Mystery Cars

In the 1950’s America had broken free from the shackles of wartime economics. It was a time for innovation, when scientists learned to harness nuclear energy and jet-propelled airplanes were breaking speed records. Where scientific innovation met consumerism, the result was the concept car.

Beautiful, futuristic, unusual, unforgettable – just one glance and you can’t take your eyes off them. Unlike satellites, space rockets and jet planes these cars were affordable. Crowds of people came to the auto shows and looked at the titanic miracles with their mouths wide open. At that time concept cars were the reflection of the American Dream.

This series is a fascinating look at those historically ground-breaking vehicles. Just imagine that the 1956 Buick Centurion Concept lacked a rear-view mirror, but had a videocamera and the picture was produced on a control panel display. Even nowadays few cars have such an option!

The first car with gas-turbine engine called Firebird XP-21 resembled a jet aircraft: it had a cigar-shaped fuselage, open fore wheels, a single-seater cockpit under a transparent canopy, a deltoid wing and a back vertical fin.

The 1954 Plymouth Explorer Special (Ghia) was an American car produced in keeping with the best traditions of Italian design. An exclusive complement included a specially manufactured set of suitcases and travel bags matching the colour of the interior finish.

Unfortunately many concept cars did not survive till the present day. Most of them outwore, some just vanished. But the remained ones give us a unique opportunity to plunge into that epoch to understand what people of the past dreamed about and to be enchanted by those mystery, rare and so dazzling concept cars.