Most concept cars are never intended to be anything beyond just that a concept. These vehicles are ambitious designs that, at the time of their unveiling, are neither feasible for mass production nor even practical to build.
Showcased at trade shows and industry events, concept cars primarily serve to generate excitement among consumers, investors, and the general public about what the future may hold. As a result, they often lean toward the unconventional.
That said, some designers take full advantage of the creative freedom concept cars allow, pushing boundaries in the most unexpected ways.
Many of the most bizarre concept cars were never meant to be driven on actual roads, and some were not even functional models.
However, each one demonstrates just how far imagination can go when combined with four wheels or sometimes more, or even fewer.
10. Rolls-Royce 103EX
While self-driving cars are no longer the groundbreaking novelty they once were, that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for bold and unconventional advancements in the field.
Rolls-Royce envisions the future of autonomous vehicles as something far beyond a simple car more like a high-end luxury retreat on wheels.
The Rolls-Royce 103EX is a towering 19.4-foot (5.9-meter) self-driving vehicle that bears a stronger resemblance to an opulent living room than any standard automobile.
Designed with extensive customization in mind, the vehicle features a plush, couch-like seating arrangement and an expansive entertainment center.
This allows the car’s autonomous driving system, known as “Eleanor,” to transport passengers in ultimate comfort.
A particularly refined addition is the built-in umbrella holder and dispenser, reinforcing the vehicle’s commitment to luxury at every turn.
9. The Dale
In 1975, the Twentieth Century Motor Car Corporation introduced the Dale, a three-wheeled budget-friendly vehicle that promised remarkable fuel efficiency boasting up to 70 miles per gallon (29.7 km/liter).
Given the lingering effects of the 1973 oil crisis, consumers were eager for a cost-effective solution to rising fuel prices, making the Dale’s efficiency an incredibly attractive selling point.
The prospect of an affordable answer to the energy crisis captured widespread attention.However, as it turned out, the Dale was too good to be true.
Geraldine Elizabeth Carmichael, co-founder of Twentieth Century Motor Car Corporation, used the Dale as the foundation of an elaborate fraud scheme, swindling investors out of a significant amount of money before vanishing.
Carmichael managed to evade capture for years, but in 1989, she was finally apprehended after being featured on an episode of Unsolved Mysteries.
Also Read: 12 Forgotten Concept Cars That Should Have Been Mass-Produced
8. Ford Nucleon
The Atomic Age gave rise to a wave of bold and often outrageous innovations, fueled by an unshakable optimism in nuclear power’s potential.
Among these ambitious concepts, few were as daring as the Ford Nucleon. Like many visionary products of the 1950s, the Nucleon looked as though it had been lifted straight from the pages of a sci-fi magazine.
However, it wasn’t just the design that made it remarkable.The Nucleon was envisioned as a vehicle powered by a small nuclear reactor.
Though it remained a non-functional concept, Ford speculated that advancements in nuclear technology would eventually allow reactors and their necessary safety mechanisms to become compact enough for use in consumer automobiles.
That reality never materialized, but the Nucleon ultimately influenced the design of several vehicles featured in the Fallout universe.
7. Mercedes-Benz Biome
The Mercedes-Benz Biome certainly has an unusual appearance, though that alone doesn’t set it apart from the countless other futuristic concept cars. What truly makes the Biome extraordinary is that, unlike traditional vehicles, it isn’t built it’s grown.
According to Mercedes, the core components of the Biome are derived from seeds cultivated in a specialized nursery. Beyond its unique construction, the Biome also emits pure oxygen and is designed to be fully compostable at the end of its life cycle.
While this concept sounds revolutionary, don’t get your hopes up. Even if the Biome functions exactly as Mercedes envisions, the sheer challenge of growing enough of these vehicles to meet consumer demand makes large-scale “manufacturing” an impractical dream.
6. Plymouth Voyager III
The search for the ultimate family vehicle has led some of the world’s top automakers to explore truly unconventional designs.
However, few have taken a more unusual or ambitious approach than the Plymouth Voyager III perhaps one of the strangest and most desperate attempts at creating a “do-it-all” family car ever brought to the concept stage.
At its core, the Plymouth Voyager III was a relatively unremarkable compact car, ideal for city driving. What made it unique was its massive trailer attachment, which transformed it into something closer to a small bus.
When connected, the rear wheels of the main vehicle actually retracted into the underside, creating a seamless extension.
While the concept may have seemed practical in theory, real-world testing quickly exposed a range of logistical and aesthetic challenges that made the design far from viable.
5. Honda Fuya-Jo
The late ’90s and early 2000s saw a surge in “cool” car designs aimed at capturing the attention of young drivers.
Some, like the revamped Volkswagen Beetle, found success, while others, such as the Chrysler PT Cruiser, became infamous flops. However, none of them were as bizarre as Honda’s 1999 concept vehicle, the Fuya-Jo.
Often described as a “driveable nightclub,” the Fuya-Jo featured an interior designed to double as a dance floor, a powerful built-in sound system with over a dozen speakers, and an exterior engineered to prioritize standing space while remaining compact enough to maneuver through congested city streets.
Honda showcased the concept at various trade shows for several years, but it remains unclear whether the company ever seriously considered putting this peculiar vehicle into production.
4. Peugeot E-Doll
Many children grow up playing with toy sports cars, imagining the day they might own a real one.
In 2000, Peugeot decided to turn that childhood fantasy into reality sort of by unveiling the “City Toyz” series: a collection of cars designed to look like oversized toys. The most peculiar of the bunch was undoubtedly the Peugeot E-Doll.
While its unusual exterior design was eye-catching, the E-Doll’s most bizarre feature was its scooter-like steering mechanism, which replaced a traditional wheel with twist-operated gas and brake controls.
Adding to its eccentricity, the vehicle included a built-in, semi-transparent rear shopping cart attachment a feature Peugeot curiously chose to showcase by filling it with bouncy balls.
That peculiar visual only reinforced the already toy-like nature of the car, making it feel even more whimsical and impractical.
Also Read: 10 Strangest Car Designs That Actually Made It to Production
3. Citroën Karin Concept
By the 1980s, movie studios and car manufacturers were taking inspiration from each other in a race to define the future of automotive design.
The more futuristic a car looked, the more people believed it represented the next era of transportation. Among the most distinctive and polarizing creations from that time was the Citroën Karin Concept.
Designed to resemble a pyramid, the Karin featured dramatically sloped sides and an unusually compact interior. Even in the realm of concept cars, its appearance was truly one of a kind.
But its unique shape was only part of the story. The Karin also boasted one of the smallest car roofs imaginable, while its interior color scheme embodied the quintessential 1970s sci-fi aesthetic reminiscent of Logan’s Run.
Adding to its unconventional design, the driver’s seat and steering wheel were positioned in the center of the three-seat layout. This bold concept remains one that people either admire or find utterly baffling.[8]
2. ItalDesign Machimoto
Every so often, a brilliant mind decides that two great things might be even better when combined. Imagine a world where peanut butter and chocolate never came together.
In 1986, the Italdesign engineering company applied that philosophy to the automotive world by merging a motorcycle with a car, resulting in the Machimoto.
The outcome was certainly striking. With its roofless design and low-sloping front windshield, the Machimoto aimed to capture the thrill of riding a motorcycle while offering the practicality of a car.
Unlike a traditional bike, this vehicle could seat six to nine passengers. However, despite its ambitious concept, the idea of a minivan-motorcycle hybrid never gained traction with consumers.
Safety and design issues plagued the project, and the lack of a roof made the vehicle impractical in less-than-ideal weather conditions. After all, it’s hard to get excited about a car that becomes a liability on a rainy day.[9]
1. Mercedes Vision AVTR
The Mercedes Vision AVTR is the result of an unusual collaboration between the engineers at Mercedes and the creative minds behind the Avatar film franchise.
Whatever you might imagine when you hear those two names together likely doesn’t come close to capturing just how bizarre this concept car truly is.
Inside, the Vision AVTR does away with most physical controls, replacing them with a massive digital dashboard, a throttle, and most intriguingly the driver’s own mind.
The idea is that the immersive digital interface displays information and functions, which the driver interacts with simply by focusing on them.
A built-in brain-computer interface (BCI) then translates those thoughts into actual commands.
Incredibly, a functional (albeit limited) version of this vehicle has been developed, featuring advanced capabilities like semi-dynamic interiors, AR projections, and even the ability to move sideways.