10 Electric Car Concepts That Should Have Gone Into Production

Summary

• Concept cars showcase the amazing potential of automotive engineering, but often remain as fantasies.
• Electric vehicles push boundaries with futuristic designs and technologies, challenging traditional norms.
• Despite their innovative features and designs, many concept cars never make it to production, leaving enthusiasts longing for more.

Concept cars are one of the greatest and worst things about the automotive industry. If you don’t know, concept cars are a sort of prototype released to the media and public to show a company’s vision for the future of their design and business.

Concept cars are among the greatest things in the industry because they show us the potential of what cars can be, and inspire people across the globe to see the greatness that is automotive engineering. They’re among the worst because the companies rarely, if at all, follow through on making these fantastic vehicles a reality. Sure, every decade or so we get a situation like the Ford GT or Audi R8 where the carmaker actually puts the car into production to be purchased by the people.

Electric cars are no different. If anything, manufacturers use EVs as a way to showcase the most futuristic designs and technology possible. From automated driving, to ludicrous power sources and output, all the way to completely redefining what a car can be, EV concepts have done it all. The freedom of the future is without limit, and these concepts are here to explore that notion. Here are 10 EV concepts that we would have loved to see hit production.

All information contained here was obtained from authoritative sources, including company press releases on the concept cars listed here.

1 Audi PB18 e-tron

Speaking of the Audi R8, the PB18 e-tron does bear a striking resemblance, doesn’t it? Audi debuted the futuristic electric sports car at the 2018 Pebble Beach Automotive Week. That motor show is where it got its name: PB, Pebble Beach; 18, 2018. Audi posed this as the crown jewel of the e-tron line, a ridiculously fast electric vehicle that would prove the performance of the brand would not go away with electrification. The car was supposed to receive a limited production run, but five-plus years later, and there is no word. Here are the specs for the electric beast.

Audi PB18 e-tron Specs

(Data Collected From Audi)

While the e-tron line is among the most luxurious and stylish set of electric vehicles, they’re not exactly thrilling cars. The e-tron GT is the closest we’ll get, but we think it would have been nice to have a true maniac EV in Audi’s pocket.

2 Jaguar Vision Gran Turismo

Jaguar is the king of making concepts it never intends to release. The Pirana, the Ascot, and more recently the C-X75, all are counted among brilliant Jaguar concepts that never even got a real-world analog, let alone a full-on release. The Vision Gran Turismo is the newest notch in that belt for Jag, but it’s got a slightly different story. We’ll get to that after we give you the specs. Jaguar’s 1,000+ horsepower electric supercar concept would have given Rimac a run for its money… if it wasn’t for a video game!

Jaguar Vision Gran Turismo Specs

(Data Collected From Gran Turismo)

The Vision GT Coupe is a concept not made for the roads but for the screens. It only exists within the Gran Turismo video game. Its insane looks and insane performance are genuinely too good to be true. The “Vision Gran Turismo” program was a joint venture between the legendary racing sim and various car companies like Ferrari, Bugatti, and even Hyundai to make concepts for the game. Jaguar did build a one-off race car version of the Vision GT, which was even more powerful, but it’s the stunning coupe that we’d love to see rolling down the road.

3 Italdesign Giugiaro Gea

EVs typically do not inspire passion or really appeal to the soulful side of cars that make people so crazy about them. EVs can be like science experiments more than machines of beauty. To solve this problem, who do you call? The Italians. Italdesign Giugiaro has designed some brilliant cars like the Alfa Romeo 159, the original Volkswagen Golf, and the Audi A80. Here it was able to take those legendary design skills and make the Gea.

Italdesign Giugiaro Gea Specs

(Data Collected From Italdesign Giugiaro)

The Gea debuted at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show, at the peak of the autonomous driving craze. The Gea is not so focused on performance, as much as it is focused on creating a space where its passengers can work and relax while the car drives itself. While it turns out that autonomous driving is very far off, we would love to see this car on the road with a focus towards being a big comfortable, stylish Italian sedan to take on the likes of Tesla and Mercedes in that EV category.

4 Borgward Isabella

Borgward was an obscure German automaker from the mid-1900s. The brand doesn’t exactly have the cache of the other legendary German names, but it does have one classic. The Isabella coupe, a timeless two-door car that was the last vestige of the manufacturer in the public eye after it went under in the 90s. Naturally, when a Chinese company revived the brand, it went with the most recognizable name for its new EV.

This Car Should Have Been Made For Its Doors Alone

Despite being a “coupe” the Isabella has an absolutely whacky four-door setup. The doors open up away from each other to reveal a spacious interior and futuristic design concept. Imagine picking up a date or a friend in that! It wasn’t just about the doors though, here’s what the Isabella Coupe concept could do. The Chinese market was the perfect place to release the car, with their love of long-wheelbase luxury cruisers, but instead, it went on to make dreary crossovers like the BX7 or BX5 instead.

5 Honda Urban EV

Finally, an EV concept for the people. A small city cruiser that doesn’t need the range to do long distances, but can pop you to the dry cleaners or grocery store with ease. Cute, friendly, sensible, the perfect urban vehicle. The Honda Urban EV. However, Honda never released it. In fact, it barely works on EVs at all, and when it does, the EVs are focus-tested crossovers like the Prologue EV.

This Little EV Was Years Ahead Of Its Time

As electric cars become more popular, the market is begging for a small EV that works in the city. When it debuted in 2017, it correctly predicted the switch to massive touch screens all over cars. We’re cheating a little by putting it on this list, because a production version was released in Europe, but never came to the U.S.

Honda Urban EV Specs

S (Data Collected From Honda)

While the Honda e is a failure, and will not receive a second generation, we still think there is something brilliant in the original Urban EV concept. Honda forcing a five-door setup instead of the three-door one from the concept was probably the beginning of the end, and a price point above that of a Mercedes A-Class didn’t help, but we think a cheap, small EV designed for cities will eventually break through.

6 Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow

When you think of stunning, groundbreaking visual designs, Mercedes isn’t necessarily the first company that comes to mind. That’s more the realm of Lamborghini, Pagani, or Pininfarina. German automakers in general typically do not push the boundaries when it comes to looks. However, every once in a while, they can surprise you, as Mercedes did in 1955 with the 300 SL Gullwing. The Silver Arrow is another car on that level.

Somehow Both A Complete Throwback And Completely Futuristic, This Is One Of The Coolest Concepts We’ve Seen

• “Silver Arrow” is a nickname for Mercedes Racecars.
• This one in particular is based off the kilometer record car, the W125 Rekordwagen.
• It produces 740 horsepower.
• It is a single-seat vehicle with a retractable cockpit cover.

While a single-seat vehicle isn’t exactly practical, this beast would make for an all-time track car, and a real laugh of a Sunday driver. We’re not asking Mercedes to make 1,000,000 of these, but enough so that a kid can see one whipping by on the highway and have a boring trip to grandma’s turned into something that inspires them.

7 Peugeot E-Legend

Peugeot is known for two things. Hot hatchbacks, and European soccer (or I guess in this case, football) mom cars. The E-Legend is not either of these things. The French carmaker says it draws inspiration from the 504 coupe. However, it looks even better than that original, futuristic, and menacing, something rarely said of a Peugeot.

Peugeot Could Have Started A Wave Of Cool European EVs

The E-Legend debuted in 2018 at the Paris Motor Show, where, as with some previous entries here, autonomous driving was all the rage. So, instead of focusing on making an EV that looks fantastic, and is fantastic to drive, the concept focused heavily on the passenger experience and being luxurious. Thus, it was too expensive to be put into production.

Peugeot E-Legend Specs

Peugeot got a lot right here. A long range and some serious power are great things in an EV but had it focused on driving, it might have been able to make the car work beyond a concept. In a world of bland EVs, Peugeot, of all carmakers, could have been an unlikely hero.

8 Genesis Essentia

Hyundai is all in on electrification. Its Ioniq brand provides some of the best-selling EVs in America, and its luxury Genesis brand offers some of the best pound-for-pound cars in the world. Naturally, a brand dedicated to the format would like to make something a bit more spicy than a crossover or sedan. Enter the Essentia, a gorgeous sports coupe powered by electricity. Unfortunately, the Essentia will never leave the autoshow floor.

Why Are Automakers Afraid Of Electric Coupes?

We’re not sure why Hyundai didn’t move this into production, but it speaks to a broader issue among EVs. Where are the fun cars that aren’t seven-figure hypercars? Why isn’t there a coupe option from every EV brand? EVs do have a branding problem for a country obsessed with pickup trucks and the bought masculinity that comes with them. A set of fast, stylish sports and GT electric cars would do a lot to mend that, wouldn’t it?

Genesis Essentia Specs

(Data Collected From Genesis)

This concept apparently had a strong push from Genesis’ brass, but just never got made. It’s unclear if it was too expensive, or if Genesis just didn’t feel there was a market for two-door electric cars.

9 Volkswagen ID Buggy

The beach buggy is one of the most iconic vehicle styles of all time. Between that and the Bus, Volkswagen absolutely owned the hippy crowd in the ’60s and ’70s. Noting the historic popularity of these brands, it brought back the two. Here with the ID Buggy, and the Bus with the cleverly named ID Buzz.

Never Has There Been A Better Time For The Return Of The Beach Buggy

With retro style returning to fashion, and the ecological craze ever-growing, an all-electric beach buggy makes a ton of sense. While not uber-practical, a recreational vehicle is not exactly a far-fetched concept for Americans. The ID Buggy was even designed with more rough terrain in mind than its predecessors. Here’s what the ID Buggy can do.

Volkswagen ID Buggy Specs

(Data Collected From Volkswagen)

If Volkswagen thinks it can’t sell these to young people, I’m sure the older crowd will buy them for nostalgia. The car looks great, and fills a niche that no other major automaker is even approaching right now. Get on it VW!

10 Kia Imagine

The Imagine is unique on this list because we really do not care about its exterior (though it is good-looking). Nor do we care about its performance. We care about the most absolutely absurd dashboard ever fitted to a car. It is comprised of individually separated touch screens that unite, to form a cascading picture across the dash.

We Need This 21-screen Console To Be Available

Twenty-one screens. Just an absolutely ridiculous prospect. Just look at it! It is absolutely brilliant, and is likely a lovely place to sit. The Imagine was a predecessor to the EV6, but obviously, it did not carry over that luxury swagger. Part of the problem here is that Kia is under the Hyundai Motor Group umbrella, and Genesis is the luxury brand. Kia cannot have a car that is arguably nicer than anything Genesis puts out. Thus, this car will remain shelved forever.

We’re always on the lookout for great concepts, and it’ll always get us down when they don’t go into production. We’ll look forward to all the crazy new designs we’ll see this year, and hope an automaker is finally crazy enough to put some into production.