As the years go by, cars keep getting better, crazier, and, not to forget, just ballistic in certain cases. This year was no different. It's been a crazy ride and with so many auto shows giving creative impetus to designers, this year has all been about functionality than just outright outrageous. We look at some of the concepts that we saw in India and the other shows around the world and bring to you our list of the Top 10.
1) Kia GT4 Stinger
Kia first showcased the GT4 Stinger at the 2014 NAIAS and it was a beauty. This four-seater looked like a sports car meant to rule the roads. The GT4 Stinger is minimal and pure, low and wide, and has all the basic elements of a sports car.
Under the hood, the GT4 features a version of Kia's 2.0-litre turbocharged gasoline 4-cylinder engine with a 6-speed manual transmission that packs 315 horsepower. It is a concept, but Kia intends to take this further.
2) Honda XS-1
How can we forget this one? Honda brought the Vision XS-1 Concept to India and managed to raise quite a few eyebrows. To start with, we were left wondering about the inspiration behind this concept and whether we would see a production car based on this.
The Vision XS-1 shares its platform with the Brio, Amaze and the Mobilio, so, developing a product on that will be more economical and will also cut down efforts. This platform will also help Honda in keeping the product under 4-metre in size, but then again, there is the Vezel which we will see soon. That said, we must accept that the XS-1 did leave a lasting impression.
3) Mini Superleggera
We saw this concept from the MINI stable in May this year, which happens to be a classic open-top two-seater sports car designed by MINI and Touring Superleggera. The MINI Superleggera Vision is a classic roadster, and yet it uses an electric drivetrain, thus indicating the contemporary thought behind it.
The face is trademark MINI, with the circular head-lights, hexagonal grille and even the use of LEDs like on the new generation production MINI Cooper. The interior boasts traditional coachwork construction too, with very old-style colour palette and materials used. It is all old school but the elements are all there to make you want to take it out for a drive.
4) Volkswagen XL Sport
The XL Sport from Volkswagen celebrated the production of 200 million cars, and what a way to celebrate! Like the XL1, this too is a feather weight, thanks to a CFRP monocoque chassis and high-strength steel subframes. However, more attention needs to be paid to what is under the hood.
The XL Sport gets a 90-degree V-twin found in the Ducati 1199 Superleggera sportbike. Yup, an engine from a bike, which is sheer genius and not a feat attempted by many manufacturers. It redlines at 11,000 rpm and is mated to a 7-speed DSG and 197bhp is at your disposal and a run from 0-100Km/h takes 5.7 seconds. Having seen it in the flesh, it wants you to get behind the wheel and take it out for a spin.
5) Toyota FT-1 Concept
The FT-1 concept is a pure performance, track-focused sports car created by CALTY Design Research, Toyota's North American Design branch. It is a symbol that captures elements of the emotion and energy we can expect to see in future Toyota designs. With heavy influences in design from sports cars like the 2000GT, Celica, Supra and most recently, FT-86 (Scion F-RS), the FT-1 takes things to a new level.
Toyota has used the 'Function-sculpting' design language which helps in showing off the curved, muscular, expressive body forms seemingly shaped by the wind. Inlets, ducting, and vents help reinforce its track-ready nature along with elements of purposeful airflow management. At higher speeds, a retractable rear wing deploys and tilts forward to create additional downforce.
This is one car which first made its debut in the virtual world and then saw it self being rendered into real life conditions. We look forward to what Toyota does with the FT-1 concept.
6) Maserati Alfieri
Maserati brought this sexy-looking thing to the Geneva Motor Show and later went on to confirm its future on the production line. The car is named Alfieri in honour of one of the Maserati brothers, who created the company a century ago.
This 2+2 concept rides on a variant of the GranTurismo's with the powertrain borrowed from Maserati's big coupe. The 4.7-litre V8 churns out a hefty 460bhp and comes mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission.
According to Maserati, the Alfieri boasts of proportions that might well be archetypal for a true sports car in the future and certainly hints at the brand's stylistic intentions for the near future.
7) Lamborghini Asterion
The concept was unveiled at the 2014 Paris Motorshow and the car is named after a mythical creature; a Minotaur. A Minotaur is a creature from the Greek mythology which had the head of the bull and the body of a man, so it was a hybrid and yes that is exactly what the Asterion is; a hybrid.
This is Lamborghini's first attempt at a plug-in hybrid and they didn't hold out on the details. The concept boasts of a 5.2-litre naturally aspirated engine V10 from the Huracan which puts out 610bhp with three electric motors packing an extra 300bhp along with a 7-speed DSG. This hardware setup has created the most powerful Lamborghini ever, capable of unleashing a mighty 910bhp.
All this power helps the Asterion concept do a 0-100Km/h sprint in just 3 seconds and achieves a top speed of 320Km/h. When it runs solely on electric power, the Asterion can attain a top speed of 125Km/h and can run for 50Km. Used as a hybrid, the Asterion has a combined fuel consumption of only 4.2 litres/ 100Km.
While this car might not make it as a production car, the technologies can be used in other Lamborghinis in the future.
8) Audi Prologue Concept
The Prologue Concept forms the basis for the styling of the company's future cars. Slightly shorter than the A8, the Prologue is quite the elegant-looking coupe. It's all about design, this one, and features a wide single-frame grille flanked by Matrix laser head-lights, gloss black front spoilers and aggressive air vents with diamond pattern inserts.
The sleek styling continues further back with the sculpted hood, chiseled body work and wide fenders that house 22-inch alloy wheels. The concept eschews traditional door handles and uses electromechanically-operated doors that open when touched. The rear gets 3D tail-lights and a protruding bumper. Inside, you find premium leather upholstery, aluminum trim and elm wood veneers.
Under the hood, the concept houses the twin-turbo 4.0-litre TFSI V8 engine that develops 600bhp and 750Nm of torque. It is connected to an 8-speed tiptronic transmission and a quattro all-wheel drive which enables the coupe to rocket from 0-100Km/h in just 3.7 seconds.
The coupe also has a 'butler' which identifies the driver by their cell phone and then automatically adjusts the driver's seat, climate control system, radio and navigation system in accordance with their preferences. So, yes, they've gone all out on this one and succeeded.
9) Hyundai Intrado
The Intrado made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show and it's all about taking Hyundai cars to a different level altogether. The key inspiration behind the Intrado concept comes from aeronautics and harnessing the power of air flow to create more efficiency. Intrado means the underside area of an aircraft's wing that creates lift.
The concept looks agile and Hyundai has also proved a point in constructing a light weight car.
The concept car is powered by a hydrogen fuel cell power-train that utilizes a 36KW lithium ion battery and this also shows the company's need or desire to produce lighter and stronger car that gives better driving dynamics and more responsive car.
10) Ford Figo Compact Sedan
This was the most anticipated debut at the 2014 Delhi Auto Show and when it was unveiled we knew that we would see the car in the Indian market soon. The company has already launched the car in Brazil, where it is sold as the Ka+.
The Brazilian model measures over 4 metres in length, though the Indian-spec model will be a sub-4 metre one in order to avail excise duty benefits. The car is likely to be made available with a 1.0-litre petrol (possibly the 1.0-litre EcoBoost) and a 1.5-litre diesel engine options. Except for the length, both the Brazilian and India-bound versions are similar. The production version looks almost similar to the Ford Figo Concept, save for some practical changes made to the head-lamps. We expect the car to be launched in 2015, and can't wait for it!
