Top 10 craziest concept cars that never passed the design phase

Every now and then, car designers throw sanity out the window and come up with some seriously insane concepts.

While these cars typically never make it to production – or even get a physical mock-up model – it’s still interesting to see where the future of car design is headed.

So here are 10 of the craziest unreleased concept cars we’ve ever seen.

10. Maserati Sailand

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Dreamt up by graphic designer Gloria Yin, the highlight of this crazy concept is how the car can transform.

On the road, the Sailand is a sleek and sporty electric coupe.

But the entire center section of the car can lift out and be inserted into the hull of a boat.

That way, you can enjoy your Maserati on land and water without ever getting out from behind the wheel.

The car can even crabwalk to allow it to line up next to the boat for easy transfer.

9. Porsche GT3 Volkswagen Beetle

The work of Khyzyl Saleem, this epic render mashes together the current Porsche 911 GT3 and a classic Volkswagen Beetle.

While the classic shape is retained, distinctive new features include the headlights, wheels, and big rear wing.

It also sports a more aggressive stance with its redesigned bumpers.

Even the hood features the same grilles as the GT3.

It’s safe to say if anyone ever built a real-life Beetle covered in GT3 parts, it would upset quite a few purists.

8. Apple iCar

Created by YouTuber Tech Blood, this Apple iCar concept is designed as a futuristic-looking supercar.

A massive glasshouse surrounds the cabin to give an airy feel.

And the technology inside runs on Apple iOS, with an iPad used for an infotainment screen.

It’s also fully-electric with a special charging system that automatically connects under the car.

While this Apple iCar concept is what we hope Apple’s long-rumored car will look like, the real Apple car is expected to be closer to a family sedan or SUV.

7. BMW M4 Camper

Well-known designer BradBuilds thought up the perfect vehicle for the solo camper who’s in a hurry to get to their campsite.

Based on a BMW M4, the entire rear section of the sporty coupe has been removed, making way for a small cabin for one person to sleep in.

The M4 has also been jacked up and sits on some seriously big mud tires.

We’d love to see someone actually build an M4 up for off-roading like this.

But we doubt hacking an M4 into a camper would be too simple.

6. Thundertruck

Designed by creative agency Wolfgang LA, this electric pickup certainly appears to share a few design cues with the Tesla Cybertruck.

The shape of the windshield, roof, and side profile all share similarities with the Cybertruck.

However, it does have one clever party trick the Cybetruck doesn’t.

When parked, it can deploy batwing-shaped solar panels to recharge the battery.

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5. Lynk & Co. The Next Day

Although most concepts on this list are the work of clever designers, ‘The Next Day’ is actually the work of Chinese manufacturer Lynk & Co.

Don’t think that means this crazy concept car is any closer to reaching production, though.

This four-door has butterfly doors up front and rear suicide doors with the same butterfly hinge motion.

Inside, it also has a yoke-shaped steering wheel with a screen in the middle of it, along with a range of augmented reality functions.

It’s a super cool piece of design, but very unlikely to ever make it to production.

Despite this, we do hope some elements of this concept make it to Lynk & Co.’s future cars.

4. Kia EV-X

This insane concept by Seokjae Ham is a dream for any and all lovers of the great-outdoors.

The middle of this electric SUV can lift up and turn around 90 degrees, giving you an elevated panoramic view of your surroundings.

Each window around it can be raised up to let in the fresh air… and the insects.

Regardless of the fact this would never see production, the quality of the design is so good we think Kia definitely needs to hire this designer.

3. Audi R9

We all know the Audi R8, but Nicad Ibadov‘s R9 concept looks like the perfect successor.

This concept takes all the familiar elements of the R8’s design language but gives them a fresh twist.

With production of the current R8 slated to end in 2023, we’ll be interested to see what the supercar’s successor will look like.

Hopefully, it takes a few cues from Ibadov’s R9.

2. Bugatti Verrière Royale

Ramon Bäurle, a designer working for Audi, has had a crack at where he feels Bugatti’s design language should go.

We doubt you’ll ever see a Bugatti quite this angular, though.

It looks almost more like a Pagani in some ways, particularly from the side.

However, it’s a pretty striking design, with the big deep-dish wheels feeling the most Bugatti-ish of all elements.

The retractable glass roof and the way it pulls back to the rear of the car looks very clever.

1. Lamborghini Fantazma concept car

We’ve definitely saved the best til last with Yuhoon Go‘s Lamborghini Fantazma concept.

From the front, it’s aggressively angular, with the windshield extending all the way down the nose of the car.

And at the rear, well we don’t really know what’s going on there. There are just so many lines and angles to take in.

It’d be totally impractical to build, but it looks sensational.

A creative design intern for GM, we’d say Yuhoon Go has a long career in car design.

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