The most unusual cars in the world
The world auto industry is not only mass VAZs, Golfs, Focuses, etc. The global auto industry is also a small part of truly original and original cars that are rarely found in the general stream. But, if you still manage to see your representative at least once, for sure this moment will cause at least a smile or surprise, and the maximum will remain in your memory for many years. Today we give you the opportunity not to wait for this happy moment, looking at the passing cars. Today we give you the opportunity to get acquainted with the brightest representatives of a family of rare and unusual cars, carefully selected from around the world.
We tried to find the most interesting representatives and divided them into five groups, within which we made a small rating. Perhaps our opinion does not coincide with yours, but one thing is certain: all the cars presented below rightfully deserve the opportunity to be present in our rating and one day they will definitely take or have already taken their place of honor in the world ranking of passenger car museums. And let's start, perhaps from the most general, from design, because cars also get clothes.
Design Features
The selection of candidates for the "design" category was the most difficult, as many interesting cars with an original and unusual appearance were produced and continue to be produced. But, despite the heated debate, we identified the five most curious cars that seemed to us the most unusual and at the same time controversial. Let's start.
Fifth place was taken by the Japanese sports car Mitsuoka Orochi, which was produced in small numbers between the end of 2006 and 2014, when the updated and final version of the Orochi Final Edition was introduced to the world, released in just five copies at a time, at a price of almost 125000 US dollars. Outside of Japan, Orochi is almost impossible to find, as this very unusual sports car was aimed exclusively at the local public, who appreciated the "dragon" design of the car, modeled after the mythical eight-headed creature Yamata No. Orochi.
Fourth place goes to another sports car: the Ferrari FF. You will ask why? At least for the fact that looking at this car you will not immediately believe that this is a Ferrari. But indeed, this is the first all-wheel drive supercar in the history of the Italian manufacturer, and even in the back of a three-door hatchback, designed for four passengers. Introduced in 2011, the Ferrari FF still feels like a weird "ugly duckling" compared to other Ferrari models that are familiar to the eye.
In terms of design, we gave the third line in the ranking of original cars to the Indian "baby" Tata Nano. This car, during the creation of which the developers saved absolutely everything, received a slightly oversized body and a boring and somewhat silly appearance, thanks to which it can attract the attention of absolutely any motorist. However, the Tata Nano also has a positive advantage as it costs around $2500 and is the cheapest car in the world. Although on the other hand, Tata Nano is the most unsafe car in the world, which absolutely failed all crash tests.
Second place goes to the American Chevrolet SSR. This transforming pickup truck lasted only three years on the market (2003 - 2006) and was never able to win the hearts of even the American public, who loves volume and solidity. The rather ambiguous appearance of the car, more suitable for a cartoon image than for a production car, can only cause a smile, but memories of the past, because massive fenders and small round headlights were quite popular in the middle of the last century. However, this is what makes the Chevrolet SSR special and interesting; otherwise he would not have made it to our list.
Well, at the top of the Olympus of unusual automotive design is the first-generation Italian FIAT Multipla compact MPV, produced from 1999 to 2004. It is not entirely clear what the Italian designers who painted the FIAT Multipla were thinking about and what they drew from. The exterior of this car has a stupid "two-story" look, which appeared, apparently, in an unsuccessful attempt to cross the top of a minivan body with a piece of body from a classic hatchback. Naturally, the car did not gain wide popularity, and in 2004, as part of the update, it received a more familiar front end.
Tricycle monsters
It's "very, very rare" to see three-wheelers on the roads today. Most of them are represented by only tens, a maximum of hundreds of copies, and some are completely stuck at the stage of concept cars, never going into series. Our rating includes 4 models, one of which is historical, and three are quite modern, found on the roads of several countries at once.
The list of interesting "tricycles" will be opened by an unusual car Bond Bug 700E, produced in 1971-1974 in the UK. The unusual Bond Bug 700E differed not only in the presence of only three wheels and a strange appearance. One of the "chips" of this car is the door leaf, or rather the upper part of the body, which opens and serves as a door. The Bond Bug 700E was a two-seat car that was positioned as (!) a sports car, attracting more and more attention from the English public. As a rule, Bond Bug 700E cars were painted in a bright tangerine orange, which made it even more noticeable. It is noteworthy that in England there are still Bond Bug 700E connoisseurs clubs that organize annual meetings and even racing competitions.
The third place in the ranking of unusual tricycles is occupied by the ZAP Xebra electric car, released in 2006 and lasting on the market until 2009. This funny and clumsy car dwarf managed to offer buyers up to two body styles: a 4-cylinder local hatchback and a 2-seater station wagon. ZAP Xebra was produced primarily in China, but managed to sell several thousand copies in the United States, where it was used by postal employees and for advertising purposes by large companies such as Coca-Cola.
We decided to give the second place to a very interesting development called Carver. Unfortunately, this project did not last long. Starting in 2007, already in 2009, Carver left the scene due to the bankruptcy of the developer, who failed to conduct an adequate marketing campaign to promote his offspring. The Carver was a one-seater with a very interesting feature: the body leaned in the corner, which provided better stability, and also created the effect of riding a sports bike.
The top line of the rating of unusual "three-wheelers" is occupied by the most successful representative of this class - Campagna T-Rex, which has been on the market since 1996 and has undergone several updates during this time. Classified in a number of countries as a motorcycle, the Canadian tricycle is positioned as a sports car and has a rather interesting appearance, as well as a rear-wheel drive chassis design. Campagna T-Rex not only sold successfully in many countries, but also managed to hit the cinema screens, starring in several films.
Amphibious vehicles.
Since the introduction of the first mass-produced vehicles in the early 20th century, some manufacturers have tried to popularize amphibious vehicles, believing that such a versatile vehicle should catch on. Unfortunately, or maybe not, but most car enthusiasts did not need amphibians, so their production eventually came down to small-scale production or assembly to order. Despite this, several models managed to leave a very bright mark in the history of the global automotive industry.
We will not make a rating in this category, as we will only talk about three cars, each of which is unique and interesting in its own way. Let's start with the German Amphicar, which in 1961 became the first mass-produced amphibious vehicle in world history. Slightly comical in appearance, the Amficar was still in high demand in many countries, but its success was short-lived. Unfortunately, Amfikar sailed too slowly, so moving on water did not bring the proper pleasure, and on ordinary roads it was significantly inferior in quality and driving performance to other road users.
The amphibious vehicle Aquada, created in 2003 in the UK, looks much more solid. This original car has a boat bottom, as well as a beautiful exterior with streamlined lines. But this is not the main thing, the Aquada's on-board electronics automatically determines the depth of the water and, when the desired level is reached, hides the wheels in the wheel arches, turning the car into a boat in just 6 seconds. It is also worth noting that Aquada is a very maneuverable machine: on land it can accelerate to 160 km/h, and on the water - up to a decent 50 km/h.
Another curious representative of this class of vehicles was invented in Switzerland in 2004. We are talking about the amphibian Rinspeed Splash, which literally floats on the surface of the water due to hydroplaning. This is achieved thanks to special hydrofoils and a rear propeller retractable. At the same time, the designers achieved the almost impossible: by inscribing hydrofoil side wings into the car's sills, and the rear spoiler, turned 180 degrees, also played the role of a familiar wing when driving on land. As a result, the sports amphibian is capable of reaching speeds of up to 200 km/h on the race track and up to 80 km/h when hovering above the water surface. Whatever you say, the Rinspeed Splash is the perfect car for James Bond or any other superhero.
Trucks
When talking about trucks, we used to think of KAMAZ, MAN, or at least GAZelle, but trucks can be much smaller and more unusual than you think. It makes even more sense to refer to these vehicles as microtrucks, or simply "trucks". We will introduce you to three representatives of this class, who manage not only to surprise others, but also to carry, if not bulky, but cargo.
So, the third place in the ranking of unusual trucks is Daihatsu Midget II, released in 1996. With a "toy" design and an aftermarket hood often referred to as a "rhinoceros", this compact car is only 2,8 meters long but manages to offer two cab options (single or double) as well as two cab or pickup options. The small delivery truck was designed for small businesses and sold very quickly in Japan, but failed to replicate the success of its predecessor, which was produced between 1957 and 1972.
France also has microtrucks. We are talking about the Aixam-Mega MultiTruck, which also offers several body options, including a tipper. At the same time, the Frenchman has a much more modern, although still quite funny design, as well as two power plant options - a diesel or electric engine. Despite the low operating costs and the ability to use the narrow streets of Paris, Aixam-Mega MultiTruck has not yet gained much popularity. Perhaps the price, which starts at almost 15 euros, is to blame.
We decided to call the Indian Tata Ace Zip the leader in the list of unusual trucks. You can laugh, but this gloomy-looking truck is equipped with a diesel engine with a return of up to 11 hp, which does not prevent it from carrying up to 600 kg of cargo and a driver with a passenger. Like all Tata models, the Ace Zip truck is pretty cheap. Buying a new car costs Indian entrepreneurs only $4500-$5000. However, this is not the limit of the introduction of "nanotechnology" in the Indian automotive industry. Soon Tata promises to release an even more compact modification of the Ace Zip with a 9-horsepower engine.
Heroes of the past
Concluding our tour, I would like to look back into the past, where there were also many interesting, funny or original cars in their own way. Here again we will do without a rating, but only introduce you to the most interesting models that have managed to leave their significant mark on the history of the global automotive industry.
So let's start with the Stout Scarab spacecraft. This minivan with an unusual futuristic appearance for its time was born back in 1932 and was produced exclusively to order. The Stout Scarab did not gain mainstream popularity due to the high price of the car, which started at $5000, which was a huge amount by the standards of the time. According to available historical data, only 9 copies of the Stout Scarab were assembled for sale, several more cars existed as exhibition samples, including the first car in the history of the automotive industry with a fiberglass body.
Another hero from the past is the Mazda R360. Learn about the first mass-produced passenger car from the now famous Japanese automaker. It was produced between 1960 and 1966 and during that time managed to sell over 60 copies, simultaneously becoming the first export car with the Mazda nameplate. The small car accommodated 000 passengers and was equipped with a 4-horsepower engine, which allowed it to accelerate to 16 km / h. The R80 was so successful that Mazda was able to improve its financial position and began work on more modern cars.
Let's finish with another savior who brought the famous Bavarian company BMW out of oblivion. After the war, the German auto industry was in a deep depression, and the BMW brand had every chance to go down in history, if not for the unpretentious BMW Isetta 300, equipped with a 13-horsepower engine and a two-cylinder passenger compartment. While all the other representatives of the German big three were trying to fight in the segment of the most expensive cars, the Bavarians flooded the market with an inexpensive model with a simple design, an unusual front single door and modest technical characteristics. In total, during the launch (1956 - 1962), more than 160 BMW Isetta 000 rolled off the assembly line, which allowed the Bavarians to significantly improve their financial situation.
