AmCar Guide » Concept

Spied: Corvette Stingray Concept Cabrio

Liquid — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 17:34:17 +0000

What You see here is C6 Corvette modified to look as Sideswipe from Tranformers movie, but convertible including some significant changes, like a different hood, grille and wheels and vertical LED-strip lights missing. This one was spotted hanging out in Beverly Hills.
The actual Corvette Stingray Concept has coupe body. Let’s hope these design elements will be used in future Corvettes and GM previously expressed trend to represent iconic legacy and modern high-tech future will be developed.

Cobra Venom V8

Liquid — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 19:13:22 +0000

This futuristic muscle car concept was designed by Jamie Martin who was inspired by the iconic Anglo-American muscle car – AC Cobra. Jamie’s concept is named Cobra Venom V8 and it uses the latest technology to suit the modern present.
Cobra Venom V8 is projected to fit the new supercharged Ford 4.6 liter V8 engine, 6-speed manual Tremec gearbox, aluminum chassis and carbon fiber panels in order to continue power in a small car tradition and gain amazing 524 HP. 17-inch cast-aluminum wheels, HID headlamps and LED lighting, Satellite navi, good audio and F1 style safety cocoon makes this Cobra Venom V8 quite a suitable modern replacement for the old school Cobra.

Teague 2010 AMC concepts

Liquid — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 18:40:34 +0000

Although AMX Javelin competed respectively in pony car playground, probably, the coolest AMC’s car was AMC AMX. It was based on the Javelin’s platform which was made shorter just to fit 2 seats and big engine.
Since AM Company is already a history, some enthusiasts try to develop their own concepts. This one belongs to Jeff Teague, that is the son of Dick Teague – the AMC designer. The SO-Cal AMC Club asked him to make some sketches of a modern AMC.
Although this concept is very modern You may still notice the main classic AMX’s features and call it the concept of AMC AMX-4. The pen-drawn renderings are of the Gremlin and Javelin.

Lingenfelter T/A VS Phoenix T/A

Liquid — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:49:28 +0000

Lingenfelter
This one is the 2010 Lingenfelter TA concept based on 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS and powered by 455 cubic 655 HP LS engine [7.5 liter aluminum block]. While the original 1971 Trans Am shared the same platform with Camaro, this concept birth was probably also provoked by appearance of 5th generation Camaro. You may still see Camaro design features from the side view, but front face-lift, rear tail lights, spoiler and decals, custom wheels make it seriously look like good old T/A.

Phoenix T/A by Kevin Morgan
This Black Bandit Bird was presented in 2009. It is designed by Kevin Morgan and based on 5th gen Camaro too. Its is called The Phoenix T/A and is the retro interpretation of 1977-1978 Pontiac Trans Am. This conversion is for sale by Kevin’s partners – Trans Am Depot.

2011 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am concept

Liquid — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 19:05:14 +0000

Even though GM stopped producing Pontiac, there still are a lot of Pontiac fans that even have some ideas to share for the 2011 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am. We all know, that Firebird was based on Chevrolet Camaro, so when 5th generation Camaro concept was delivered to the public it seemed logical to expect the 5th generation Firebird too. But…

This beautiful peace of art was brought by ASC Creative Services guys. 2010 Camaro based Firebird concept looks seriously cool and probably would face good sales if it would hit the streets. The Firebird concept brings the 1970 Bird’s features, while keeping Camaro’s bodyline and shape:

There are no official intends to produce upgrades for Camaros to become Firebirds from the ASC, but we also got some more concept designs for Trans Am from other fans:

1975 Plymouth Barracuda concept

Liquid — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 18:27:58 +0000

The world was given a chance to get one more generation of Barracuda back in 1975, but due to 3 main factors it didn’t reach production line: high insurance charges, government’s criticism against muscle cars and industry’s turn from performance to research [emission].
There were several proposals made for the new generation fish design in E-body style, but Chrysler wasn’t interested because there was no place for high performance cars in their plans. There was some work being done at Plymouth Advanced Studio – they were working on the next Barracuda. Chrysler had 4 years for new model preparation and no one working on this project expected that the E-body Barracuda will not see the sunlight. It is interesting, that there were 2 designs involved in the next Barracuda’s creation. One was made by designers Shunsuke Matsurra [aka, Matty] and Don Hood, while the other was built by the team of John Sampson and John Herlitz. These teams studied each other’s projects, discussed, but worked separately. Herlitz and Sampson made their Cuda look fluid while Matsurra made it more muscular. After claying 4 different models teams ended up with 2 units. And the final proposal was actually the blend of both team designs.
The other problem was that Chrysler’s management was made of financial executives and they no longer listened for car enthusiasts. Chrysler also get some critics for being short-minded during 1968 when they had good sales but did not invest money in development. Some say, it was a mistake to make Barracuda smaller than Challenger, because it ment new body panels to be fabricated. Leaving the same panels would have saved millions that could have been invested in future development.

1995 Ford GT90 concept

Liquid — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 16:34:26 +0000

The modern angular-looking concept car was unveiled in 1995 at the Detroit Motor Show with a GT90 nameplate. This supercar was claimed to be “the world’s mightiest” at that time: quad-turbocharged 6-liter V12 with 48-valve engine was mounted in the middle and might have produced 720 HP and a top speed of 250 mph [402 km/h]. One of the interesting features was exhaust – it was so hot that it could damage the body panels so it required ceramic tiles for heat prevention.

The name plate prompts that GT 90 is the offspring of the famous and iconic Ford GT 40, but has taken almost nothing that considers design [maybe except doors that cut into the roofline]. GT 90 was the first one to display Ford’s “New Edge” design trend. Surprisingly, the mighty-ninety was built in 6 month by a small team. As a result, the car borrowed many components from the Jaguar XJ220 – double wishbone suspension, 5-speed manual transmission. The engine was from an other Ford family member – the Lincoln Mark VIII.

The six liter engine was born quite in a natural automative way – two V8s [4.6 liter DOCHs] had their 2 cylinders removed and then welded together in 90 degree angle. Sadly, this can may be driven only in some games. There are also some enthusiasts that have made GT 90 replicas.

Leonhard’s Dodge Charger concept

Liquid — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 07:23:58 +0000

The public wants 2-door Charger so much, that some designers like Michael Leonhard keep illustrating their thoughts. And do this so good that sometimes car manufactures should buy the design rights from people outside the industry and get those thoughts on streets.
This interpretation is obviously related to late 1960’s Charger style. Equipped with current 5.7 liter HEMI V8 engine it would be quite a ride with 368 HP.

2005 Holden Efijy

Liquid — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 18:25:18 +0000

This concept car is made by australian company Holden and designed by Richard Ferlazzo. Ferlazzo said the car existed purely for automotive entertainment. Some say that this car was inspired by Boyd Coddington’s Cadzzilla. Well, it has some familiar features. Originally, Efijy takes many styling from 1953 Holden FJ which was Australia’s most famous car. It has a long 5.2 metre body, 480 kilowatt 6 liter supercharged V8 engine, adjustable shock absorbers and many other mechanical, electronic and material features. All in all, it took about $1,2 million to built.
Because of high demand among rich people, Holden should take some concerns to built it – most of rich men would pay about $1 million to own one. Officially they deny it, but it is possible for limited edition million-worth Holden FJ to hit the roads.

2000 Buick Blackhawk concept

Liquid — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 20:05:37 +0000

This 2+2 Buick Blackhawk convertible a an outstanding expression of all that Buick car is. This 2000 concept car is impressed by older retro Buicks and matched with modern style and perforance. The front grille idea is taken from 1939, sleek body – from 1941-1948 Buick Roadmaster.

Michael E. Doble who is Buick’s special vehicles manager said that this car was not only built for shows, but had been inspired to-built by hot rod shows enthusiasts – this Buick is actually being driven from custom show to custom show and it is not ment for major shows. Buick’s General Manager Roger W. Adams added that Blackhawk has a reason to remind that Buick cars had always been powerful and had distinctive style. The way this Buick was design is indeeed very interesting. There were some simple ideas and a request given to five companies and they introduced their concepts. Mr Doble has chosen a former Buick designer’s, Steven D. Pasteiner, concept version which by himself was described as “ultimate Buick custom car”. Most of the car’s components are hand made: frame, carbon fiber top, etc.

Blackhawk’s powertrain is equipped with 455 cubic GS Stage III fuel injected V8 engine from 1970. The 463 HP engine is mated to the electronically controlled 4-speed automatic gearbox. Other features for this car are: fully independent suspension, dual exhaust, 18-inch alloy wheels, dark cherry paint, etc.