpongeBob Highlander: Tanked Edition will travel to the LA Auto Show.

“We hope fans across the country will enjoy this new take on the 2014 SpongeBob Highlander,” said Pam Kaufman, chief marketing officer, Nickelodeon Group. “With the addition of this amazing new aquarium created by the incredible team at Animal Planet’s ‘Tanked,’ fans will get an opportunity to experience SpongeBob SquarePants’ Bikini Bottom like never before.”

To find information about the “Tanked” episode when it’s available, visit http://animal.discovery.com/tv-shows/tanked.