Articles tagged with "Concept Cars"
New Honda concepts include a dog-friendly car, a premium fuel cell sedan and a four seater sports car
October 6, 2005 The Tokyo Motor Show is home ground for the Japanese manufacturers and Honda has indicated its intention to create a massive impression of technological progress at this year’s show due to open in a fortnight. The Concept Vehicle Zone will showcase some new ideas in concept vehicles such as the next-generation, 4-door Sports 4 Concept, designed to make sure everyone in the vehicle shares the exhilaration of the drive; the W.O.W Concept, which offers a more enjoyable, dog-friendly mobile lifestyle; and the FCX Concept, a next-generation premium fuel-cell sedan featuring advanced intelligent technologies, a low-floor, low-center-of-gravity platform and a full-sized cabin. (read more...)
Akino Concept - luxury, unconventional, compact people mover
October 5, 2005 Chrysler has released more details of the Akino Concept it plans to debut at the Tokyo Motor Show. The original sketches of the vehicle were covered here, but with more detail and imagery now available, it’s worth another look as the car is seeking to push the boundaries of conventional thinking. The Akino was designed with a small super-efficient powertrain to enable the designer freedom to create a new solution for future transportation and the result is a compact car with a roomy and unconventional luxury interior – it has a single door on the driver side, and two doors on the passenger side that open in opposite directions, allowing the interior to have a booth-like rear seat with a swiveling passenger seat. (read more...)
Nissan Tiida Sport Concept
October 3, 2005 The Nissan Tiida Sport Concept is the latest in a series of dynamic performance/youth concept vehicles including the Nissan Actic and Nissan AZEAL concepts produced by the company. The Tiida Sport Concept is a dynamic three-door hatchback with a dramatic four-seat interior. It offers the look and feel of a sports-tuned car, yet is conceived as an affordable, attainable vehicle for buyers entering the new car market for the first time. (read more...)
Nissan Pivo Concept Car
October 24, 2005 One of the stars of the 2005 Tokyo Show, the Nissan Pivo concept car is an electric car with unique revolving cabin, compact packaging, multiple drive-by-wire systems and excellent visibility. The Pivo concept car examines the potential of future electric vehicles. The Pivo's most distinctive feature is its cabin that revolves 360 degrees, eliminating the need to reverse. A compact body also makes the car exceptionally easy to maneuver. Excellent visibility is enhanced by Nissan’s Around View technology, which helps reduce dangerous blind spots. The navigation and audio systems are simple to operate while driving. These features are supported by Nissan’s innovative environment-friendly technologies such as the Compact Lithium-ion Battery. (read more...)
Akino Concept Vehicle
September 21, 2005 The unique and artistically sculptured appearance of the Chrysler Akino concept and its one-box, compact size certainly turns heads. However, after the fifth person settles comfortably into vehicle, one clearly gets the idea there is more to this concept than meets the eye. The Akino will take pride of place in the Chrysler display at this year's Tokyo Motor Show. (read more...)
MILA Concept car: single seater for the road powered by natural gas
September 20, 2005 Magna Steyr has unveiled a new concept vehicle at the IAA 2005. Called the "MILA Concept" (Magna Innovation Lightweight Auto), the single-seater sports car has a mid-engine and rear-wheel drive and is packed with ideas and innovations. The MILA’s technical highlights include an cco-friendly engine that runs on CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) and thanks to the extremely lightweight monocoque construction, offers extremely sporty performance. Given Magna Steyr’s automotive production expertise, the car has been designed using modular design principles that enable different models to be built (single or two-seater, normal or high-power engine, etc.) without much extra effort, as the components and modules have been developed in advance and optimised in terms of cost and weight. Magna Steyr is confident that natural gas will gain more and more ground as an alternative fuel for road vehicles in the future. A study by the German Automotive Industry Association published in Frankfurt recently came to the conclusion that in Germany alone some two million natural gas vehicles will be licensed in the next 15 years. According to the study, natural gas vehicles could reach a market share of around 4% by the year 2020. (read more...)
Two new hybrid drive concepts from Mercedes Benz
September 14, 2005 At the International Motor Show (IAA) 2005 in Frankfurt, Mercedes-Benz yesterday unveiled the “DIRECT HYBRID” and the “BLUETEC HYBRID,” two groundbreaking concept cars. Using the new S-Class as an example, the company is exhibiting unique designs for yet again markedly improving fuel consumption and emissions in the near future — while preserving high dynamic ride comfort. The focus is on combining optimised petrol and diesel engines with a hybrid system and with ultra-modern exhaust gas purification. (read more...)
Jeep Patriot and Jeep Compass concepts
September 13, 2005 Jeep designers have gone to the extreme once again, creating two all-new sport-utility-vehicle (SUV) concepts that could expand the Jeep brand into new territory. The Jeep Patriot and Jeep Compass concepts are compact Jeep four-wheel-drives that would deliver fun, freedom, utility, capability, as well as the potential for exceptional fuel economy and interior flexibility — all at a great value. Making their debut at the 2005 International Motor Show (IAA) in Frankfurt, these concepts hint at two future compact SUVs that the Jeep brand could build for global markets as soon as next year. (read more...)
BMW Z4 Coupe Concept Car
September 13, 2005 The Frankfurt Motor Show began yesterday and despite months of previews and first glimpses of the production debuts and concept releases, there were still a few show cars we hadn’t seen. One of the highest profile surprises of the day was from BMW, which re-ignited a passion for closed-roof sportscars with its show-stopping Z4 Coupe Concept Car. Based around the architecture of the fast-paced BMW Roadster, the sleek and eye-catching two-seater delivers the first ever look at a fixed roof Z4. (read more...)
Mini Wagon Concept surfaces
September 13, 2005 Forty-five years after the launch of the Mini Traveller (wagon) in September 1960, MINI has unveiled a new MINI wagon concept at the Frankfurt motor show. The MINI Concept Frankfurt is the first MINI design study since the launch of the MINI brand at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1997 and it re-interprets the feel of the original British-built Traveller via a new concept of “Travelling in Style” for the 21st century. The MINI Concept Frankfurt is packed with innovation inside and out. Its coupe-like profile and wide-opening doors feature intelligent parallelogram hinge mechanisms. (read more...)
Ford's iosis concept - four door gullwing
August 31, 2005 – Ford has unveiled the striking iosis concept car – a vehicle that defines an exciting new design direction for Ford of Europe. Building on the style of the Ford SAV Concept shown at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this year, iosis demonstrates Ford's new 'kinetic design' philosophy. The car will debut at the 2005 Frankfurt Motor Show. "iosis is more than just a show car, it is sending a message about how Ford of Europe's future design will be defined,” says Martin Smith, Ford of Europe's Executive Design Director. "It sends a bold message because our future products will be bold." (read more...)
Mazda SASSOU B-car Design Concept
August 30, 2005 Mazda’s design concept at this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show in September will be called the SASSOU (‘sa-so’) – a small, lightweight, three-door hatchback powered by a turbocharged, three-cylinder, 1.0-liter MZR DISI (Direct Injection Spark Ignition) gasoline engine. Combined with “evolved Zoom-Zoom design language” and a unique interior concept, Mazda SASSOU is a look into the future at where Mazda might be heading with its B-car. It will share the stage with the Mazda MX-Crossport concept, Mazda2 facelift, the high-performance Mazda6 MPS and the recently launched Mazda6 facelift. (read more...)
Toyota’s ENDO Urban Car Concept
August 31, 2005 Toyota is the world’s second largest automotive manufacturer and it has known for some time that it would not become number one selling automobiles as we now know them. Over the last few years the Japanese giant has both entrenched itself in traditional automotive enclaves such as prestige motoring and Formula 1, while it has evolved numerous concepts for mobility solutions in the grey area where robotics meets personal transport – ranging from walking chairs, through intelligent transforming personal wheeled transporters. Two of the concepts to be shown by Toyota at the upcoming Frankfurt Auto Show are in this “personal mobility” area - the Endo and the I-unit. Emanating from the company’s ED2 design studio in Southern France, the Endo is an urban-friendly car designed to address some of the key issues of modern urban life, while the i-unit has been seen previously at the New York Auto Show in January this year and is one of the major attractions at EXPO 2005 in Aichi, Japan and is "a new approach to human mobility that enables the driver to interact with his or her surroundings. The design of the i-unit is "inspired by a leaf, a natural expression of life on earth." (read more...)
Ambulance of the future Concept
August 26, 2005 An ambulance of the future concept vehicle was unveiled at EMS (Emergency Medical Services) Expo in New Orleans yesterday. American Medical Response (AMR) and American Emergency Vehicles (AEV) showed their second-generation prototype which was jointly developed as part of research on providing advanced care to patients and improving safety in the ambulance industry. The first prototype debuted last year and travelled coast-to-coast, with hundreds of paramedics and EMTs inspecting the vehicle and providing detailed feedback for the development of a second model. The vehicle on display this weekend at EMS Expo is the result of the research undertaken with the first vehicle. (read more...)
Concorso Italiano: Lamborghini Concept S production version breaks cover
August 26, 2005 Gizmag's sometime-scribe David Fox ventured down to the Concorso Italiano in Monterey last weekend and posted his report focussed on a dramatic new production Lamborghini seen in public for the first time. Back in February we showed the first images of Lamborghini’s Concept S. Drawing inspiration from the classic single-seat racing cars of the fifties, the modern-day open top car was based on the Gallardo as “an extreme and spectacular expression of the Lamborghini brand.” Created at the Centro Stile Lamborghini in Sant'Agata Bolognese by Luc Donckerwolke, Head of Lamborghini Design, the "Concept S" in production form has yet to be named, but Lamborghini gave the first production car a public outing this weekend at the Concorso Italiano in Monterey along with the news that it will produce the machine in limited quantities. It didn't stop there though, because people are posting us links of great photographic coverage of the event, so this article is now linking to an evolving list of Concorso pages. Other Concorso and Pebble Beach links welcome. (read more...)
Renault Egeus concept car: the elegance of a saloon, the dynamic personality of a coupe
August 10, 2005 Renault will show a new Egeus concept car at the Frankfurt Motor Show next month, a resolutely upmarket 4WD SUV with the seductive elegance and luxurious, comfortable interior of a saloon. Thanks to its SUV size, Egeus offers a spacious interior while its exterior promises solidity and a dynamic personality. The longer bonnet highlights a soft, flowing design worthy of an upper-segment coupe. Egeus is about how Renault sees the high-end SUV segment. Patrick le Quement, Senior VP of Corporate Design at Renault describes the Egeus thus - an SUV for city driving and the open road, a sort of tall coupe that combines driving pleasure with elegance and sportiness. (read more...)
Citroen's C-SportLounge concept car
August 10, 2005 It's that wonderful time of year before the major European Auto Show again, and all the heavyweight automotive manufacturers are teasing the automotive world with their next big concept vehicle that will be released at, in this case, this year's Frankfurt International Motor Show (12-25 September). The latest example of cutting-edge styling from the Citroen design team, the C-SportLounge concept car looks set to wow the crowds this year. With its distinctive combination of powerful, sleek lines and 2+2 comfort and refinement, the C-SportLounge captures the true essence of a 21st century Grand Tourer. (read more...)
NARO Tilting Car Concept Progressing
UPDATED August 13, 2005 8 NEW IMAGES The NARO vehicle concept we featured in January is progressing and the company is currently undertaking extensive market research prior to the construction of prototypes at the same time as testing public reaction to several new styling themes for the executive commuter, taxi, and light van trade market segments. The NARO vehicle concept is a "free leaning" vehicle that improves the mobility of the commuter and addresses the key issues of congestion, pollution and parking scarcity in urban areas. (read more...)
Mitsubishi unveils Concept Sportback
September 9, 2005 UPDATED, NEW IMAGES With less than a week to go before the Frankfurt Motor Show, Mitsubishi has finally released images of the next-generation sports hatchbac "Concept Sportback" it will be exhibiting at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The Concept-Sportback is a concept for the 5-door sports hatchback class that is becoming highly popular in Europe. This concept previews a brand new Mitsubishi Motors C-segment platform. The direction Mitsubishi Motors' design is set to take for the near future is readily apparent in the concept's sporty exterior. (read more...)
Mitsubishi Concept E-boost Wins 2005 Idea Gold Award
July 4, 2005 Mitsubishi Motors North America (MMNA) has picked up a Gold 2005 Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) gong for its E-boost concept vehicle. The Gold Award was given in the category of Design Explorations. Presented for the last 25 years by the Industrial Design Society of America (IDSA), this year's IDEA competition is prominently featured on the cover of BusinessWeek and on businessweek.com web site with more images, additional information and an interactive slide show. The Mitsubishi E-boost concept car introduces a new direction for sports car design, demonstrating the possibilities for expanded performance hybrid systems of the future. E-boost combines the look and performance of an exotic car with sport-coupe fuel efficiency. Many of the design innovations in the E-boost are found in its mechanics with the electric motor also doubling as a performance-enhancing device. The car's evocative appearance and soft, athletic lines are a unique departure from the current automotive trend toward heavy, sharp, boxy forms. The exterior color features a specially developed pigment that appears to glow from within to create the effect of molten metal, while the interior styling is forward thinking with a clean, uncluttered instrument panel centered around an LCD screen. (read more...)
Antarctic Exploration Concept vehicle for two
June 27, 2005 An innovative concept for an Antarctic Exploration vehicle was unveiled this week at the Royal College of Art’s final year show. Working closely with experts from the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), award-winning designer James Moon has come up with a lightweight, compact eco-friendly vehicle for use in one of the Earth’s most extreme environments. The vehicle, called “Ninety Degrees South”, uses novel technology to keep its occupants safe, warm and protected from the high levels of UV exposure that occur under the Antarctic ozone hole. The machine also uses pathfinder technology which travels on a GPS controlled route some 30 metres ahead of the vehicle using ground-penetrating radar to assess the safety of the ground to be travelled. (read more...)
Suzuki GSX-R/4 Concept update for Tokyo?
June 22, 2005 Rumours emanating from Japan suggest Suzuki might be ready to put the GSX-R/4 concept machine it first showed four years ago into production with an announcement due that this year’s Tokyo Motor Show. The multi-featured GSX-R/4 concept car combined Suzuki's automotive and motorcycle technologies to create a one-of-a-kind high-performance vehicle using the 1.3-liter 173 horsepower engine of the GSX1300R Hayabusa motorcycle to create a high-tech, aluminium-framed, light weight 640 kilogram two-seater sportscar capable of 140 mph and motorcycle-like acceleration. With the rumours already strong that a production version of the outrageous B-King concept motorcycle will be announced at the show with a 1500cc motor, use of the same motor would see the GSX-R/4 with more than 200 horses plus the same array of intelligent electronics that adjust the car to the driver’s style. (read more...)
Volvo YCC Concept Car wins major design award
May 6, 2005 The Volvo Cars' YCC team has received the Torsten och Wanja Soderbergs Pris (Torsten and Wanja Soderbergs Prize), one of Scandinavia's most prestigious design awards. The YCC is a Volvo concept car with unique features designed exclusively by women and it impressed the judging jury. "For their solutions for storage, accessibility, vision and the possibility to personalize the interior, the group has in a convincing way shown possible solutions for future cars," wrote the jury. (read more...)
Honda’s Fuya-jo Party-on-wheels Concept
History has produced some wonderful concept cars that became significant production models. It has also produced many that were somewhat less than well received. Japan in particular, has an automotive culture which takes significant chances with its concept vehicles, and is often prepared to go well beyond the traditional to explore new niche markets. One such long shot was the Fuya Jo from Honda – the vehicle whose name means "Sleepless City", was designed specifically to transport “party animals who demand the full excitement of night life.” (read more...)
REVA Electric Vehicle Concept
April 15, 2005 The REVA-NXG, a “next generation Electric Vehicle” concept was shown for the first time earlier this month at the EV21 Electric Vehicle Symposium in Monaco. Created by the Indian REVA Electric Car Company (RECC), the new concept car is the result of a collaborative effort between RECC, automobile designer Dilip Chhabria and Simputer developer Encore Software. The REVA-NXG is a two-seater roadster with a range of 200 kilometres and a top speed of 120 kmh. The car is powered by a high performance 37 kW AC induction motor that drives the front wheels, and uses Sodium Nickel Chloride batteries in lieu of conventional lead acid batteries for extended life. The REVA-NXG has four-wheel independent suspension with an integrated regenerative and hydraulic braking system and the company claims excellent handling and braking. (read more...)
