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A concept car is a car prototype made to showcase a new vehicle's styling, technology, and overall design before production. They are often shown at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not have a chance of being produced.
General Motors designer Harley Earl is generally credited with inventing the concept, or show, car, and definitely did much to popularize it through its traveling Motorama shows of the 1950s.
Concept cars rarely go into production directly; most undergo at least some changes before the design is finalized for the sake of practicality and cost. Concept cars are often radical in design. Some use non-traditional, exotic, or expensive materials, ranging from paper to carbon fiber to exotic alloys. Others have unique layouts, such as gullwing doors, 3 or 6 (or more) wheels, or special abilities not usually found on cars.
Because of these often impractical or unprofitable leanings, many concept cars never get past scale models, or even drawings. Other more traditional concepts can be developed into fully driveable vehicles with a working drivetrain and accessories. The state of most concept cars lies somewhere in between and usually does not represent the final product.
If driveable, the drivetrain is often borrowed from another production vehicle from the same company, or may have defects and imperfections in design. They can also be quite refined, such as General Motors' Cadillac Sixteen Concept [1].
Inoperative "mock-ups" are usually made of wax, clay, metal, fiberglass, plastic or a combination thereof.
After a concept car's useful life is over the cars are usually destroyed. Some survive, however, either in a company's museum or hidden away in storage. One unused but operational concept car that languished for years in the North Hollywood, California shop of car customizer George Barris, Ford Motor Company's "Lincoln Futura" from 1954, received a new lease on life as the Batmobile in the Batman series that debuted in 1966 on the ABC Television Network.
Some concept cars
- Audi Avus Quattro
- Buick "Y" Job" - designed in the late 1930s by the famous General Motors designer Harley Earl. Picture at "http://www.classicar.com/harley_earl3.asp". This is considered by most to be the first concept car.
- 1956 General Motors Firebird - a gas turbine-powered four-seater with a plastic "bubble top" roof. Three versions shown at "http://www.carofthecentury.com/"
- Buick LeSabre - picture at "http://info.detnews.com/history/story/index.cfm?id=101&category=people"
- Bugatti Rinspeed EB110 Cyan - a Bugatti EB110 tuned by the Swiss company Rinspeed
- BMW Z9 Concept - Many people consider the BMW 6-Series the production version of this coupé concept[2].
- Chevrolet Mako Shark
- Chrysler Norseman - a car designed by Ghia of Italy, was lost when the SS Andrea Doria sunk in 1956
- Eliica - an 8-wheeled electric car
- Ford MA concept car - a two-seater with a body made out of bamboo
- General Motors Ultralite
- Opel Frogster - a 2002 car capable of transforming into 3 different body styles with a built-in PDA
- Volkswagen_1-litre_car Volkswagen fuiel saver concept with 235 MPG(US)
- Volvo YCC - the first car designed entirely by a team of women
- Toyota Sportivo Coupe - The Sportivo Coupe is a concept car that demonstrates new styling, interior dynamics, and a high technology approach to road safety. It was designed with help from Australian teenagers. - Pictures at "http://www.mybarina.com/gallery/Toyota-Sportivo-Coupe"
- Cadillac Sixteen [3] [4]
- The Audi TT began life as a concept car
- Chrysler Airflite
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology Concept Car w/ Frank Gehry[5]
- Dodge Copperhead - a small roadster designed to be a "poor man's Viper". It is one of the most well known concepts of all time.
- Dodge Kahuna - a minivan/SUV crossover built mainly for the average surfer.
- The upcoming Volkswagen Eos was originally a concept vehicle known as the Volkswagen Concept C.
See also
- Auto showfr:Véhicule conceptuel
Search Term: "Concept_car"
Categories: Concept vehicles | Car classifications |
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concept cars news and concept cars articles Here's our
top rated concept cars links for the day:
GM to unveil 2 new concept cars in China
AP via Yahoo! News - Apr 02 3:14 AM General Motors Corp. will unveil a new pair of concept cars in its Chevrolet and Buick lines at this month's Shanghai Auto Show, GM China said Monday.Save
GM, Chinese partner to unveil 2 concept cars at Shanghai show
Detroit News - Apr 02 4:32 AM SHANGHAI, China -- General Motors Corp. will unveil two concept cars in its Chevrolet and Buick lines at this month's Shanghai Auto Show, GM China said Monday.Save
GM, Chinese partner to unveil two concept cars at Shanghai show
22 WSBT South Bend - Apr 02 11:15 AM (AP) General Motors said Monday that it will unveil two concept cars in its Chevrolet and Buick lines at this month s Shanghai Auto Show. The cars will be among 40 vehicles the company and its Chinese joint venture partners plan to display.Save
GM, Chinese partner to unveil 2 concept cars at Shanghai show
WZZM 13 Grand Rapids - Apr 02 6:06 AM General Motors said today that it will unveil two concept cars in its Chevrolet and Buick lines at this month's ShanghaiSave
GM to unveil 2 concept cars at China auto show
Detroit Free Press - Apr 02 6:04 AM SHANGHAI, China General Motors Corp. will unveil two concept cars in its Chevrolet and Buick lines at this month's Shanghai Auto Show, GM China said today.Save
Smaller cars grab attention in big city
MSNBC - Apr 03 5:08 AM With GM, the world s largest automaker, planning to show a handful of global mini car concepts, small cars are likely to be the talk of this year s New York auto show. By MSNBC.com s Roland Jones. Save
Hot New Cars from New York's Auto Show
BusinessWeek - 1 hour, 44 minutes ago As analysts, journalists, and auto executives descend on New York, carmakers are rolling out their latest creations Save
GM Unveiling Concept Cars in China
6 News Lansing - Apr 02 5:25 AM Among 40 vehicles displayed with Chinese partner.Save
Next X Prize: Build a practical, hyperefficient car
USA Today - Apr 03 6:21 PM If your dream is to build the world's greatest car not just a science project or a concept car, but a real-world, 100-mile-per-gallon vehicle that's safe, can be mass-produced, and emits almost no pollutants there's a big, fat, $10 million X Prize waiting for you.Save
By Anita LaFond, News Editor, Manufacturing.net Manufacturing.Net - April 02, 2007
Logistics Management - Apr 02 8:30 PM At Auto Shanghai 2007, for the first time, General Motors Corp. and its Chinese joint ventures, Shanghai GM and SAIC-GM-Wuling, will unveil two new global concept cars in China.Save
GM has big plans for Chevy's tiny trio
Detroit News - 23 minutes ago WARREN -- There was only supposed to be one Chevrolet minicar concept unveiled today at the New York auto show.Save
Hailing a taxi with a mouse click
USA Today - Apr 03 6:03 AM Business travelers have been going online for a decade to book airline tickets, hotel rooms and rental cars. But until recently they still had to hail a cab the old-fashioned waySave
ZAP Annual Sales Triple on Rising Gas Prices, Increased Demand for Fuel-Efficient Vehicles and Electric Cars
The Auto Channel - Apr 03 9:27 AM SANTA ROSA, Calif.--For the year ending December 31, 2006, ZAP reported annual financial results in which sales for its electric and other fuel-efficient vehicle technologies tripled due to increasing demand spurred by rising gas prices.Save
Report: Chery to build Dodge Hornet and a mini-car for Chrysler
AutoSpies.com - Apr 02 7:33 AM Chery, a privately-owned Chinese car manufacturer that produces the little city car QQ, will be producing two cars for Chrysler that will be in sold in dealerships across the United States. The first car to go into production is the Dodge Hornet, based on the Hornet concept Automotive News reports.Save
Hyundai is latest to join luxury parade
Chicago Tribune - Apr 03 3:48 AM Ford will use the New York Auto Show this week to unveil the production version of the Flex. You may remember it as the Ford Fairlane crossover in concept form on the 2005 auto-show circuit. Save
Last Update: 2007-04-03 23:25:47 Thank you for reading the concept cars
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