The history of concept cars begins in earnest in the 1950s, but for context you need to head a little further back in time. As the US lurched out of the Great Depression, a middle class emerged, sufficiently affluent to afford automobiles in greater volumes. The look of a car quickly became its most salable feature. New styles sold new cars so frequent updates became essential to moving metal. With the outbreak of World War II, car manufacturing worldwide trickled to a halt but resumed with a vengeance in 1946, and by 1950 the race to capture brand-loyal customers was on.
Dream machines came into their own, with international motor shows attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors worldwide to see the latest vehicles and to get a glimpse of the future. Manufacturers were only too eager to whet these appetites with concept cars that explored new aesthetic and technology trends. Some were evolutionary, others so outlandish they could not possibly be mass produced. The boldest concepts established manufacturers such as General Motors as visionaries, at the same time gauging just how much innovation the public would actually park in their driveways. But while early concept cars were often freewheeling fantasies sketched in the studio, today’s concept cars are informed by a sophisticated mash-up of engineering data, focus groups, shareholder profits and all manner of global emissions and safety regulations.
Denne historien er fra December 2019-utgaven av Robb Report Singapore.
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Denne historien er fra December 2019-utgaven av Robb Report Singapore.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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BREAKING DOWN WALLS
Georgina Atkinson, managing partner of Origin Private Office, on the evolving landscape of high-end real estate.
Aged Gracefully
The Benromach 50 Years Old by Gordon & MacPhail is a delicious single malt, touched by love, passion and the human hand.
This Month's Feed
Only the best dining and drinking spots in Singapore.
Small-scale Thinking
Architect Todd Saunders wants to change the way we approach hospitality design from the ground up.
Todd Snyder Is Exactly Where He Wants To Be
\"Our whole goal is to present product in a way that guys get it and understand it, versus 'Here's some crazy aspirational brand-you go figure it out on your own'.\"
Depp Dive Into Sauvage
Johnny Depp on music, scents and the mystique of creativity.
Time For Poetry
Pascal Raffy on his love affair with the 202-year-old house of Bovet.
One of a Kind
The incomparable Lange 1 turns 30 this year and A. Lange & Söhne marks the occasion with its trademark understatement.
P For Personality
Enhance your swing, and inject your personal style while you're at it, with TaylorMade's new P-770 and P-7CB irons.
The Short-hop-adventure-craft Category Takes Off
Inside the flight deck of Pivotal's Blackfly eVTOL, an ultra-smart ultra-light with eight propellers, electric propulsion and no pilot's licence required.