Magnetic levitation doesn't work on asphalt.
I wrote a novel involving currently impossible technology too. My solution was to invoke physics in a novel manner that allowed my gadgets to work. I would suggest you find some semi-plausible explanation and switch from maglev to some deeper phenomena. That way you still have floating cars to support your story, but you have a NEW science to explain it. For examples, read my book. (Nation of One, available on Amazon).
Thank you both!
People mover at Disney is the closest anyone came for a long time. It has a track, however. You could always replace asphalt with some magnetic surface.
I have an advantage. My book uses magic mixed with science.
No. Not on currently existing roads.
With enough magnetic field strength anything can be levitated. Google levitation of a frog inside of a high mag field. Just like MRI can induce spin in hydrogen atoms inside ordinary materials aka flesh very VERY high fields can induce repulsion in ordinary matter by excitation of the electron shells of atoms directly. flog just floats and spins while still alive in the center of the field well its amazing.
As Roos_girl said in #5, a metal rod buried in the road would work as a repelling force. If far enough in the future this retrofit to existing highways would be entirely feasible.
If I remember right, magnetism doesn't arise because specific materials are involved. It arises because the atoms/molecules are lined up to create magnetic poles.
You could have cars that emit some sort of field that causes the atoms in nearby materials to align and become magnetic. Basically they create their own magnetic fields as they goes along.
Maybe there's some sort of bar in the bumper that magnetizes the road surface, and then the rest of the car travels over the newly magnetized surface.
The magnetic effect could slowly fade away after the car has passed.
One plot point could be a car running over a human and imagining what would be the result of magnetizing a human body.
As noted, there's no way to just float over any old terrain, a track of some kind is required. OTOH, if you want to quietly call attention to a complete re-engineering of personal transportation -- solarroadways.
