Car culture sure ain’t what it used to be. Back in its glory days, the automobile was a triumphant marriage of form and function, beauty and brawn.
Admittedly, the old gas guzzlers of yore were also environmentally-unfriendly dinosaurs… but there’s no harm in dreaming, right? And when it comes to dream machines, the concept cars of the 1950s and 60s are hard to beat. In an era when popular choices like the Ford Thunderbird, the Studebaker Hawk and the Cadillac already embodied the post-war generation’s sense of optimism and space-age possibility, these outrageous vehicles look set to lead a mission to Mars.
1. General Motors LeSabre (1951)
The Grand Poobah of American concept cars, the LeSabre was named after the US Air Force’s F-86 Sabre fighter jet, and possessed bonafide aeronautical features such as a jet-engine-inspired air intake and dash dials for compass, technometer and altimeter. A dramatically styled aluminium body and super-charged engine heightened the effect. Though it never made production, designer Harley Earl drove his prototype for years, even lending it to General Eisenhower at one point.
2. Manta Ray (1953)
The LeSabre’s influence looms large on this gold-lacquered vision, created by Californian aviation workers Glen Hire and Vernon Antoine. Hand-building its fibreglass body reportedly caused the duo endless grief, but their suffering paid off. With its low-slung lines, dangerous-looking nose cone and triple-finned rear, the Manta Ray redefines the term ‘traffic-stopper.’
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