1990 Mercury Cyclone

Mercury's Cyclone concept car featured an extreme cab-forward design and a transparent, electrochromic glass roof that changed tints depending on the lighting. Inside the four-passenger cabin was a television screen that showed what was behind the car via tiny rearview TV cameras, eliminating the need for side-view mirrors. No one power source was specified, but the concept was engineered to house a V-8.

High-performance features and the highest-quality luxury features were wrapped into the dramatic design of Mercury's Cyclone concept specialty car of 1999.

Among many Cyclone, features was an electrochromic glass roof that could be changed electrically from transparent to opaque. A closed-circuit television system was used to provide the driver with rear vision rather than conventional side minors, interrupting the car's smooth lines. The cameras angled outwards from behind the front wheel, in the place of signal lights.

Presented at the 1990 Chicago Auto Show, the Cyclone also utilizes a thin fiber-optic headlight system that improves vision while driving at night. From all angles, the Cyclone appears extremely aerodynamic for a four-door passenger vehicle, especially from the early 1990s.

Source: www.chicagoautoshow.com; Concept Car Central

Images: Popular Mechanics - October 1990; Concept Car Central; www.chicagoautoshow.com