25 Game-Changing Concept Cars You've Never Heard of

If you want to know what the automotive industry will look like in 10, 20 years, you should be studying every detail of the concept cars that are coming out today. Concepts are basically the crystal balls for cars. Manufacturers, though sometimes exercising examples of what they love, are always thinking forward, when creating their concepts. Many of the styling cues and rare technologies might seem ridiculous at the time, but these companies do have some hopes of potentially incorporating them in their lineups in the future.

We also see ideas and renderings from individuals, whether they be students at design school or professional graphic artists. Either way, concept cars are always the most intriguing, fantasy-inducing, and head-shaking vehicles at shows. We took the path that only a few people have shoved their way through and found some cars that have gone under the radar. Check out these industry-shaping rides with 25 Game-Changing Concept Cars You've Never Heard of.

Year: 1986

Originally shown back at the Turin Motor Show, the Machimoto is a fusion of a motorbike and a car. Looking like a Talkboy on four wheels, the Machimoto is intended purely for a fun, free experience for groups of people. Each person has a seat belt with two points to hang on, drawing from the idea of riding on the back of a bike.

Year: 1978

Ah, the Ghia Action. It's a car that looks like a confused cross between a door stop and the foot of the Megazord. Commissioned by Ford, the wedge-shaped Action never actually made it into action. Why, whith this look, are we sad about that? Becuase it was housing an F1-derived, mid-mounted V8. *Tim the Toolman Taylor Grunt*

Year: 1969

Long before the name "Astro" became associated with the clunky panel vans from Chevy, the GM company produced a wild concept car that looked like it could double as a dart or a speedboat. It's less than three feet tall, has a three-wheel configuration (but actually has four, as the front two sit nearly adjoined at the front), and holds a Model 250-C18 gas turbine engine.

Year: 1999

See those black bars on the rear? Those are also used to hyrdaulically hoist the hovercraft on and off the pickup bed. On top of that, the truck had a 5.5-liter Mercedes-Benz engine that could get up to 145 mph.

Year: 2012

This is what a stylish hovercraft looks in today's world. Almost boat-like, the Mercier-Jones takes notes from the Bugatti Veyron, Maserati Gran Turismo and Audi R8. The exterior is built largely from carbon fiber, and the guts hold a hybrid-electric drivetrain and air-cushion technology.

Year: 2006

The Ducato is a luxury semi, a ridiculous flat-bed tow truck, and a gull-winged tank all wrapped into one crazy concept. Designed by Fiat Style Centre,Bosch SpA, Behr GmbH, SEWS CABIND SpA (Sumitomo Group) and Denso Thermal System SpA, the Truckster could probably host an auto show for Fiat 500s on that bed.

Year: 2009

As you should remember, Lambos were tractors long before they were ever well-known supercars that were competing with Ferrari. This design is the child of Jason Battersby, a Canadian designer who was studying at the Swedish Umea Institute of Design. This is what he thought a modern, function-maintaining, supercar-styled Lambo tractor should look like. More people might choose to run farms, if this were the case.

Year: 2009

It really shouldn't be surprising that there's another Lambo concept with the name "Toro," but c'mon, people. Nothing more creative than that? This one comes from the hand of designer Amadou Ndiaye and is a more realistic concept.

Year: 1969

This car is special in the fact that it was Mercedes-Benz's foray into rotary engines. The C111 had a 3-rotor Wankel engine that put out 280 bhp and got up to 160 mph.

Year: 2011

The Sbarro Evoluzione is incredible, considering who built it: Espera Sbarro design school students. Thanks to a team of 25 students, this car was designed in 13 weeks. Power comes from a 180hp 1.8-liter Audi-sourced engine. Pitted against the Lamborghini Sesto Elemento, which would you take?

Year: 1992

You know how you're starting to see a bunch of new concepts with cameras, instead of side-view mirrors? Renault was up on that game back in the early '90s with the Racoon. This goofy vehicle also had satellite navigation, remote entry, rain-difussing glas, and could get into a lake and travel at five knots. Turns out raccoons are way ahead of their time.

Year: 2002

The MA, which evokes the idea of a minimalist appearance, is the work of Ford Motor Company Vice President of Design J Mays. The car features bamboo, aluminum and carbon fiber and was debuted at the Museum of Contemporary Art in L.A. It was also built without any welds, using 364 titanium bolts to keep it together. That's not even the ground-breaking aspect, though. This car is 96 percent recyclable. It doesn't use hydraulic fluids. It doesn't use industrial adhesives. Only a couple sections are painted. Hooray evinronmental responsibilty!

Year: 2007

Created by Luca Serafini, a then student at the Industrial Design at the University of Parma in Italy, the Embaldo gives this Lamborghini a new taste. He said the inspiration comes from "the research of a Spanish festival, named 'Embolado Bull.'" Could you see this as a Gallardo replacement?

Year: 1988

It's a van. But it's also a truck. So, does that make it a tran? Orrr a tranny?? Maybe?

Year: 2006

Peugeot describes the 20Cup as "a racy, feline concept car that combines fun with dynamism." Its reverse three-wheel design lent cues to what future four-wheel Peugeots would look like, and it's all-carbon chassis was ahead of its time.

Year: 2008

Mazda finished up its Nagare design series with the Taiki, debuting the car in Tokyo with the theme "Sustainable Zoom Zoom." The Taiki had the then next-generation rotary engine that was planned to takeover the one that was being used in the RX-8. But that's not what caught people's attention. The overlapping, flowing curves translate well for the rear-wheel drive car and made it one of the most attractive debuts of the year.

Year: 2011

The striking Scorpion is an all-electric vehicle, powered by lithium-ion technology, that has individual motors for each rear wheel. That's half the puzzle for the Rimac Concept_One, which has single motors for all four of its wheels.

Year: 2002

The GINA Light was, remains, and will probably stay one of the most unique proposals for the exterior of a car ever. The question was what REALLY is the use and purpose of the skin of a car. BMW wanted to prove that, thanks to space-age structural design, the skin didn't necessarily need to be made out of metal or another rigid material.

GINA, which stands for Geometry, Function, N (infinite number), of Adaptations; has a stretchy cloth exterior that allows for free movement, requires less energy to produce, removes weight, and allows the car to speak and interact in much different manners. Take the eyes that can literally open and close, for example. It's hard not to have a crush on GINA.

Year: 1995

The Atlantic was ground-breaking because it broke out of the purely-purpose-built car designs of the time. The dreamy reminder brought everybody back to the days when cars were created with artful aesthetic at the forefront. The Atlantic was a clear pull from the Bugatti Type 57S Atlantic and the 1938 Talbot Lago Coupé. Man, we love those round doors.

Year: 1965

The front-hatch-opening cartruck was revolutionary. Too bad it reminds us way too much the the carpooltable that's been making its rounds the past few years.

Year: 2009

Everybody knows about the i8 Roadster hybrid concept by now. It's a game-changing vehicle, in its own right, and at least 90 percent of the car will translate to the production model in 2015. However, do you remember the Vision EfficientDynamics concept from '09? See a resemblance? Basically a blueprint for the i8, the Vision combined a three-cylinder diesel and two electric motors, all while sitting under a hot aerodynamic, glass-doored 2+2.

Year: 1999

The name of this car translates to "Sleepless City," and the interior is fitting. Made with space so people could continue dancing, even when going to and from places. With enormous booming speakers on the doors and an interior inspired by DJ equipment, the Fuya-Jo set the scene for future party-infused vehicles.

Year: 2005

The Z.Car, created by Zaha Hadid and her architecture team, is a car that adapts to it's driving speed and runs on a zero-emission hydrogen powertrain. When driving in slower city speeds, the car sits in an upright position, making parking easier and sitting the driver up higher. At high speeds, the car crouches down, improving aerodynamics and the center of gravity.

Year: 1973

Car manufacters are constantly competing to have the newest and best technologies. After GM saw what Mercedes-Benz had done with the C111 rotary concept, they wanted to prove that they too could build a rotary car. Thus, there were two-rotor and four-rotor Corvettes built, despite the fact that the company knew they would be going nowhere. This car was based on the XP-882 chassis, two-rotor engines were inserted, producing 350 horsepower.

Year: 2003

The Lion is the result of an online design competition launched by Peugeot that received 2,800 entries from 90 different countries. The winner was graphic design artist Stefan Schulze, as he, to the hope of Peugeot, was able to render a car that drew historic characteristics into a never-before-seen futuristic design.