FOR many petrolheads, some of history’s greatest supercars are, in fact, the ones that never made it to production.
For one reason or another, many incredible designs simply don’t make the cut—whether that’s due to a lack of investment, issues with styling or engineering, or simply being the right car at the wrong time.
With this in mind, car experts at Autocar recently compiled a list of some of the supercars of the future that never came to fruition.
Here are our favourites:
Vauxhall XVR
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For most, Vauxhall is merely a good-quality, low-cost British carmaker that’s brought us the Nova, Astra, Corsa and, to the hipsters, the VX220.
But in the mid-1960s, they toyed with the idea of a four-cylinder supercar that was unlike anything else the company had ever made at the time—or would ever make since.
The XVR, a two-seat coupe with a clamshell bonnet, featured a rear-hinged tail and two upward-opening doors, powered by Vauxhall’s slant-four engine.
Only one of the three built actually ran and was unveiled at the 1966 Geneva Motor Show.
Bizarrely, it was attacked with an axe while on display in Canada, which led to it being broken up.
Two fibreglass-bodied non-runners followed, with one dismantled and the other now part of the Vauxhall Heritage Collection.
Ford GT90
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Unlike the Ford GT40 and the legendary racer’s seldom-heard-of successor, the GT70, the GT90 was merely a concept that took plenty of inspiration from the Jaguar XJ220.
The very sleek-looking fast Ford—which was unveiled in 1995—never made it to production, simply because the Blue Oval felt it would rival models built by the then Ford-owned brand Aston Martin.
Powered by a unique 5.9-litre V12 engine, the exhaust of the GT90 would get so hot that it could cause damage to the body panels, which meant ceramic tiles similar to those used on a Space Shuttle had to be used to keep it from melting.
On an episode of Top Gear, Jeremy Clarkson once revealed he was given the chance to test the GT90, describing it as “horrid” with a “top speed of 40 mph” that “handled like it was in a cartoon”.
Peugeot Quasar
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Autocar claims the Quasar might have been an era-defining supercar of the 1980s had it gone into production.
But alas, the low, sleek motor, which shared many of its internal components with the souped-up 205 Turbo 16, never went into production, with the prototype now merely displayed at the Peugeot Adventure Museum.
Remarkably, it would’ve matched the Ferrari F40 – released in 1987 – for pace, with its 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine propped up by two turbos, meaning it was reputed to produce 600bhp.
Peugeot Oxia
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Autocar claims the Quasar might have been an era-defining supercar of the 1980s had it gone into production.
But alas, the low, sleek motor—which shared many of its internal components with the souped-up 205 Turbo 16—never went into production, with the prototype now merely displayed at the Peugeot Adventure Museum.
Remarkably, it would’ve matched the Ferrari F40—released in 1987—for pace, with its 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine propped up by two turbos, reputed to produce 600bhp.
Yamaha OX99-11
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Few will fondly remember the time when Yamaha were the whipping boys of Formula 1, supplying the likes of Jordan and Arrows with engines between the 1989 and 1997 seasons.
Their engines were often considered unreliable and lacking in power, although they famously nearly helped Damon Hill to an unlikely win at the 1997 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Using their F1 expertise, the Japanese brand—mostly known for their range of motorcycles and, um, keyboards—produced the Yamaha OX99-11 supercar, with a beastly 3.5-litre V12 motor that delivered 400bhp.
Built from carbon fibre with a McLaren F1-esque central driving position, the unimaginatively named OX99-11 never quite made it, largely thanks to a fallout between Yamaha and engineering firm IAD.
The financial crisis in Japan effectively killed it off, with only three prototypes ever built.
Volkswagen W12
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Volkswagen’s W12 actually represents several concept designs, beginning in 1997 with the W12 Syncro, then the W12 Roadster in 1998 and finally the W12 Nardo in 2001.
All had the mighty 5.6-litre W12 engine in common that was eventually used in VW-owned Bentley’s Continental GT and Phaeton saloon.
The Nardo was naturally the fastest of the concepts, capable of 591bhp that could hit 60mph in 3.5 seconds and hit a top speed of 221mph.
Cadillac Sixteen
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The Batmobile-esque Cadillac Sixteen, powered by a bonkers 13.6-litre V16 engine, was reportedly capable of 1,000bhp.
Even so, the US giant claimed the car offered 16.7 mpg fuel economy—all thanks to its highly developed Active Fuel Management that was capable of shutting down 12 cylinders when the car was cruising.
Although never put into production, design elements of the Sixteen were later used for subsequent Cadillac models.
In a 2003 episode of Top Gear, James May heaped praise on the Sixteen, describing it as “exactly what a Cadillac should be”.
Lamborghini Miura Concept
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The original Lamborghini Miura, first unleashed in 1966, is now regarded by petrolheads as one of the finest cars ever created.
Its blend of class, style and speed encapsulates everything that makes Lambo so special, and today the Miura is regarded as the world’s very first supercar.
To commemorate its 40th anniversary, the Italian brand unveiled a retro-futuristic styled Miura concept in 2006 with the same 6.2-litre V12 platform used for the Murciélago underneath.
Sadly, concept form was as far as Lambo went with this new-look Miura, despite several customers keen to place orders.
The company’s boss, Stephan Winkelmann, was adamant the model would not return to production, saying, “Lamborghini is about the future. Retro design is not what we are here for. So we won’t do the Miura.”
Mazda Furai
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Much-championed designer Franz von Holzhausen, now at Tesla, previously worked at Mazda when the Japanese firm developed the Furai, saying it “purposely blurs boundaries that have traditionally distinguished street cars from racing cars”.
That’s echoed by the fact that the car was considered for production as well as a Le Mans racer—with the single concept iteration even emblazoned with the number 55, the same as their 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning 787B.
Sadly, it never got that far, with the sole example destroyed by a fire during a Top Gear photography session in 2008.
