Sometimes your wallet won’t stretch to purchasing your dream motor. But don’t worry too much, there are some cars that even the biggest bank balances can’t buy, the dream cars that will forever remain a dream. These are the concept cars that never go into production.
Lotus Hot Wheels
So here’s a concept car that looks amazing and is available to buy. What’s more it is likely to be within everyone’s budget too. The only snag? It’s a 1:64 scale model which even the shortest amongst won’t get anywhere near driving.
In 2007 Lotus were approached by toy car manufacturer, Hot Wheels, to produce a car design to help celebrate the company’s 40th anniversary, the only brief, that it had to be the embodiment of the Lotus engineering philosophy and brand.
Steve Crijns, Design Manager at Lotus Design took on the project and looked to incorporate the brand’s two most famous marque’s the Elise and the Exige, saying: “Hot Wheels® cars are barely 75mm long, so specific attention went to create a bold shape that would work well at this scale. Another challenge was to create an exciting design that would work well as a toy. The car needed to be recognisable as a Lotus without having to turn it over to look at the badge underneath, so I took elements from the Elise and Exige such as the headlight design, the Lotus ‘mouth’, the pronounced wheel arches and trademark bonnet graphics.
“I was keen for the design to express the Lotus philosophy of performance through lightweight: the shrink wrapped body is kept to an absolute minimum to save weight. The dynamic voluptuous curves make the car look agile and fun to drive. Bold aerodynamic aids are incorporated to achieve exceptional Lotus handling. The top exit radiator at the front, a distinctive Lotus design feature, the rear diffuser and a large rear wing all provide down-force helping the vehicle stick to the road. In addition, large side air intakes and an open rear end aid engine breathing. Inside the car, the exposed centre spine is part of the structure and incorporates the switches and gear linkage and supports the rear wing.”
Though a 1:5 scale model of the Lotus Hot Wheels concept went on display in Las Vegas in 2007, it is unlikely that we will ever see a full size version make production, meaning we will have to enjoy the pocket-sized version for all its worth.