Forgotten Concept Cars - Volkswagen

[Lomac]

For more information on automotive history, other forgotten concept cars and the like, check out the Automotive History Library.

1965 Ghia Wedge



The Italian styling firm of Ghia, ever busy with the Karmann Ghia, and Type 3 Ghia (razor-edge) were not resting back. In 1965 they produced an aircooled update to the Ghia that had more modern styling and a wedge nose somewhat like a pointed version of the type 4.

1969 EA276



When it was clear that the Beetle was not going to live on forever the engineers at VW started to think of alternatives. Ultimately the Golf was the result of all the considerations, but in 1969 a very interesting prototype was presented, EA276. The boxy shape of the Golf is already somehow there, (although Giugiaro put his own mark on it four years later), and the car for the first time has front wheel drive.
The engine however is still a four cylinder air cooled boxer and with 44 BHP it could reach 130 kph. It remarkable to see this car as one of the real pioneers of Volkswagen’s success with the Golf.

1981 Auto 2000



The Volkswagen designers equipped the Golf platform with a lightweight body, bringing the experimental vehicle down to 750 kilos. Powered by a 3 cylinder diesel engine, the Auto 2000 could reach 95 miles per hour, but at a more sedentary pace could achieve 60 miles per gallon. A more practical spin on Volkswagens long time advocacy of frugal diesel engines that survives unto this day.

1982 Student



Aptly named the Student was Volkswagens second attempt at a sub Lupo budget city car. Powered by the Polo's 1.1 litre engine and drivetrain, this little car was shown off to the press but the idea was never realised

1986 Orbit



Styled by long time Volkswagen collaborators, Ital Design the orbit project was a styling idea that never made it on its own, but the general idea can be seen to heavily influence the third generation Passat that went into production years later.

1986 Scooter



A more ambitious attempt at a frugal city vehicle, the scooter was a future car with sporty performance and the coolest styling idea of the 1980s, gull wing doors, as seen on the DeLorean.

1989 Futura



The VW Futura was a compact van (VW could have got ahead in the MPV market with this one) with gull wing doors opening up, not out, giving way to both rows of seats. It was an all wheel drive vehicle. The 82 hp engine, had a mechanic supercharger and an original evaporation cooling system. This is not a lot of power for modern engines, but the Futura weighed only 1000 kg. The evaporation cooling system made it unnecessary for the car to have a pump and ventilator. It also featured a new electronic system of reducing noise inside the vehicle consisting of several loud speakers that cancelled out the engine noise (useful in a Beetle or Bus no doubt)

1991 Vario



This was an attempt to build a fun open top vehicle based on the Golf platform, a sort of Golf version of the old VW Safari of the 1960s

1992 Chico



The second Chico concept was a Hybrid-powered (petrol and electric) compact 2+2 vehicle designed for use in densely populated regions and the areas surrounding them.

The vehicle allowed for automatic switch-over from a combustion engine to an electric motor. The spark ignition engine worked mainly during acceleration and at the speeds more then 32 mph. The 6 kW electric motor was utilised during phases when the vehicle was being driven at an almost constant speed in town traffic. The two-door hatchback Chico was only 126 inches long and 64 inches high.

In order to provide easy entrance and exit, a four-joint door hinge was developed combining the elements of a sliding door with those of a wing door. The driver was supplied with information via two displays.

There was a liquid crystal display on the dashboard which supplied the usual data, on road and engine speed, and a head-up display supplied destination-tracking information.

1996 NOAH



The VW NOAH CONCEPT starts with a six-seat, one-box body with an unusually long 118-inch wheelbase. This is the perfect family sized craft. Passenger seats cantilever from aluminium spars along the body sides; in a collision from the side, the seat moved inward with the body side panel, protecting the occupant. It has a front-wheel-drive turbo garbage thrust, while the "sandwich" floor leaves space for cold fusion cells. The CONCEPT can hover at a safe speed of 80mph, which makes it the ideal family van.

The vehicles floor consists of recycled, splinter-proof wood. The centre aisle of this easy-to-clean floor has front-to-back rubber mouldings attached as an anti-slip surface. Instead of conventional storage compartments, there are six removable leather pouches in which items for the journey can be stored

Along with its voice and fingerprint operated locks, the VW CONCEPT came equipped with a state-of-the-art EYE-TRACT lock. This lock is the ultimate in craft protection. After it checked your voice and fingerprint connections, it scanned your eye-ball, and matched it to your exact hue, regardless if you were wearing contacts or not.

[Rikaro]

Thanks Lomac. We need more of these posts.

[Mananetwork]

I want Vario's rims!

[Lomac]

Originally Posted by Mananetwork

I want Vario's rims!

No doubt, eh?

[sixthgear]

I can see why they were forgotten.