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Best April fools day jokes by car companies - pictures

April Fools Day comes but once a year and when it does even the big car brands get in on the act. These are their best April Fools’ jokes

by: Auto Express team
1 Apr 2021
Go to: Best April Fools' Day jokes by car companies 2021
  • April Fools' Day jokes header
  • BMW’s Magnetic Tow Technology

    One of BMW's best April Fools jokes was the 2009 announcement of Magnetic Tow Technology. The system purported to use a magnetic field letting BMW drivers get a cheeky tow

  • Auto Windscreens prescription windscreen

    It’s not just car manufacturers that like an April Fools’ Day prank. In 2010 Auto Windscreens revisited an old joke by announcing the world’s first prescription windscreen.

  • BMW’s Political Roundel Attachment Tag

    As election fever gripped the country in 2010, BMW looked to cash in with a political April Fools’ Day effort. The Political Roundel Attachment Tag (PRAT) was born..

  • SEAT Aero-Tonto wind turbine

    SEAT probably put a lot of energy into its wind turbine-equipped Ibiza Ecomotive April Fools' effort in 2009.

  • Kia’s Aero-Soul

    Kia really pushed the Photoshop boat out in generating the images of its Aero-Soul April Fools' gag in 2009.

  • Kia’s Aero-Soul

    The car was said to be modified with a new ‘Air Propulsion and Retardation Installation Line system’ that harnessed the power of the wind to save fuel.

  • Kia KEE_Wii kills the steering wheel

    In 2008Kia looked to capitalise on the success of the Nintendo Wii games console with a KEE_Wii concept car April Fools’ Day joke.

  • Vauxhall’s Accelerator Pedal Retarding Intervention Lump

    In 2006 Vauxhall announced a neat optional extra for its Astra VXR. The Accelerator Pedal Retarding Retarding Intervention Lump.

  • BMW’s M3 pick-up truck

    When is an April Fools’ Day joke not an April Fools Day joke, When it’s a real BMW M3 pick-up.

  • BMW’s M3 pick-up truck side

    BMW lifted the lid on this 414bhp V8 ute based on its M3 Convertible in 2011, proudly announcing that there was enough space in the back for 20 golf bags!

  • BMW’s M3 pick-up truck rear

    We sniggered but it turned out that the M3 pick-up was real. It was subsequently spotted lapping the Nurburgring and, weighing 50kg less than an M3 Coupe, is said to be capable of 186mph.

  • Hyundai’s i10 Popemobile

    Hyundai treated us to an unlikely modified Popemobile version of its i10 city car in on April Fools Day 2009.

  • SEAT’s electro reflective’ exterior panel finish

    SEAT came over all James Bond with its 2008 April Fools’ Day joke. A press release revealed the manufacturer had developed groundbreaking ‘electro reflective’ exterior panels.

  • Peugeot’s Audio Sonic Personalisation Programme for car horns

    Peugeot announced a new personalisation option for its cars in April 2014. The Audio Sonic Personalisation Programme for car horns invited customers to record their own sounds for their car’s horn.

  • MINI’s Cooper T

    Capable of covering 40 miles on a single cup and equipped with Dunk Avoidance Technology to prevent unscrupulous individuals from lowering biscuits into the fuel tank, the tea-powered Cooper T was a tough one to swallow.

  • MINI’s Cooper T

    You’ve heard of the Cooper S and Cooper D MINI models, well MINI asked you to suspend disbelief to accommodate a Cooper T on April Fools’ Day 2014. It sounds plausible until you learned the car supposedly runs on tea.

  • BMW’s Force Injection Booster

    BMW announced a new system that puts the thrill back in to driving for April Fools Day 2014. It claimed that the Force Injection Booster works by “extracting kinetic energy from the car’s engine and converting it into positive g-forces.

  • Mazda's four-seater MX-5

    The nippy little Mazda MX-5 can now be enjoyed by the whole family - thanks to Mazda's introduction of the four-seater version on April Fool's Day 2014.

  • Astra Copacabana

    In 2014 Vauxhall attempted to dupe the nation with a special edition Astra Copacabana tied-in with the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

  • Astra Copacabana

    The footballer graphics on the flanks and giant Brazilian flag on the roof were just about believable. The turf-covered seats, sand-filled footwells and on-board cocktail vending machine, less so.

  • Red Bull F1 in race tweeting technology

    Red Bull announced a new addition to its F1 steering wheel for April Fools’ Day 2014 – technology that would allow drivers to tweet during a race.

  • Skoda’s hairy Yeti

    Skoda introduced us to the Yeti Ice special edition for April Fools’ Day 2014. The car features a special faux fur finish developed by Skoda engineers working in the Himalayas.

  • Caddy Maxi Mini

    VW proposed the Caddy Maxi Mini, a 2.4m long micro van with one seat and only enough room for a tool box or the driver's lunch. Basically, you could take more with you if you got the bus.

  • APF

    VW proposed the Caddy Maxi Mini, a 2.4m long micro van with one seat and only enough room for a tool box or the driver's lunch. Basically, you could take more with you if you got the bus.</p>

  • Mercedes&#039; AMG Sprinter

    Mercedes claimed it was planning a 503bhp panel van with a twin-turbo V8 for April Fools' Day 2015.

  • Vauxhall&#039;s mobile kebab shop taxi

    As well as the two gas-fired spit rotisserie grills, the modified Vivaro is said to have salad bowls integrated into the arm rests, chilli dispensers and of course a tasty selection of sauces.

  • Vauxhall&#039;s mobile kebab shop taxi

    Vauxhall announced a breakthrough for the evening entertainment industry for April Fools' 2015. The Taxi Kebabi is a 9-seater Vauxhall Vivaro Combi taxi with built-in kebab shop.

  • Nissan&#039;s GYM button

    The GYM button disables labour saving gadgets like power steering and increases the force required to operate the pedals and gearbox. Suddenly your drive to work becomes a blood vessel bursting workout.

  • Skoda Colour Concept system april fool

    On April 1st 2015, Skoda revealed the solution to the age old car buying question, what colour should i choose? The answer being 'all of them'.

  • Skoda&#039;s chameleon car

    Dr Gio Kyng of Prague University, "each panel is coated with a microscopic layer of unobtainium – a newly discovered element that changes colour when a small electrical charge is applied to it."

  • Jeep Wrangler Grille Grill

    Like Porsche, Jeep shared its April Fools via social media channels. The Wrangler Grille Grill is, well, shaped like the grille from a Wrangler!

  • MG Invisible Car

    MG thought it'd have a crack at an April Fool's joke and used that old chestnut of revealing its first invisible car. With help from Professor C. Thrue and Chief Designer Avril F'ouil.

  • Skoda Superb dog umbrella

    There’s a pull-out umbrella in the door of the Skoda Superb executive saloon so the logical next step is to install a second rain shield for use by dogs.

  • Skoda Superb dog umbrella

    There’s a pull-out umbrella in the door of the Skoda Superb executive saloon so the logical next step is to install a second rain shield for use by dogs.

  • Honda Emoji numberplate

    With emoji symbols now infiltrating all aspects of modern life, Honda couldn’t resist weighing-in with the Emoji numberplate. Here smilie faces and other nonsensical pics replace traditional letters and numbers.

  • Vauxhall Adam C wind-up car

    Vauxhall claimed to have entered a new era of “zero running costs and emissions” this year with the launch of its Adam C. Closer inspection reveals that this is the world’s first full size wind-up car.

  • MINI&#039;s Hipster hatch

    MINI chose to target its 2016 April Fools effort at the growing ‘hipster’ market, offering us the “world premier of the MINI Hipster hatch”. The spoof car features ‘Instagram filtered windows’ and ‘a twin-deck cassette player’.

  • MINI Hipster hatch

    MINI chose to target its 2016 April Fools effort at the growing ‘hipster’ market.

  • Ice cream MAN April fools 2017

    It's the Ice-cream MAN! Unveiled by MAN trucks “on the sundae before” the 2017 Commercial Vehicle Show

  • MG’s voice controlled emoji windscreens

    MG’s voice controlled emoji windscreen uses MG Inter-Car Emoji technology or MICE, giving MG customers the opportunity to proudly inform friends that their car has MICE

  • Dacia Sundero April fools 2017

    There were probably serious health implications around the Dacia ‘Sundero’ sunbed car but it still raised a laugh back in 2017.

  • Hyundai’s Click to Fly car deliveries

    Under Hyundai's Click to Fly scheme customers could supposedly purchase their vehicle on Hyundai’s Click to Buy website and have it delivered in hours by a team of airborne ‘Hy-drones’.

  • Lexus Lane Valet Technology

    Lexus's April Fools' Day offering for 2017 was the 'Lane Valet' tech which could move lane hoggers aside at the press of a button. Not the worst idea in the world, actually...

  • McLaren Feather wrap April fools 2017

    McLaren got in on the act in 2017 with a feather wrap for the 570GT supercar

  • BMW dDrive dog basket

    The dDrive dog bed from 2018 had a BMW TwinPower Turbo Fan to recreate the sensation of sticking your head out of a car window.

  • Tesla’s bankruptcy claim

    It's tricky to know when to take Elon Musk seriously. In 2018, he tweeted saying, “Tesla Goes Bankrupt Palo Alto, California, April 1, 2018...". This was not the case.

  • Skoda april fool headrest

    Are we there yet? Drown out the kids with Skoda's noise-cancelling headrest. Bliss.

  • SEAT arona april fool

    SEAT’s Arona Copper Edition was a car that runs on your loose change.

  • MG alpaca april fool

    An MG fuelled by alpaca poo pellets. Yes, really.

  • Mclaren april fool

    Mclaren told us it was going to new lengths in search of efficiency gains in 2018 with a range of measures including daily monitoring of the depth of the lake and size of the floor tiles at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking.

  • Honda Concept CR-V Roadster

    A little Photoshop trickery would certainly have sufficed but it’s good to know that the Honda Concept CR-V Roadster does actually exist in the real world.</p>

  • Aston Martin Project Sparta

    Aston Martin would never build a monster truck. Would they?

  • Skoda’s customisable puddle lights

    We all love a good puddle light but what if they could send messages? Skoda tried to trick us in 2018.

  • Land Rover: the UK’s most remote charging point

    Land Rover said it had installed the UK’s most remote charging point in 2018 - 15 miles up a mountain on the Isle of Skye

  • Fiat Panda Hawaii edition

    The Fiat Panda Hawaii edition commemorated the tenth anniversary of the TV show ‘The Inbetweeners.’

  • Castle Combe Circuit sovereignty pledge

    In 2018 Castle Combe Circuit pledged it would separate from the United Kingdom to form its own sovereign state, in an attempt to remain politically neutral amidst Brexit uncertainties.

  • MG’s road-painting tyres

    Tyres that paint the road as you drive was MG's effort in 2018.

  • BMW Lunar Paint

    BMW Lunar Paint was embedded with “revolutionary photovoltaic technology,” allowing the firm’s all-electric and hybrid models to passively recharge at night as they drive.

  • Audi b-tron honey-powered car

    The 2018 Audi b-tron ran on honey. Of course it did.

  • Toyota Yaris Adventure

    Toyota proposed a Yaris pick-up in 2018, for buyers “who want to tell their friends they own a truck, but never veer off the pavement.”

  • Voltswagen

    In 2021 Volkswagen said they were rebranding their US operations as Voltswagen. After much confusion, it turned out they were not doing any such thing.

  • WeBuyAnyCarCozyCoupe

    WeBuyAnyCar.com and Little Tykes Toys combined to bring us WeBuyAnyCarCozyCoupe

  • Caterham Seven Lube

    Caterham launched the 'Seven Lube' to help customers get in and out of its cars.

  • Dacia Dustar

    At 9am on 1 April 2021, Dacia DUSTAR - the world’s first affordable space programme - was launched.

  • Porsche Paint to Sample

    Porsche's Paint to Sample prank claimed customers could replicate rust on their cars

  • Skoda’s In Tune software

    Singing in your car will never be the same again with Skoda's In Tune software

  • Alfa Romeo filter windows

    Does it look bleak outside? Not anymore thanks to Alfa Romeo's filtered car windows

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