The 2000s supercar concepts that never came to be – car pictures of the week
In the current issue of evo, we recall the state of the supercar genre in the 2000s, including the radical concepts that never saw production
The 2000s was an era of radical supercars, from the Mercedes-McLaren mashup that was the SLR, to the motorsport-bred Maserati MC12 and the groundbreaking Bugatti Veyron. But for every one that made production, there was a stillborn supercar that never saw the light of day.
In evo issue 350, we recount some of the best supercar concepts from the 2000s, from the likes of Audi, Cadillac, BMW and Citroen. To read the feature, as well as our test of six of the most significant mainstream supercars from the decade, pick up a copy of evo 350 in-store or online via the evo shop.
Audi was one of numerous mainstream manufacturers that toyed with the idea of a supercar in the 2000s, producing the Rosemeyer at the turn of the decade. With a W16 engine, open-gate manual transmission and a design inspired by pre-war racers, it was a strange retro-futuristic mix, but never gathered serious momentum as a potential production car.
Across the pond, Cadillac was another potential new player in the space, producing the striking, F-22 Raptor-inspired Cien concept in 2002. More forward-looking than the Audi and seriously considered for production at one point, it never reached showrooms due to the huge potential costs of building a bespoke platform for it. Instead it lived on in virtual form, being included in multiple Gran Turismo games.
The 2008 GT by Citroen, on the other hand, came to life in the Gran Turismo series first, before being considered as a production car. Powered by fuel cells in the game, a working prototype was produced with a Ford V8, but it never came to be – perhaps because Citroen had no heritage or badge kudos in the supercar space.
The same can’t be said for BMW, which had the M1 to draw from when producing the M1 Hommage, also revealed in 2008. It was always meant to be a styling exercise and never reached showrooms, but it did inspire the design of the i8 years later.
To read more about these forgotten concepts, and our drive story of six of the most significant supercars of the era, pick up a copy of evo 350 in-store or online.
