22 Mouthwatering Concept Cars
This will be the third, and final, installment of Pictorial Essays on (only) American Automobiles. With a couple exceptions at the very end, this article does not cover current concept cars … cars that fly, cars that go underwater, cars shaped like a wheel, cars that get 500 miles per gallon on a cup of peanut oil, cars that go 400mph, etc. etc., … it is about concept cars of the past.
The focus here will be the pictures of the cars. I will attempt to keep the narratives on each car to a bare minimum, so as to not detract from the extreme coolness of the car itself. But, links pointing you to more information for most vehicles will be provided. The list is ordered by year.
NOTE: Three cars appear here that also appeared in my “Rare and Beautiful” article. I only show the pictures in this post. To read about them, click on this link; http://www.theburningplatform.com/2014/12/21/pictorial-essay-26-very-rare-and-stunning-american-cars/
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1934 FORD MODEL 40 SPECIAL SPEEDSTER
1934 Ford Model 40 Special Speedster
Edsel B. Ford was involved with this design …. yeah, that Edsel. Some say it’s a 1932 model because it was built atop a 1932 Ford chassis. Edsel conceived this idea after he returned from a trip to Europe in 1932. He then asked car designer Bob Gregorie to design and supervise the construction of a “sports car” like those he’d seen in Europe. Only five similar vehicles were built because the price, $2,500, was a lot of money back them. One sold last year at auction for $1,760,000.
1938 BUICK Y JOB
1938 Buick Y Job
The first ever concept car built by GM …by Henry Earl. (Hey, at least they didn’t call it a B Job). Futuristic styling, highlighted by bold curves, it attempted to mimic elements seen in Chrysler’s Airflow design, it featured concealed headlamps, power windows and other electric options, and a convertible roof that folded under a metal cover when closed. The Y Job exerted its influence for more than a decade, serving as the model for Buicks until the 1950s … and set the gold standard for what a concept car could accomplish.
http://www.prewarbuick.com/features/why_the_y_job
1938 STOUT SCARAB
1938 STOUT SCARAB
The first minivan. This car is discussed in my “Rare and Beautiful” article
http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/tag/stout-scarab/
1938 PHANTOM CORSAIR
1938 Phantom Corsair
The brainchild of Rust Heinz – son of the Ketchup King. The Phantom Corsair was based on a 1936 Cord Westchester Sedan with a Granatelli modified 192 horsepower supercharged Cord motor. Covered in my “Rare and Beautiful” article.
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