10 Awesome Concept Cars from the Past 50 Years

Concept cars are a way for automakers to bring their new ideas to life. Manufacturers will often demonstrate new designs and their latest technology, using a concept car to gauge public reception to determine whether it’s worthwhile to put certain elements into production. Looking back at concept cars is a time capsule, and it’s interesting to see what visions made it into production while others simply remained as ideas. 

1. 1972 Volvo VESC

Volvo unveiled the VESC (Volvo Experimental Safety Car) in 1972 to showcase what automotive safety technology could be like in the future. The VESC featured some amazing safety innovations for the time, such as the engine being forced down in a collision to keep occupants safe, a reinforced firewall, and a collapsible steering column. The car also featured three-point safety belts, anti-lock brakes, and even a reverse camera. Volvo built its brand’s reputation on safety, and many new safety features that were first showcased on the VESC would later trickle down to Volvo production cars and the rest of the automotive industry in the following years. 

2. 1970 Mercedes-Benz C111

The Mercedes-Benz C111 was a series of test cars produced throughout the early 1970s to test different engine prototypes. Three types of engines were the focus: a turbo diesel, a gasoline turbocharged V8, and two different rotary engines. Mercedes never intended to put the C111 in production, but ultimately learned that rotary engines suffered from poor fuel economy and oil consumption, thus Mercedes never put any rotary engines into production. Meanwhile, the testing of turbo diesel engines proved to be very valuable, as Mercedes learned that turbos can greatly increase the performance of a diesel engine while remaining reliable. This proved very successful for Mercedes, as in the 1980s, it equipped this very engine in the W123 platform, which sold over 2.5 million units and cemented Mercedes as a name for durability.  

3. 1979 Aston Martin Bulldog 

The Bulldog is a one-off concept car that came out in the late 1970s, and was proposed for limited production by Aston Martin. It featured gullwing doors, a massive lightbar, and a twin-turbo V8. The engines managed to produce an astonishing 600 hp, and the car was tested for a top speed of 307 km/h, which would have made it the world's fastest car at the time. The Bulldog had an incredibly distinctive wedge design, extremely popular in the late 1970s as aerodynamics gained prominence in the automotive industry. Only one Bulldog was ever produced, with Aston Martin intending to put it into production but ultimately having to cancel the project due to overly high costs. 

4. 1992 Italdesign Columbus 

Italdesign is a renowned design house known for creating iconic cars such as the DeLorean and the first-generation Volkswagen Golf. The Columbus was an outlandish design exercise to create the ultimate minivan, dubbed the “sailing ship for dry land,” and was intended to be the ultimate American road trip machine. It was a seven-seater, two-storey van powered by a 300-hp BMW V12. For maximum comfort, the top level of the van acted as a luxurious cockpit, seating three people above the engine. Meanwhile, the lower level lounge was equipped with swivelling seats, individual monitors, and VHS players. The Columbus was never intended for production, as Italdesign never produced cars under its name, but something as insane as the Columbus is worth admiring. 

5. 1999 Bugatti EB118/EB218 Concepts 

Before Volkswagen’s ownership of Bugatti, the brand was an independent company and produced an impressive yet largely forgotten supercar called the EB110. Before the company was sold, a whole product range was planned to revive the luxurious Bugatti name. The EB118 was showcased as an ultra-luxury, two-door grand tourer, and the EB218 was its four-door counterpart. Both models featured a 6.3L naturally aspirated W18 engine that produced 555 hp, with power going to all four wheels. Both cars were designed to reference the large, luxurious Bugattis of the 1930s, featuring rounded corners and large pronounced wheel arches that were popular with art deco designs. The concepts were showcased in 1998 and 1999, right as VW purchased the Bugatti name. VW decided to focus its efforts on another concept dubbed the EB 18:4, which would eventually become the production Veyron. 

6. 2003 Cadillac Sixteen 

Going into the 2000s, Cadillac strived to change its image, as it had become known as a brand that sold only large sedans to an older clientele. Cadillac aimed to remedy this by introducing the “Art and Science” design movement, focusing on more aggressive angular looks and emphasising sporty driving dynamics. Cadillac released the Sixteen concept to showcase the new direction of the brand. As the name states, the Sixteen featured a massive 13.6L V16 that was said to produce 1,000 hp and 1,000 lb-ft of torque, a reference to the 1930s Cadillac V16 that used to be the brand’s flagship. Cadillac never intended to make the Sixteen, using it as a publicity exercise for the brand’s radical new direction.  

7. 2008 Lamborghini Estoque 

The Lamborghini Estoque was a concept that didn’t seem far from reality when it was unveiled. Lamborghini proposed the car to rival other high-end, exotic four-door sedans such as the Aston Martin Rapide, Maserati Quattroporte, and Porsche Panamera. It was proposed to be equipped with Lamborghini's 5.2L V10 used in the Gallardo at the time, producing 556 hp. The Estoque did a good job adapting Lamborghini’s design language to fit a sedan, making it look like a true four-door supercar, with the sharp, aggressive angles that Lamborghini is known for. The Estoque was cancelled due to timing, with the 2008 recession being the driving factor as the luxury car market heavily suffered at the time. Later, the idea of a four-door Lamborghini evolved from a sedan to an SUV, coming to the market as the Lamborghini Urus.

8. 2007 Volkswagen Golf GTI W12 650

The Volkswagen Golf is a pretty sensible city car, but VW likes to show it can have fun sometimes. In 2007 they showcased a working Golf fitted with a twin-turbo 6.0L W12 engine from a Bentley, mounted in the middle as such a big engine could never fit in the front of a Golf. As the name suggests, power output was 650 hp going to just the rear wheels, reportedly making the handling a little scary. VW also replaced the rear axle with one from a Lamborghini making the car far wider than a regular Golf. The best part is that this car was fully functional, yet never intended to go into production intended only be an engineering excersize.  

9. Jaguar C-X75

The Jaguar C-X75 was planned to go into production as Jaguar’s halo car, made in collaboration with the Williams F1 team. The C-X75 came equipped with a hybrid system using a turbocharged and supercharged 1.6L four-cylinder engine paired with two electric motors. The result was a total power output of 850 hp, with power going to all four wheels. Jaguar planned a limited production run of 250 cars, but unfortunately, Jaguar deemed the C-X75 too expensive to produce, especially with the uncertainty of its sales success following the major economic recession. However, the C-X75 did appear in the 2015 James Bond movie Spectre as the villain's car.   

10. Vision Mercedes-Benz Maybach 6 Concept 

The most recent pick on this list is the Maybach 6 concept shown in 2016 as an exciting modern take on the classic, large, opulent grand tourer. The Maybach 6 had long, sweeping lines and its design paid homage to the grandeur of 1960’s design. The interior focused on classic opulence with materials such as wood, leather, and crystal to cement the Maybach as an ultra-luxury cruiser. The Maybach 6 came with four electric motors, a total power output of 750 hp, and a range of 320 km. When it was showcased, electric cars were still in their infancy, and the only ones in production were budget and efficiency-focused commuter cars rather than ultra-luxurious automobiles. The trend of manufacturers making ultra-luxurious EVs would come years down the line, but Mercedes unfortunately never brought the Maybach 6 into production.