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On the one hand, it is sad when a bold project does not find its real embodiment. On the other hand, as a consolation comes the thought that, probably, everything that happened (or instead, did not happen) was for the best. The Shiraz concept car was just like that – it never received a serial appearance, but it's even good. Korean automakers became seriously active and unequivocally hinted about their desire to conquer the European market in the early 90s of the last century – the abundance of various concept cars, including sports cars, indicated that expansion was inevitable. Daewoo also participated in this saber-rattling. At the 1997 Seoul Motor Show, before the Geneva Auto Show, the company rolled out three spectacular concepts at once - Tacuma, Matiz, and Shiraz. If you are more or less familiar with the Daewoo model range, you know that the Tacuma and Matiz models have found their serial embodiment, which cannot be said about the Shiraz sedan. About a month after the debut in Seoul, the second Shiraz concept was shown in Geneva (two copies were collected). There were no differences from the car for Korea. The Shiraz was a full-fledged executive class sedan: the length of the body painted by Guy Colborne exceeded five meters, the interior was trimmed with leather and wood, and under the hood was the newest V8 with a very modest displacement (only 2.5 liters). In those years, Daewoo increased production turnover from year to year, so the appearance of a new executive class model seemed to be only a matter of time. Surprisingly, the car did not go into the series. However, in the summer of the same 1997, the Leganza model got on the conveyor, in the design of which there were many borrowings of the conceptual Shiraz. The ideological embodiment of the concept can be considered a large sedan Chairman built on the Mercedes W124 platform. But the Chairman did not enjoy much success. There is reason to assume that the Shiraz remained a concept for quite a logical explanation – the European market was not ready for independent Korean executive class sedans (the car was greeted with little enthusiasm in Geneva). But times are changing – and large sedans from the South Korean brand Genesis are now selling well. It's just that Shiraz himself appeared at the wrong time. Source: motor.ru (translated from Russian) Images Source: Mario Buonocunto Concept Cars Page

Unless you're contracted to Mercedes-Benz, Gullwing doors are design shorthand for 'we will NEVER build this.' Hence 1996's Daewoo Mya, ironically perhaps the best-looking concept here, was destined to be never more than a show ornament. It did, however, signify Daewoo's recognition that it needed something to compete against Hyundai's popular Coupé, but like the open-top Daewoo Joyster, revealed the following year, the promise was never delivered. "Mya" looks impressive. It was introduced at the British Motor Show. External data would suit even some "pure-blooded" Englishman like TVR. Everything is with him, and the 2 + 2 load-bearing body (4280x1700x1330 mm) with "seagull wing" type doors, and impressive aerodynamic devices, and 18-inch wheels, and a luxurious interior in which the driver's seat has ten servo adjustments, and a video set-top box is installed in front of the rear seats (children's, logically). However, behind the external aggressiveness lies a rather ordinary filling: the platform from "Leganza," the suspension — "MacPherson" in front and multi-link rear, the engine is a 2.0-liter 16-valve Australian-made, with a capacity of 136 hp. It is possible to argue with such a pedigree and "external data" with "Hyundai Coupe," but no more. Source: Simon Hacker/MSN Cars; Журнал "Автомобили" 10-97, Владимир Матвейчук (translated from Russian) Images Source: Daewoo; www.ritzsite.nl

Presented at the 1997 Seoul Motor Show and Auto Expo in New Delhi is the 1997 Daewoo Matiz. Comment below if you know anything about this rare Daewoo concept car. Source: Daewoo

The 1997 Daewoo Mantica was an innocuous-looking MPV hatchback. When opened, the Mantica reveals twin full-length gullwing doors. Source: https://carsthatnevermadeitetc.tumblr.com/post/169042706150/daewoo-mantica-1997-an-innocuous-looking-mpv

The Daewoo company did not save either: visitors were attracted by the Daewoo Joystick roadster, the styling of which was developed by the Seoul design studio Forum. Vice-president of the development department Ulrich Betz said that there are no plans to produce a roadster: "We developed this car for our pleasure." Source: М. КАДАКОВ "АВТОРЕВЮ" №10 1997 (translated from Russian) Images Source: Mario Buonocunto Concept Cars Page

Presented at the 1997 Seoul Motor Show is the 1997 Daewoo DEV-5. Comment below if you know anything about this rare Daewoo concept car. Source: Daewoo

The Daewoo Matiz was based on the 1992 Lucciola prototype, went into production in 1998, and became a long seller during its ten-year life span. 1997 saw the production of the d'Arts, an ultra-deluxe preseries outfit. The two-tone bodywork was enhanced by chrome inserts on the wheel arch, bumper, grille, handles, and door mirrors. This theme was resumed inside on the glass holders and ventilation outlets while the steering wheel was leather-trimmed. The spoked wheels were a homage to the sports cars of the 1940s. The standard overproduction engine was a 796 cc, 56 hp three cylinder unit, ideal for driving around town with an eco-friendly approach. Source: www.italdesign.it; Daewoo

A company can use its heritage to catapult itself to a higher level. Chrysler’s Hemi is a current example. Their 1997 Phaeton is another. With a charge led by product guys Bob Lutz and designer Tom Gale, Chrysler showed a series of stunning concepts in the 1990s, beginning with the original Viper. Inspiration came from the 1940-41 Newport Phaeton, a limited-production classic that Chrysler built only five. Just as that Viper personified power, the Phaeton oozed classic elegance. The two-cabin body rides on a whopping 132-inch wheelbase, about what you’d find under a crew cab, long-bed pickup. Wheels measure 22-inches in diameter. A proper V-12 resides under the long tapered hood, a product of melding two then-current Chrysler 2.7-liter V-6 engines. With what Chrysler learned from its limited Viper and Prowler product runs, could the Phaeton be possible? Might it have helped boost Chrysler’s status in the luxury field, just as the Viper did for Dodge? Especially given Chrysler’s current predicament, we will most certainly never know. The Phaeton is on display at the Walter P. Chrysler Museum. Source: www.thecarconnection.com

According to Ken Mack, who manages the development of a "Composite Concept Vehicle" (CCV), Chrysler is on the verge of a successful low-cost, lightweight, and durable plastic car. Using old plastic soda bottles, chopped glass, rubber, and a substance to resist the effect of ultraviolet radiation, Mack's group can form a four-piece body that goes on top of a lightweight frame. No painting is needed. The resulting car is about 1,200 pounds and can sell for about $6,000, thanks to a simple assembly process and the lack of paint. It would also be completely recyclable, so that old CCVs could end up being new ones, further reducing costs. The CCV program was initiated by Bob Lutz, CC President, in late 1993. Like the Patriot hybrid racing vehicle, it was the result of collaborations with suppliers. The first CCV to be exhibited by Chrysler was the Pronto. A more advanced model was shown in September in Germany, and Mack expects production to begin in three years. Source: www.allpar.com Images Source: Chrysler Corporation; www.citroenet.org.uk; «РОДСТЕР ИЗ БУТЫЛКИ» ( М. КАДАКОВ) - Газета «АВТОРЕВЮ», 1998 год / № 11

Continuing the started theme, CARDI designers created this two-seater SUV called TETRA. This car was already designed for operation in the conditions of the Russian winter. Source: https://www.carstyling.ru/en/car/1997_cardi_tetra/ (translated form Russian) Images Source: www.cardi.ru

In Frankfurt (September 1997), on the stand of the Bavarians among the cars, there is something called the BMW C1. However, only the concept and the external outlines remained from the experimental sample five years ago. The whole "filling" has acquired a more traditional look. Of course! The car is declared as a "2000 model" with all the ensuing consequences. So how will the Bavarian company please us in a couple of years? You can be as sophisticated as you want for a long time, coming up with the names of the car (BMW itself as soon as it was not called - from "Citymobile" to "Car Scooter"), but the most clearly the concept of the C1 model will sound like this: a single two-wheeled car. The device is based on a tubular frame with a rectangular "ridge" and a "grid" of pipes forming an egg-shaped capsule, open from the sides and protecting the driver from a frontal impact and from a "flip" through the roof. And in case of side and rear impact, as well as in case of overturning, the "contents" of the capsule (as five years ago, sitting in a chair and fastened with two diagonal and one waist belt) will be protected by tubular arches located in the area of the driver's shoulders and pelvis. Some of the pipes are made of aluminum, which absorbs shocks better than steel. It is not surprising that such a perfect protection structure allowed the device to pass the crash test at the company's landfill easily. Unlike the carrier base, the "filling" of the BMW C1 is of motorcycle-scooter origin. And here everything is done, "according to the last squeak." Tellever type front suspension, cast 12-inch wheels, disc brakes with ABS... The engine is also the most modern: a single-cylinder "four-stroke" liquid-cooled engine with four valves, interlocked with an automatic variator, borrowed from the Aprilia Leonardo scooter. The choice is not accidental: The Bavarians have long-standing ties with this Italian motorcycle company (BMW F650 motorcycles have been assembled at the Aprilia plant for more than one year). The parameters of the motor (125 "cubes" of volume, 15 hp) allow the driver in some European countries to do without special motorcycle "rights," limiting himself to automobile ones. At the same time, the power is sufficient to accelerate a 175-kilogram "two-wheeled cage" to 100 km/h. At the sight of the BMW C1, it seems that in front of you is a creation from films about the "bright future" and not a "ready-to-use" vehicle. And all this "economy" is covered from above with plastic body parts of a very peculiar design. Everything looks flashy, exotic and does not cause any emotions. And if the "tail" of the car, which includes a unique luggage platform, looks entirely organic, then there is, in general, nothing to look at from the front. It seems that the specialists of the BMW Design Center, who designed the device, decided to do everything "according to automotive" standards: ponderous, solid, and... impersonal. At least, young people riding scooters around Italy, France, and other countries are unlikely to like this structure. Still, 2.15 meters long (30-40 centimeters longer than usual), "chained" to a chair (albeit anatomical), and the complete inability to ride a girlfriend is not for them. And the price! Yes, for this money (in Germany - about DM10.000) you can buy a 250 cc luxury scooter or a 500 cc motorcycle!.. However, BMW does not count on young people. At least, in the branded photos of the car behind the wheel, you will not see either a rabid tomboy with disheveled hair or charming girls rushing through the streets. The main client of the Bavarian specialists is a respectable businessman of about forty, in a suit and with a gold watch on his wrist. A person will appreciate passive safety, an anatomical chair, a roof over his head, and a trunk sufficient to accommodate an attache case. Yes, and such an uncle will not stand for the price. And then, you see, the appearance will be retouched with the help of Aprilia designers, making it less lean. However, half a century ago, scooters were also perceived by "true motorcyclists" as a firm slap in the face to public taste. Source: Отто Кац - "Скутер для папочки" (Жунал "Мотор" 12-1997) (translated from Russian) Images Source: Bayern Motoren-Werke AG

The coupe from "Cardi" is still called "Cardi-Coupe." But laconic, like the body itself, is built of planes, edges, and straight lines. These are the current trends in bodywork. And the Coupe hits the spot. This was the third project of the Moscow firm. Stylistically, it is not similar to the previous ones - the Body roadster (1995) and the Next SUV (1996). But the continuity of ideas is seen not so much in the details as in the general originality and thoroughness of the elaboration and finishing of the body. As before, "Cardi" was distinguished not by its futuristic swing but by its aesthetic classicism. The car feels like the creators have relished every line. At the same time, the reaction of the public to a number of their original solutions was checked - aerodynamic deflectors made of polished aluminum behind the side glass; a spare wheel, placed on top of the trunk in a niche, the walls of which smoothly pass into the rear pillars. The result is a unique design. The reaction, as well as to anything extraordinary, is ambiguous. Is every new Ferrari or Lotus unambiguous? They are simply beautiful and polished. Under the fiberglass body "Coupe" - a spatial tubular frame, engine, and chassis of the BMW 325. Glasses and lighting technology - also from serial foreign cars. Currently, the prototype is on the slipway of the experimental workshop. Work continues. Source: "РАССЕКРЕЧЕНО" (Журнал "Мотор" 10-1997)

The Open End was the fun version of the Al2. It was a two-seated, two-door, semi-cabrio-pickup ;) The car sits a bit higher than the "standard" Al2. Please not the 5-spoke rims. The spokes are doubled. Wonder where you have seen that before? Look at the A6 Allroad quattro factory rims. They are similar. Not exactly fun to clean, but cool-looking. Source: www.audistory.24max.de Images Source: Фото AUDI AG.

The production A2 is very close to the concept car. The distinctive fenders, the whole body shape, the headlights are all very similar to the production A2. The most noticeable difference is the area between the headlights where the concept car is more aggressive, and the production car has a real grill. Source: www.audistory.24max.de Images Sources: Audi; www.carmarket.ru

In 1993, the designers of the Audi company, under the leadership of Peter Schreier, began work on creating a new car, A6, the style of which was to determine the style policy of a huge concern on the threshold of the 21st century. The car had a good legacy of four generations of the previous series, including the famous "hit" of European aero design of the 80s - the Audi 100. And in this sense, the new A6 was doomed in advance to become a classic example of styling when the shape and pattern of "clothes" change, moreover, with a sedan body - a classic from the classics among all types of bodies. Foreseeing the difficulties in finding the image and the plastic key, Schreier gave complete freedom to his stylists, who had to find a spectacular design based on the body volume optimized by aerodynamic research. Source: Н. Розанов, Журнал "АВТОМОБИЛИ", 1-2000 (translated from Russian) Images Source: AUDI AG

The Alfa Romeo Sportut: sporting performance meets functionality. After the Fiat-based Enduro, Bertone returned to explore the concept of the SUV (Sport Utility Vehicle), the cross between a leisure vehicle and an off-roader. Bertone opted to start from a very popular Alfa Romeo model, the Alfa 145, and created a prototype that was all about originality. Even the name itself: “Sportut” is the American expression “Sport-ute,” as SUVs are known across the pond, translated into the local Piedmont dialect, meaning something like “sports galore.” Presented at the 1997 Geneva Motor Show, the Sportut came about as a prototype for a European SUV and was conceived as a production car. The choice of an Alfa Romeo engine meant being able to accentuate the car’s sporty character, even in the case of a model as popular as the 145. The Sportut was an all-terrain sports vehicle, equally at home in town or off-road, but without exaggerating on the jeep side. The lines originate from the frontal view, built around the classic Alfa Romeo radiator grille. The styling of the wing recalls some motifs used on the Enduro and Slalom concept cars, and thanks to the idea of fitting the rear door handle directly onto the pillar – which also appeared on the Alfa 156 in the same year – the obvious sporty character of the coupé conceals the functionality of a four-door car. The tail tapers upwards, bound by the generous rear windscreen. Some details, like the lights built into the external rearview mirror housing, the front headlamps, and the “bubble” curve of the rear windscreen, are pure concept car sophistication. Still, as a whole, the Sportut was an idea expressly designed for production. It aimed to show how an “aristocratic” manufacturer like Alfa Romeo could enter the SUV niche and develop a functional model that would also reflect the marque’s strong, aggressive, stylish personality. Source: https://www.carrozzieri-italiani.com/listing/alfa-romeo-sportut/

The Scighera GT introduced at the Geneva International motor show of 1997 alongside the road version displayed certain substantial differences despite its unchanged design. The front-end, in this case, was produced in a single piece incorporating the grille, wings, and bonnet: made out of carbon fiber instead of aluminum, it could be removed entirely and was hinged to the sides. The doors open conventionally, but the windows are fixed. The sideline reveals large air intakes near the central engine, a 3000 cc, 400 hp Alfa Romeo bi-turbo V6 unit. The rear is also made of carbon fiber and emphasized by a monoplane spoiler fitted centrally at the end of the tail. Source: www.italdesign.it

Italdesign's working concept car, designed by Fabrizio Giugiaro (son of Giugiaro senior, the man behind the Alfasud 1971, VW Golf 1974, and Fiat Panda 1980). The engine was placed in front of the rear axle, 3-liter V6, twin-turbo DOCH 24-valve producing 400 HP and 0-100 in 4.9 secs. The all-wheel-drive system, sequential six-speed gearbox, and a weight of 1200 kg. 2 seater w removable side windows. All aluminum body fitted to a super lightweight frame made of an aluminum-carbon fiber composite material. L: 432, H: 115, W: 198 cm. The Scighera, "mist" in Milanese dialect, was a 1997 homage to Alfa's glory and reputation on the track. The bonnet arose directly from the grille shield, and the extreme shape incorporated a spoiler derived from Formula 1 cars, emphasized by the brand-new 'clown-eyed' headlight motif. The windscreen took its inspiration from cars of the 1950s and 1960s, with a chassis extending at the side without affecting access to the car. The large bonnet and wing are in one piece and open in two movements: the first allows refueling while the second allows access to the engine. The bonnet incorporates a window that allows a glimpse of the power unit. The window is lifted using a gull-wing mechanism and can be removed for conversion to an open-topped car. Sources: Passagen.se; www.italdesign.it Images Source: ItalDesign

The R8R project began in 1997 when Audi began research into entering the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The prototype was displayed in 1998, showing an open cockpit car that featured many Audi styling cues, yet lacked some of the practical necessities for sports car racing. The car, designed by Michael Pfadenhauer and Wolfgang Appel and built by Dallara, featured an Audi 3.6 liter twin-turbo V8 engine. Styling features included a large group of aerodynamic vents in the nose, as well as high sidepods, which featured NACA ducts on their tops to feed the turbochargers. A large vent on the side also allowed air out from the front wheel generously. Source: https://oldconceptcars.com/1930-2004/audi-r8r-lmp-prototype-1998/

Originally designed as a styling example that was intended to be reminiscent of the 1956-59 BMW 507, a car made famous by singer Elvis Presley in the late 1950s, the BMW Z07 Concept caused quite a sparkling sensation at the 1997 Tokyo Auto Show. The Z07 Concept was so prevalent that BMW decided to produce a limited production model called the Z8. A total of 5,703 BMW Z8’s were produced, about half were exported to the U.S. A revived version of the former 507 automobile, the design of Z07 resembles the former concept car, although Z07 is a larger version. The BWM Z07 could achieve 0-60mph in just 4.2 seconds and had a top speed of 155 mph. It had an overall length of 173.2 inches, a width of 72 inches, a height of 51. inches and a wheelbase of 98.6 inches. Source: BMW