We’ve always loved concept cars, they present a glimpse of a possible future which is sleek and exciting, regardless if the visions all come to life. Found in a garage and thought destroyed forever, these rare drawings of concept cars from the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s show an interesting era of cars, some elegant and some a bit far out. The sheer length of these behemoths is something to behold. Via the PBS NewsHour:
I usually like to share beautiful images on this site. Art, design, nature, anything that pleases the eye. Today I’m taking you briefly in the opposite direction. After much research and consulting, I’ve gathered images of some of the most horrifically ugly cars ever produced. These rides are so gnarly you’d rather be driven to work in an Amish man’s buggy as opposed to be seen inside. As ugly is in the eye of the beholder, these are in no specific order.
Fiat Multipla
The Multipla freakshow makes all sorts of ugly top-ten lists, including this one. Like a dented-head fish or an autistic gerbil, this Fiat is an oddball.
AMC Eagle
AMC sure did put the pedal to the ugly-metal in its last years in existence. Take the so-homely-I’m-lovable Eagle. Usually outfitted in that lovely maroon and fake wood, this 4wd car is considered the predecessor to the modern-day crossover SUV.
Lamborghini LM002
For the Italian ultra-performance-luxury company, the LM002 was an odd departure. This monstrosity looks like a stillborn Triceratops dipped in cherry coating. Even more hilarious, the V12 “Rambo-Lambo” was owned by famous nuts like Hunter S. Thompson and former dictator Muammar al-Qaddafi.
Pontiac Aztek
Ahh, the Aztek. Widely perceived as one of the ugliest cars ever made, it certainly steals the honors from the last decade. With the bulky, sagging form to the highly confusing and terrible beak, Pontiac (Pontiak?) really did justice to the ancient Mexican civilization with this hunk of metal.
Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme
If a car itself could resemble a pedofile, the 1986 Cutlass Supreme might be that car. Known best for its ability to lower property values in the neighborhoods where its found, the Cutlass Supreme showcases the best in General Motors ineptitude, and the heyday of 80’s ugliness.
Buick Skylark
One of my personal favorites in the pantheon of ugly cars, the Skylark is so horrendous that I wrote a college essay purely about its looks. To the designer’s credit, the car does resemble a bird. But it’s a bird that’s been addicted to oxycodone, and one that the mother promptly kicked out of the nest.
Ford Edsel
The Edsel may go down as one of the most expensive flops in automotive history. After a huge media push and public anticipation, Ford announced the future of cars: The Edsel. The response was a collective gasp. A popular joke at the time, the Edsel “resembled an Oldsmobile sucking a lemon”. Some speculated that the car failed to sell because its grille resembled vulva. Ouch.
Chevrolet Lumina APV/Pontiac Trans Sport
No car had a greater admiration for the Dustbuster than the joint Chevy Lumina/Pontiac Trans Sport. Modeled after the handheld vacuum to a scary degree, this wedge of automotive history deserves credit for pulling off such a good mimic of a household appliance.
Before you start groaning at the gas pump (and you’re still allowed to groan), take a look at this animated video from the Center for Investigative Reporting. Via Treehugger:
Unlike most industries, automotive design arguably already hit it’s zenith years ago. Though the features available in cars today are mind boggling, their pure forms are, frankly, pretty lame compared to some of the designs that erupted out of the 1930s, 40s, and 50s.
The Portland Art Museum is currently showing a traveling exhibit called The Allure of the Automobile, which showcases some of the very rarest, most exquisite cars ever designed. From PAM’s own website:
June 11 – September 11, 2011
The Allure of the Automobile is the first exhibition to consider the stylistic development of cars in the context of prominent design movements such as Art Moderne and Postwar Modernity. Visitors will learn about the contrasts between European and American design, the influence of decorative arts, and the significant changes in automotive styling and engineering before and after World War II.
The exhibition will be accompanied by an array of programs and opportunities to learn more about these remarkable automobiles, the technology behind them, and their historical and cultural context.
Though the exhibition is small at only 16 cars, they’re very much one-of-a-kind models, all in pristine shape, all positively glowing in the art museum setting. I visited the exhibit knowing I’d be appreciative of the artfulness of these cars. But I was blown away at the utter beauty of these vehicles. More sculpture than cars, the collection holds extremely rare, unusual models like the 1961 Ferrari 250 GT racecar, 1937 Bugatti Type 57S Atalante, and the show-stopping 1937 Hispano Suiza H-6C “Xenia” Coupe. The Xenia is one of those designs destined to go down as one of the most gorgeous of all time. I didn’t expect it to be gargantuan, which it is. Everything down to the exhaust pipe is exquisite, and at the time, it was an extremely futuristic design. It still is, 75 years later.
Here are just a few photos I took on my brief tour of the exhibit. For anyone interested in industrial design, sculpture or craftsmanship, I highly recommend a visit.
Every so often a concept car will come along that initially may make you gasp. The BMW 328 Hommage is one of those. It’s strange, ‘dead-eye’ look is both off-putting and extremely simple and beautiful. The skintight metal wraps the car in an impossibly low stance, and the absence of rearview mirrors add to the simplicity and intrigue.
Dubbed the BMW 328 Hommage, this ultra-lightweight sports car was built to mirror the principles used to create the original 328. The 328 Hommage weighs in at a svelte 1,720 pounds, accomplished through the use of carbon fiber-reinforced plastic. While CFRP wasn’t exactly around in the 30’s and 40’s, BMW engineers of that era kept the 328 light through the use of aluminum and magnesium. Both cars are cut from a similar cloth to achieve a lightweight end result, even if the methods to get there are very different.
Via the official BMW press release:
BMW 328 Hommage.The BMW 328 is considered the most successful and best-looking sports car of the 1930s. The BMW 328’s success was the result of its design parameters – through the use of systematic lightweight construction, aerodynamic lines, optimum engine types and outstanding suspension technology, it laid the foundation stone for a new vehicle concept, by which performance only leads to success if combined with perfect harmonisation of all parameters and maximum efficiency.
With these characteristics, the BMW 328 was even then the embodiment of what the BMW brand still stands for today – dynamics, aesthetics and a high level of innovation.
Don’t look for this car on the road, ever. It will probably never arrive in dealerships, but makes for a stunning design exercise, anyway.
After GM and Chrysler filed for bankruptcy last year, it was hard for a car geek like myself to give them much respect. Visions of executive boardrooms with bloated, out-of-touch white men running the show, filled my head. Late model American cars like the Sebring and Impala epitomize the worst thinking in automotive design today. And don’t even get me started on the PT Cruiser……
I figured the Volt was the one product at either with any kind of forward-thinking innovation. Late last year, GM did quietly introduce a concept for the PUMA, a collaboration with Dean Kamen, which was a small, beefed-up Segway device. It showed a nice integration of Kamen’s gyro-stabilization in a small, urban runabout.
Now, GM has officially unveiled some crazy cool pod cars, and it shows they have some far-reaching thinking going on in some of those boardrooms. Somehow, I don’t believe they were thought up in Detroit.
via Wired:
General Motors sees a future where people navigate crowded cities in big Segways that look kinda like a Dyson vacuum cleaner and can drive you home when you’ve had one too many.
Seriously. The General unveiled a trio of electric “urban mobility vehicles,” built with help from the über-geeks at Segway, today in Shanghai. They’re called Electric Networked Vehicles and they’re designed for cities bursting at the seams with traffic.
