Lincoln buyers were often wealthy enough to have special coachwork built for their cars. In 1927, Brunn did a beautiful...
In 1962, Ford of Britain, created a prototype of a short wheelbase Cortina designed for the American market. The one-off...
In the 1950s, an ultimately failed attempt to revive the Bugatti name resulted in the creation of six Type 101 chassis, which were an evolution of the Type 57. Five of these were custom bodied by various coach builders, with the last chassis going to Ghia. Famed American designer Virgil...
Auto Union’s Wanderer brand constructed three, Ferdinand Porsche designed, aluminum-bodied W25K roadsters for the 1938 Liege-Rome-Liege rally. Equipped with inline,...
The 1,000th Mercedes-Benz 300 SL “Gullwing” rolls off the production line, in the Sindelfingen plant, in December 1955, a little...
In 1954, Chrysler debuted the latest iteration of its “Forward Look” Dream Cars, the Plymouth Explorer. Designed by Luigi Segre at Ghia, as a continuation of the themes he started with the trio of Dodge Firearrows, the Explorer featured a 114-inch wheelbase Plymouth chassis, with a somewhat anemic 230-cu.in Plymouth...
Considered today, to be the first “Concept Car”, Harley Earl’s 1938 Buick Y-Job was built on a 1937 Buick chassis. Earl...
One of three experimental aerodynamic prototypes built for the 1940 war-affected Mille Miglia, this unique 328 was designed by Wunibald...
In 1970, at the Tokyo Motor Show, Mazda debuted the RX500 concept car. A radical departure from the Japanese firm’s previous offerings, the in-house developed RX500 was a futuristic-looking coupe that featured forward-swinging butterfly doors and a mid-mounted, 982-cc, two-rotor Wankel engine producing 247-hp and capable of pushing the lightweight,...
The Leyland Eight was a luxury car produced by Leyland Motors from 1920 to 1923, designed by the chief engineer...
It’s rather ironic that both the birth of the “Pony Car” movement in the mid-1960s, and its eventual death in...
Making its debut in New York, in April 1950, the Jowett Jupiter featured a tubular steel chassis mated to a 1486-cc, Flat-4 engine that was mounted low and ahead of the front axle line. Utilizing torsion bar suspension at the front, in conjunction with independent suspension at the rear, the...
The prototype for the Lamborghini Countach, designated LP500, was first shown to the public at the 1971 Geneva Motor Show....
In 1945, the Swedish aircraft manufacturer Saab AB, began design work on a prototype road car with the intention that...
In the 1970s, Bertone was commissioned to reimagine NSU’s Wankel rotary powered Ro80. Marcello Gandini moved the small, compact engine to the rear of the car and split the two rear seats to either side of the engine. The result was the Trapeze, which made its debut at the 1973...
Not every Alfa Romeo 1900C chassis that went to a Carrozzeria for custom coachwork (see this month’s Roadcar Feature) emerged...
In 1953, Chrysler’s famed design chief, Virgil Exner entered into a partnership with the Italian styling house Ghia to produce...
1965 Corvette XP-819 In 1965, famed General Motors designer Larry Shinoda designed a one-off concept car, the XP-819, that tested the concept of a rear-engined (not mid-engined) Corvette. Built under Frank Winchell’s Chevrolet Research and Development group, the XP-819 featured a reverse rotation, marine 327-cu.in V-8 hung out the back...
In 1951, the Spanish industrial manufacturer ENASA, under the leadership of former Alfa Romeo engineer Wilfredo Ricart, debuted an exotic...
Built in 1952, by Lou Fageol’s son Ray, the Pataray was essentially Lou Fageol’s original Fageol Supersonic reimagined with a...
A Carrozzeria Touring publicity photograph of the newly built BMW328 MM Coupe that would go on to finish 5th at Le Mans in 1939 and won the war marred 1940 Mille Miglia outright....
The Alfa Romeo Caimano was a design concept executed by Giorgetto Giugiaro at Italdesign, for the 1971 Turin Motor Show....
Debuted at the 1968 New York Auto Show, the Astro II (eXperimental Project 880) was General Motors’ first, real foray...
1966 Pininfarina Ferrari 365P Berlinetta Speciale Designed by Pininfarina as a Ferrari concept car, the 365P Berlinetta Speciale utilized a revised chassis from one of Ferrari’s 365/P2 racing cars, including its Colombo-designed 4.4-liter, SOHC V-12 engine. Interestingly, in addition to carrying design cues from the 1965 Dino GT prototype, the...
The Ghia-designed Dodge Firearrow III is flamboyantly showcased on its stand during the 1954 Detroit Auto Show....
At the 1976 Geneva Motor Show, Alfa Romeo revealed the final iteration of its series of concept cars based on...
Built in 1969, by GM’s Australian division Holden, the Hurricane was an advanced research concept vehicle designed “to study design trends, propulsion systems and other long range developments.” The Hurricane stood just 39-in tall and was powered by a mid-mounted, high-compression 5.0 liter Holden V8 engine, producing 259 hp. The Hurricane...
James Bond and the Receivers Photo: Max Earey Dear Editor, Congratulations on maintaining a great magazine. It never fails to...
Announced on October 20 ,1953, the Alvis TC21/100—or “Grey Lady” as it was marketed— featured a 3-liter Straight-6 engine capable...
At the 1953 General Motors Motorama in New York City, Cadillac unveiled a concept car designed by Harley Earl. Named in honor of Cadillac’s participation in the 1950 24 Hours of Le Mans. This new design was a low-profile, two-seat, fiberglass-bodied roadster that featured Cadillac’s first use of the wrap-around...