Concept Cars: The Future Is Now
With the concept car, the future is now. Sort of.
Every year, automotive companies roll out flashy, eye-catching, and sometimes weird concept cars, yet most of them never see the light of day. So why bother?
We’re going to check out the coolest concept cars from recent memory and answer that question.
The Badass Concepts
These are the ones you came for.
Having a badass concept car turns heads towards you. It’s what gets auto enthusiasts excited and talking. It’s like a shiny thing that will get people - and reporters - over to your side of the room. They’re just plain cool.
- Faraday Future FFZERO1. Faraday is a new company with a mindblowing first impression.
- Mercedes Concept IAA
- Lamborghini Terzo Millennio - This thing is a beast with some crazy tech, but it doesn’t compromise its combustion engine. Carbon fiber nanotubes that charge up batteries and self-heal(!). We’re not pretending to understand the science behind it, but it’s a bold move for a future hybrid Lamborghini.
- Infiniti prototype 9 - Handmade old school racing cool meets new-age electric efficiency. Grandpa would be proud.
- Renault Trezor. Forget gullwing doors. This thing’s whole roof lifts up. Not sure how practical that is, but it looks cool.
- Zagato Iso Rivolta - Part video game crossover, part nostalgic revival.
The Electric Concepts
Thanks to Tesla’s dominance of the market, and changing views on traditional combustion engines, the competition in the electric car market is heating up. Electric Vehicles are no longer just a concept. We can’t even list them all here. It’s official, electric is a better energy source than nuclear...sorry, Ford Nucleon.
It seems like most - if not all - major manufacturers are planning a big rollout of electric vehicles throughout the next decade. Some, like GM, have claimed a total shift to electric vehicles in the near future, while many others have announced a dozen plus new EV models. Either way, there’s billions going towards the electric vehicle industry.
Here are some of the more unique electric concepts:
- Mercedes Benz Concept EQ and EQA - Solid electric concepts that can charge wirelessly.
- BMW i Vision Dynamics - Buck-toothed monster or futuristic look. You decide.
- Nissan IMX - Nissan’s major electric entry with a questionable design.
- Honda EV and Sports EV - These quirky rides - complete with suicide doors - ignore the Blade Runner look of most other entries and look more at home in a Pixar film.
The Tech-Packed Concepts
(Pictured: Future cars from MINI, BMW, Rolls Royce, and BMW Motorrad)
While electric may be the new standard, there are plenty of other tech-focused innovations that build on top of that through autonomous driving, artificial intelligence, and luxury design.
- BMW Vision Next 100 - Holy shit. This thing is a transforming spaceship of a car.
- Audi Aicon - One of the more eye-catching, autonomous, EV concepts with a claimed 500 mile-per-charge efficiency.
- Rolls Royce 103ex - The future’s most expensive couch, but it does look damn sexy.
- Toyota Concept-I - This thing has an AI in it that analyzes your emotions, teaches you how to drive, and more. Weird.
- BMW i Vision Future Interaction - The sports car with a brain.
- Mercedes-Benz Smart Vision EQ Fortwo - Big name for a tiny car. Fully autonomous and made specifically for ridesharing.
- renault SYMBIOZ - Another autonomous car, Renault’s concept is like a mobile living room with seats facing around a center table.
The Weirdest, Most WTF Concepts
No list of concept cars would be complete without some massive fails. Innovation doesn’t always work. Opinions may differ on these recent WTFs.
- Mitsubishi Emirai - Part touchscreen, part Zamboni. Enough said.
- Yamaha Cross Hub - Although the functional design seems thought out, the design is just ugly.
- Jaguar Future Type - The design definitely stands out, but it’s almost too Also has an AI. Of course.
- Rinspeed Oasis - It’s a mobile garden. Seriously.
- Honda NeuV - A cow-looking car with an emotional AI. Atleast Toyota’s Concept-I has some style.
Breaking The Mold
Innovation doesn’t happen overnight. It takes iterations, man. Concept after concept until something is actually ready for production.
Concept cars allow auto manufacturers to try new things, to test the boundaries of what a car is. They get to flex their wild side and get critical feedback about what wacky - or not so wacky - ideas consumers might actually want. It’s like a no-strings-attached test run, which is totally fine as long as they don’t promise a production run that will never happen.
Not only technological innovation, but brand evolution too. A company doesn’t go from creating sports cars to autonomous family transports or whatever else without a major shift in customer perception. Concept cars allow them to ease people into their new brand image.
As long as companies continue to innovate, the concept car is here to stay. That’s a good thing.
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