GM’s near misses
There have been lots of cars developed by General Motors’ many brands that have come temptingly close to production.
Here we take a look at those that could have been hits and others that missed their target by a wider margin.
With such a broad portfolio of famous names under its umbrella, GM has more cars that nearly made it than most.
From sports cars to electric vehicles, showstoppers to the first concept car, the influence of GM’s ideas on the automotive world is undeniable.
Here are some of the GM cars that never made it into production, presented in chronological order.
1. 1938 Buick Y-Job
It might have been a one-off, but the Buick Y-Job served as its designer’s everyday transport for a number of years.
Styled by Harley Earl, the Y-Job is the original concept car and was packed with futuristic ideas that would become commonplace in the following years.
Elements such as flush-fitting doorhandles and electric windows were incredibly advanced when the Y-Job was unveiled, while its wraparound bumpers and concealed headlights would be popular themes for GM in its post-war models.
Based on a Buick Super chassis, the Y-Job used a 320cu in (5.2-litre) straight-eight engine to add to its glamorous credentials.
2. 1939 Futurliner
The name of this towering vehicle is a suitably big clue as to its intentions.
GM had already built eight Streamliners before it created a dozen Futurliners to showcase its latest cars and technology at New York’s World Fair and then The Parade of Progress.
Designed by Harley Earl and his team, the Futurliner was some 11ft 12in (3.66m) tall, with the driver perched high over the front axle.
The Futurliners were never intended to be put into production or sold, and they were rebuilt into a second-generation form for 1953.
However, when their popularity waned in the 1950s, GM sold them off or donated them to interested parties.
3. 1951 LeSabre
Another of Harley Earl’s wonderful cars, the LeSabre is packed with design elements that would become signatures of 1950s cars from GM and beyond.
The LeSabre kicked off the trend for tailfins and wraparound windscreens, as glass technology developed from the aviation industry to branch into the automotive world.
There were also plenty of aviation-grade materials used in the LeSabre, such as aluminium, magnesium and glassfibre, which meant this car was not practical for series manufacture.
One feature that did make it into production cars was the LeSabre’s heated seats, which Earl would be glad of on cold Detroit days, because he used this concept as his personal transport for a couple of years.
4. 1953 Firebird XP-21
The original Firebird concept, the XP-21, was clearly inspired by jet aircraft of the early 1950s.
It was never going to be a car that could be sold, though the following Firebird II and III of 1956 and 1958 respectively at least had an element of practicality.
For this first Firebird, Harley Earl came up with a car that looked like it should be driven at the Bonneville Salt Flats rather than on suburban streets.
It used a glassfibre body like the recently launched Chevrolet Corvette, but power came from a gas-turbine engine that revved to 13,000rpm.
The real legacy of this trio of Firebird cars was to lend their name to the Pontiac sports car that arrived in 1967.
5. 1954 Chevrolet Nomad
Mixing two popular types of vehicle of the period – the Corvette sports car and station-wagon estate – resulted in the Chevrolet Nomad of 1954.
This could so easily have predated the likes of the Reliant Scimitar GTE and Volvo P1800 ES, but GM decided against making it in this original form.
The production Nomad was a two-door, station-wagon version of the Bel Air, while the 1954 show car was much more of a Corvette inspiration.
This Nomad was another of the Harley Earl designs that made such an impact at the 1954 Motorama exhibition in New York.
The steeply sloping tailgate was not the most practical, but three show cars are thought to still exist.
6. 1955 Chevrolet Biscayne
The Biscayne was a marked departure from Chevrolet and designer Harley Earl’s cars up to this point in 1955.
Gone were the fins and excess, and in their place came a smoother, far more compact, four-door saloon.
This didn’t mean the Biscayne was without any innovation, because it had clap-hand doors thanks to the rears being hinged at the back. It also created a pillarless opening to allow for easy access to the rear seats.
The body was made of glassfibre, which GM had embraced for its Corvette sports car and other concept vehicles.
However, even though the Biscayne looked like a car close to being production ready and used the recently introduced Turbo-Fire 265cu in (4.3-litre) V8 engine, it was cut up and scrapped before Chevy launched a much less radical production car with the same name.
7. 1961 Chevrolet Mako Shark
The name and look of this Corvette styling project came from the Mako Shark caught by GM’s design boss William Mitchell while on holiday in Florida.
Designed in 1961, it made its public debut in 1962 at the New York International Automobile Show.
It was painted in a graduated scheme of grey that blended into white at the bottom to mimic the real-life shark’s markings.
While the Mako Shark was not to see production in its own form, it was clear it pointed to how the C2 Corvette would look.
It also served as a test bed for a number of engines, including supercharged and fuel-injected V8s.
8. 1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza GT
Stung by Ralph Nader’s campaign against its Corvair, Chevrolet began to develop a front-engined version of its compact car.
Spotting an opportunity, design boss Bill Mitchell used this new engine and gearbox to create a mid-engined sports car called the Monza GT.
Its low front end owed something to the soon-to-arrive Corvette C2, but the rest was original to this sleek coupé.
As if the Monza GT was not dramatic enough, access to the cabin was achieved by the entire canopy section over the seats tilting forward.
Mirroring this, the engine was accessed by the whole rear bodywork sections hinging backwards.
9. 1963 Chevrolet Corvair Monza SS
A year after Bill Mitchell’s stunning Corvair Monza GT had wowed crowds, the Monza SS arrived to give a flavour of what an open-top version would look like.
A second car in the series fuelled speculation of a production model, but none was forthcoming, sadly.
The SS differed from the GT with its conventional doors and a rear deck with an opening lid to access the engine, in place of the whole rear body hinging back as with the coupé.
However, the SS still made an impact with its aerodynamically designed roll hoop, low-cut windscreen and faired-in lights in the centre of the front nose section.
10. 1963 Chevrolet Corvair Super Spyder
Another GM design idea to use the Corvair as its base, the Super Spyder was far more rooted in the roadgoing reality of Chevrolet’s compact car.
The Corvair Super Spyder clearly had front and rear styling in common with the production model, while the shortened wheelbase gave it a suitably sporting feel.
A cut-down windscreen and side windows added to the racy looks.
Other unique features for this variation on the Corvair theme were its tapered headrests and six chromed exhaust pipes.
Yet, despite receiving a positive response when shown at numerous race venues, the Super Spyder remained a one-off.
11. 1963 Chevrolet Corvair Testudo
Keen to build sales in Europe, Chevrolet looked to Bertone to come up with a car to attract attention, and the Italian firm succeeded with the Testudo.
Another car based on the Corvair platform, the Testudo was a swoopy coupé like the Monza GT, but with smoother flowing lines than the sharp angles of the US-styled concept.
Unveiled at the 1963 Geneva motor show, the Testudo had its wheelbase drastically shortened by 14in (35.5cm) and the design was by Giorgetto Giugiaro.
To prove it was not just a show car, Nuccio Bertone drove the Testudo to the show and back to Turin.
This sleek coupé was later damaged, left to sit, then restored in the 1990s.
12. 1964 GM Runabout
The GM Runabout was an antidote to the huge sedans and station wagons popular with US buyers in the early 1960s.
Its compact size was only the start of its different way of thinking, because this teardrop-shaped hatch was a three-wheeler.
With a single wheel at the front that could turn through 180 degrees, it meant the Runabout could rotate in very tight spaces.
It could also seat five, while two fitted shopping trolleys emerged form the boot and fitted back in, so no need to unload the supermarket shop before heading home.
13. 1964 GM-X Stiletto
Clear influences from aeronautical and space design were obvious in the GM-X Stiletto.
The name was derived from its sharply pointed rear-wing tips, while access to the cabin was via the entire roof canopy lifting up.
Inside, there were no fewer than 30 flashing warning lights, 29 controls and 16 dash gauges, which again nodded to the aviation ideas in this car.
However, much as showgoers who saw the Stiletto in 1964 loved its looks, it was doomed to never make production and the car didn’t even have an engine, suspension or working steering.
14. 1964 Pontiac Banshee XP-833
The Pontiac Banshee XP-833 was the first of four design studies from GM, with two more in the 1960s and the fourth shown in the 1980s.
This original Banshee had hints of the Corvette C2 in its looks and its creation was driven by John De Lorean, who later went on to start his eponymous car company.
De Lorean reckoned a smaller, lighter sports car would sit well under the Corvette and the Banshee used a six-cylinder engine, while a glassfibre body kept weight down to help with performance.
However, GM’s board saw the Banshee as a threat to Corvette sales and stopped the car in its tracks.
Even so, design elements of the Banshee can be seen in the Corvette C3 and the Opel GT.
15. 1966 Electrovair II Experimental
As the name suggests, this was not GM’s first look at an electric car, but the Electrovair II Experimental was the more serious proposal.
With one eye on impending emissions and smog regulations, GM saw the potential of a zero-tailpipe-emissions car based on a second-generation Chevrolet Corvair sedan.
Where a normal Corvair had all of its drivetrain at the back, the Electrovair had its motor and some batteries in the back, but there were more batteries up front in a bid to spread the weight and deliver a decent driving range.
However, even with a full charge, the Electrovair could only cover a maximum of 80 miles.
This prototype still exists and it kindled enough enthusiasm for EVs at GM for the company to come back to the idea several times in the next three decades.
16. 1967 Chevrolet Astro I
The Astro I was about as extreme a concept car as you would find anywhere in 1967, thanks to its styling that aimed to be as aerodynamic as possible.
Using glassfibre for the body allowed GM’s designers, led by Larry Shinoda, to explore such a radical shape, which sat only 35.5in (90cm) tall.
Such a low height was helped by using a Corvair as the base for the Astro I, which put the engine at the back and did away with the need for a front-mounted radiator.
The Astro I made its debut at the 1967 New York motor show and now resides in the GM Heritage collection.
17. 1968 Chevrolet Astro II
If the Astro I of the previous year was more a flight of fancy, the Astro II of 1968 looked like a car ready to go into showrooms.
Its styling was not as out there as its predecessor’s, but the Astro II was good looking, and came with conventional doors and a lift-up tail section that would make it easy to live with.
Under that rear section sat a 427cu in (7-litre) V8 motor from the Corvette, which gave rise to speculation this was a future replacement for Chevrolet’s sports car. However, it was hampered by a two-speed gearbox.
18. 1969 512 Electric
Perhaps if GM had unveiled its 512 Electric a couple of years later when the fuel crisis was biting, this compact electric car might have gained more momentum towards production.
As it was, the 512 Electric had echoes of the bubble cars of the 1950s, especially with its Isetta-like, front-hinged, lower-section door that gave access to the two-seat cabin.
However, the 512 also had a lift-up canopy with full wraparound glass windscreen.
The glassfibre body was mounted on a steel frame and power came from an 84V battery pack, which offered a driving range of up to 58 miles at 25mph.
19. 1969 Chevrolet Astro III
The third design in the Astro trilogy arrived in 1969 and was a complete departure from the production-ready look of its immediate predecessor.
Looking more like a fighter jet without wings, the Chevrolet Astro III had a single wheel up front and two at the rear, while the cockpit was entered by the whole roof canopy rising up on a cantilevered hinge.
Inside, there was nothing as traditional as a steering wheel, because the Astro III used joysticks for this, while a television served as a rear-view camera.
In keeping with its jet-plane looks, the Astro III was powered by a gas-turbine engine from a helicopter, which made it potentially very quick, but also incredibly noisy.
20. 1969 GM Stir-Lec I
Following a similar thought process to the Electrovair of 1966, the Stir-Lec I was another look at using electric power for a GM car.
This time, the Opel Kadett was the chosen base and it used 14 lead-acid batteries to power a motor that drove the rear wheels. This gave the Stir-Lec I a top speed of 55mph and range of up to 200 miles.
That much longer range was possible because the Stir-Lec also came with a small Stirling engine to act as a generator to charge the batteries, so this was a very early range-extender electric vehicle.
The Stir-Lec did well in testing, but its weight and limited performance held it back from heading any further towards production.
21. 1969 Manta Ray
In a canny bit of recycling, GM based this Manta Ray proposal on its earlier 1965 Mako Shark II concept.
To distinguish the Manta Ray, GM’s chief designer, Bill Mitchell, came up with a revised paint scheme and side-exit exhaust pipes, which did make it on to a production Corvette as an option.
With the C3 Corvette already on sale, the Manta Ray seemed less radical than it had in Mako Shark II form, though the pop-up air-brake flaps on the rear deck were a neat touch.
22. 1971 Pontiac Pegasus
One of the strangest cars conceived by GM was a collaboration between the US giant and Ferrari.
Called the Pontiac Pegasus, it was based on a 1970 Pontiac Firebird but was powered by the 4.4-litre V12 motor from a Ferrari 365GTB/4 Daytona.
The front end of this unusual amalgamation had a passing resemblance to Ferrari’s 330GT, while the rear end had shades of the recently launched Camaro.
For the interior, the Pegasus again looked to Ferrari for its instruments, but the rest of the cabin was more traditional Detroit in its appearance.
23. 1972 Buick Silver Arrow III
Surprisingly little stood in the way of the Buick Silver Arrow III from making it into production, because it was based on the existing Buick Riviera.
To create the Silver Arrow III, GM design chief Bill Mitchell came up with a lower roofline and revised rear quarters.
At the front, six halogen headlights were used to give improved vision for night driving.
This nod to safety was reflected elsewhere with disc brakes fitted to all four wheels, and the Silver Arrow III also came with ‘Max Trac’, which was an early form of traction control.
24. 1973 Chevrolet Aerovette
Similar in overall look to the Reynolds Aluminum Corvette of 1972, the 1973 Chevrolet Aerovette appeared even closer to being set for production.
It had started life as the XP-882, with the aim of exploring new engine layouts for a possible Corvette replacement, so the XP-882 was mid-engined.
And it was the engine used that caused a real stir, because power came from a four-rotor Wankel rotary motor.
However, GM gave up on rotary development soon after and this car was then fitted with a small-block V8 engine to create the Aerovette for 1973.
In this form, it was proclaimed as the next-generation Corvette due for launch in 1980, but that failed to materialise.
25. 1976 Chevrolet Camaro Europo Hurst Frua
The Chevrolet Camaro had enjoyed some limited sales success in Europe in the 1970s, but Frua reckoned this could be improved with more of a Euro look for the GM coupé.
At the 1976 Turin motor show, the Italian coachbuilder revealed the Camaro Europo Hurst Frua. It featured a fastback style and removable Hurst roof panels.
The car was shown at the 1977 New York Automobile Show with the promise of conversions being available through GM dealers and Hurst suppliers, but no other cars of this design are known to have been produced.
26. 1987 Chevrolet Express
It might look like a flight of 1980s fantasy, but the Chevrolet Express was created to work on a proposed high-speed network of roads.
The US government’s plan for this super highway network never came about, but the Express was a fully functioning two-seat car with a claimed cruising speed of 150mph using a gas-turbine engine.
At this speed, it was said to be capable of 25mpg. This was possible thanks to a drag coefficient of just 0.20Cd and the engine’s torque of 350lb ft.
While the Express didn’t make production, many of its features went on to be used.
They included electro-hydraulic power steering, a rear-view camera, drive-by-wire throttle and key-fob-operated opening for the canopy.
27. 1989 Chevrolet Camaro California IROC-Z
GM knew how its next Chevrolet Camaro was going to look when it arrived in 1993, but the company was concerned its different appearance would be contentious.
To prepare the ground, it came up with the Camaro California IROC-Z in 1989.
The company needn’t have worried, because this car was warmly received by Camaro fans, who appreciated its long, sloping nose and steeply raked windscreen.
When the next Camaro did arrive, its styling seemed almost tame next to the California, so it was job done.
28. 1990 Impact Experimental
The name Impact for this car referred to its environmental effect rather than crash worthiness, and it was another of GM’s electric-vehicle projects.
As the state of California introduced its Clean Air Act and demanded 10% of all new cars sold were emissions free, GM responded with the Impact Experimental that used technology first seen in its 1987 Sunraycer solar-powered car.
Using 32 lead-acid batteries, the Impact could travel up to 125 miles between charges and had strong performance.
This car did make production of a sort, because a limited run of 50 were made for testing but then destroyed, while the EV1 that was clearly evolved from the Impact was trialled in larger numbers.
29. 1992 Corvette Stingray III
After a design competition initiated by GM styling boss Chuck Jordan, the company’s own Advanced Concept Center, based in California, won.
This was a bold vision of how a new Corvette could look, and GM thought long and hard about putting this car into production.
However, the projected price of $300,000 was deemed way too high, even if it would have had a top speed of 225mph to put the Corvette on a par with the fastest supercars of the time.
What did make it past the prototype stage were technologies such as night vision and interactive touch controls.
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