Skip to ContentSkip to Footer

Search

Menu

  • Reviews
    Reviews
    • New car reviews
    • Used car reviews
    • Car group tests
    • Long-term tests
    • Road tests
    • All reviews
  • News
    News
    • Consumer news
    • Opinion
    • Awards
    • All news
  • Best cars
    Best cars
    • Best electric cars
    • Best hybrid cars
    • Best plug-in hybrid cars
    • Best small cars
    • Best hatchbacks
    • Driver Power
    • All best cars
  • Buy a car
    Buy a car
    • Find A Car
    • Used car deals
    • Car leasing deals
    • Deal of the Day
    • 0% finance deals
  • Sell a car
    Sell a car
    • Sell My Car
    • Free car valuation
    • Car selling guides
    • How to sell your car
  • Tools & advice
    Tools & advice
    • MoT Checker
    • Car Tax Checker
    • Buying a new car
    • Buying a used car
    • Car insurance
    • Car technology
    • Car care
    • Learning to drive
    • All advice
  • Best products
    Best products
    • Tyres
    • Car wax
    • Faraday bags
    • Jump starter packs
    • Pressure washers
    • Steering wheel locks
    • All products
  • Vans
    Vans
    • Best small vans
    • Best mid-size vans
    • Best large vans
    • All vans
How can we help you?
Buy a CarSell My Car
Find a car review
Make
  • Abarth
  • Alfa Romeo
  • Alpina
  • Alpine
  • Ascari
  • Aston Martin
  • Audi
  • B-ON
  • Bentley
  • BMW
  • Bristol
  • Bugatti
  • BYD
  • Cadillac
  • Caterham
  • Chevrolet
  • Chrysler
  • Citroen
  • Corvette
  • Cupra
  • Dacia
  • Daihatsu
  • Denza
  • DFSK
  • Dodge
  • DS
  • Farizon
  • Ferrari
  • Fiat
  • Fisker
  • Ford
  • Genesis
  • Great Wall
  • Honda
  • Hyundai
  • Ineos
  • Infiniti
  • Invicta
  • Isuzu
  • Iveco
  • Jaecoo
  • Jaguar
  • Jeep
  • KGM
  • Kia
  • Koenigsegg
  • Lamborghini
  • Land Rover
  • LDV
  • Leapmotor
  • LEVC
  • Lexus
  • Lotus
  • Lucid
  • Lynk & Co
  • MAN
  • Marcos
  • Maserati
  • Maxus
  • Maybach
  • Mazda
  • McLaren
  • Mercedes
  • MG
  • MINI
  • Mitsubishi
  • Mobilize
  • Morgan
  • Nio
  • Nissan
  • Noble
  • Omoda
  • Ora
  • Perodua
  • Peugeot
  • Pininfarina
  • Polestar
  • Porsche
  • Proton
  • Renault
  • Rimac
  • Rivian
  • Rolls-Royce
  • Saab
  • SEAT
  • Skoda
  • Skywell
  • Smart
  • SsangYong
  • Subaru
  • Suzuki
  • Tesla
  • Toyota
  • Vauxhall
  • Volkswagen
  • Volvo
  • Westfield
  • Xpeng
  • Zeekr
Model
Skip advert
Advertisement
News
  • Home
  • News

Future cars from the past in new exhibition

Past predictions of how future cars would look on show in US exhibition - some are more accurate than others

By:Auto Express team
22 May 2014

The 'Dream Cars: Innovative Design, Visionary Ideas' exhibition is currently taking place in the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia. 

The exhibition is a celebration of innovative automotive design that brings together 17 concept cars from Ferrari, Bugatti, Ford, General Motors, Porsche and other manufacturers from Europe and the United States.

The cars shown range in age from the early 1930s to the present day. These are a reflection of design trends born from the contemporary social and political developments of the time that pushed the designers' imagination. In addition to the cars on show, the exhibition features conceptual drawings and scale models to demonstrate the stages of the car design process. 

Here we take a look at some of the most visionary designs at the Dream Cars exhibition. In many cases it's amazing how many of the ideas have carried over into production cars of today... 

  • L'OEuf electrique (1942)

    The three-wheeled L'OEuf electrique ("the electric egg") was created by French artist, industrial designer and engineer Paul Arzens. The L'OEuf electrique was conceived for Arzens' personal use as an urban city car in Nazi occupied Par

  • Tasco (1948)

    The Tasco (The American Sports Car Company) was developed by designer and engineer Gordon Buehrig. While the Tasco never reached production, it was one of the first concept cars to use a vacuum-forming process to create small 3-D model

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • Edsel Ford Model 40 Special Speedster (1934)

    The Model 40 Special Speedster was an American car based on European models that Edsel Ford, then-president of the Ford Motor Company and son of Henry Ford, had seen on his travels abroad.  Designed by Eugene T. Gregorie, the M

  • Stout Scarab (1936)

    The Stout Scarab was designed by aviation and automotive pioneer William Bushnell Stout, and was arguably the precursor to today's MPVs. The Scarab's design was influenced by nature, in particular the shape of the scarab beetle. It cou

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • Voisin C-25 Aerodyne (1934)

    Designed by French aeronautical engineer, automobile designer and maker Gabriel Voisin, the C-25 Aerodyne was born as a result of Voisin's bankruptcy. Not a fan of popular aesthetics, the C-25 Aerodyne bucked against the popular US-inf

  • Chrysler Thunderbolt (1941)

    The Thunderbolt was touted by <a href="/chrysler">Chrysler</a> as "The Car of the Future", in order to educate the public about aerodynamics and streamlining. Devoid of any protruding exterior features, the Thunderbolt was tested in a

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • The Chrysler Ghia Streamline X was a streamlined, wedged-shape car with a design influenced by the early Cold War's emphasis on jet power and space travel. Designed by Giovanni Savonuzzi and Virgil M. Exner, the Streamline X illustrate

  • General Motors Le Sabre XP-8 (1951)

    The Le Sabre XP-8 was described by GM as "a mobile experiment" and its radically low-slung body was made of then exotic materials, sheet and honeycomb aluminium, magnesium castings and fibreglass. Like the Chrysler Thunderbolt, its hid

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • Buick Centurion XP-301 (1956)

    Like the Le Sabre XP-8, the Buick Centurion was another General Motors Experimental Vehicle. In addition to its striking aerodynamic body, the most intelligent feature of the Centurion was a rear mounted camera with a wide angle lends,

  • Cadillac Cyclone XP-74 (1959)

    Another GM concept, the Cyclone was introduced in 1959 following the first Daytona 500 NASCAR race. With a panoramic bubble top that retracted fully when the doors opened or closed, sharp fins and afterburner-style taillight housings,

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • General Motors Firebird XP-21 (1953)

    The Firebird was the first gas-turbine powered car built in the US to figure out the practicality of the gas turbine for use in future vehicles. Described by the motoring press at the time as a "jet fighter on four wheels" the Firebird

  • Pininfarina (Ferrari) Modulo, 1970

    In the late 1960s <a href="/ferrari">Ferrari </a>approached Carrozzeria Pininfarina to design the astounding&nbsp;<i>512 S Modulo</i>&nbsp;concept car. A<span>t the time, automobile designers and makers were engaged in an ongoing battl

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • Bugatti Type 57S Competition Coupe Aerolithe (1935)

    The Bugatti Type 57S Competition Coupe Aerolithe&nbsp;was unveiled at the 1935 Paris Motorshow. The Aerolithe's&nbsp;<span>body was fabricated in Elektron magnesium alloy, a material that was very difficult to weld. The rivets along it

  • Lancia (Bertone) Stratos HF Zero (1970)

    Launched at the 1909 Turin Motor Show, t<span>he Zero was merely 33 inches off the ground. A<span>&nbsp;hydraulic mechanism opened the wide Perspex windshield that was the car's only entry point, as there are no doors. Inside, occupant

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • Normal Timbs Special (1947)

    <span>Mechanical engineer Norman Timbs created the Timbs&nbsp;</span>Special<span>&nbsp;for his personal use. It took Timbs&nbsp;<span>more than two and a half years to complete the car, and it cost him around $10,000.</span></span>

  • Porsche 918 Spyder Concept Car (2010)

    The 918 Spyder Concept Car was part of Porsche's&nbsp;<span>experiments with how their luxury brand could address consumer interest in green technology, environmental impact, and high performance. The car combines high-tech racing feat

  • Skip advert
    Advertisement - Gallery continues below
  • BMW GINA - interior

    Of more concern was the slightly risque way in which the bonnet opened, with the two sides of the bonnet separating to reveal the engine.

Most Popular

Car Deal of the Day: Volvo XC60 Black Edition is a mean-looking, posh SUV for under £450 a month
Volvo XC60 - full front

Car Deal of the Day: Volvo XC60 Black Edition is a mean-looking, posh SUV for under £450 a month

The XC60 is Volvo’s best-selling car, and loved by Brits. It’s our Deal of the Day for 6 May
News
6 May 2025
New BMW 1 Series and electric i1 to target younger drivers with bold design
BMW 1 Series render - front

New BMW 1 Series and electric i1 to target younger drivers with bold design

The BMW 1 Series is set for a shake-up, with a Neue Klasse front end and a choice of hybrid or battery electric powertrains when it arrives in showroo…
News
7 May 2025
Ford should bring back the Fiesta. Oh no it shouldn't!
Opinion - Ford Fiesta

Ford should bring back the Fiesta. Oh no it shouldn't!

Bringing back the Ford Fiesta is a genius move, or a potential catastrophe
Opinion
5 May 2025
Skip to HeaderSkip to Content
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Valuations
  • Carbuyer
  • DrivingElectric
  • evo
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy Preferences
Follow us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterFollow us on YouTubeFollow us on Instagram

Our marketing claims explained. Average savings are calculated daily based on the best dealer prices on Auto Express vs manufacturer RRP.

Please contact the dealer for a personalised quote, including terms and conditions. Quote is subject to dealer requirements, including status and availability. Illustrations are based on personal contract hire, 9 month upfront fee, 48 month term, 8000 miles annually, inc VAT, excluding fees. Vehicle returned at term end.

Auto Express "Find A Car" is managed by Carwow Ltd. Auto Express "Find A Car" is a trading style of Carwow Studio Limited, which is an Introducer Appointed Representative of Carwow Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority for credit broking and insurance distribution activities (firm reference number 767155). Carwow Ltd may introduce you to Carwow Leasey Limited (trading as Carwow Leasey). Carwow Leasey Limited is an appointed representative of ITC Compliance Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority for credit broking (firm reference number: 313486). Carwow Ltd and Carwow Leasey Limited are each credit brokers and not lenders. Carwow Ltd and Carwow Leasey Limited may receive a fee from retailers advertising finance and may receive a commission from partners (including dealers) for introducing customers. All finance offers and monthly payments shown are subject to application and status. If you’re unhappy with Auto Express or Carwow’s service, you may be able to contact the Financial Ombudsman (please see www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk for more information). Carwow Ltd (company no. 7103079), Carwow Leasey Limited (company no. 13601174) and Carwow Studio Ltd (company no. 13018565) are limited companies registered in England with their registered offices at Verde Building, 10 Bressenden Place, Victoria, London, SW1E 5DH. Carwow Studio Limited and Carwow Leasey Limited are wholly owned subsidiaries of Carwow Ltd.

Copyright Carwow Studio Limited 2025. All rights reserved. Auto Express™ is a registered trade mark. Carwow Studio Limited is part of the Carwow Group.

Advertisement