Suzuki is no more in the States – its line of cheap, boring cars didn’t fare well here. That wasn’t the case way back in the day when the tiny little Samurai SUV was on the market.
Lamborghini certainly has had no shortage of impressive looking supercars in its illustrious history. This particular concept car from 1995 had a significant impact on the design or later model Lambos, specifically the Gallardo – which would then lay the groundwork for the Huracán LP 610-4.
Designed by ItalDesign’s maestro Giorgetto Giugiaro, the Lamborghini Calà was initially created as a replacement for the Jalpa, which had been discontinued all the way back in 1988.
Like the cars that would follow almost a decade later, the Cala was powered by a mid-mounted V10 engine – in this case a 4-liter, 372 horsepower model.
Throughout the years, concept vehicles have been bestowed with a variety of futuristic interiors, highlighted by high-tech dashboards with innovative and unusual control schemes. In this post, we’ll take a look at some of the most unconventional dashboard designs we’ve come across over the years.
Perhaps the most unusual concept car of all time (and that’s saying something), the 1967 Dodge Deora was like an adult-sized toy car. In fact, the award-winning car eventually was made into one of the original 16 Hot Wheels cars.
Despite the original Mustang being a major hit from its launch in mid-1964, that didn’t stop Ford from thinking about future variants of the car. Designed by Gene Bordinat and built by the Ford Special Vehicles Group and Kar Kraft, the Mach 2 Concept was their attempt at a mid-engine version of the Mustang.
Dodge introduced the Razor concept back in 2002, at a time when the brand’s best selling vehicles were minivans, pickup trucks and subcompacts like the Neon. The company wasn’t exactly the most performance-oriented brand at the time.
Think about the Lincoln of modern times, and if you aren’t a grandparent, the cars likely hold little appeal. While their new cars are elegant, they have strayed far away from the cool design features of yore that made the brand so desirable.
Despite spending the majority of my 50 years on this planet as a gearhead, I’m still amazed how on a regular basis, I come across a vehicle that I never knew existed. Today’s revelation? An unusual 1970s British sports car that had two extra wheels up front.
It’s strange to me that Mercury was still making cars as recently as 2011. I had it in my mind that Ford retired the brand long before that. While I don’t remember Mercury offering any car that I liked since the Cougars and Capris of the late 60s and early 1970s, it sure would have been interesting if they had ever produced this sports car they showed off back in 2003.
The Mercury Messenger was shown off at the NAIAS Show in Detroit that year, surprising the audience with a powerful 2-seat sports car that nobody was expecting from the brand.
The thought of SUVs road racing never really crossed our minds until Bentley took its Bentayga SUV to Pikes Peak this year and set a class record up the mountain. Now, Lamborghini has an idea for an awesome looking SUV designed for racing in a single marque series that it plans to launch in 2020.
The Lamborghini ST-X Concept is based on the anything but regular old Urus SUV and uses the twin-turbo V8 engine from that SUV that makes 650 hp and 627 lb-ft.
Jaguar has taken its very sexy F-TYPE convertible, and transformed it into a fantastic looking rally racing car. The conversion involved a 1.6-inch suspension lift, 16-inch gravel tires, softer springs, and three-way dampers from Exe-TB. The car started life as a base F-TYPE with a turbo four packing 296hp.
Designed by Bertone’s Marcello Gandini, the Lamborghini Marzal offered a dramatic and futuristic look, with gull-wing doors, and its naturally-illuminated cabin. Its chassis started out as a Lamborghini Miura, but with an extended wheelbase so it could seat four.
The car was renowned for its dramatic lines, its largely glass doors, and dramatic rear louvers.
Nissan is at the 2018 São Paulo Motor Show, the same show where VW showed off its Tarok concept this week, with a concept of its own called the Frontier Sentinel (PDF). This truck concept is designed for rescue operations on any terrain.
As hot as the truck market is in the US – and with sales of trucks booming – you would think all the automakers would want their trucks to be offered here. Many buyers would gladly take a truck rather than an SUV for the extra utility.
Say the name “Oldsmobile” and it doesn’t exactly conjure images of powerful sports cars. But back in 1987, the company stamped their name on this futuristic looking hypercar, dubbed the Aerotech. Built in several iterations between 1987 and 1992, the Aerotech wasn’t really a concept car, but was designed and built as an experimental test vehicle – with its sights set on breaking automotive speed records.
In 1987, the Aerotech I was driven by Indy 500 champ A.J.
