Everyone knows that, generally speaking, concept cars are meant to be just that — a concept. Odds are, they’ll never make it into production, and that’s OK. Maybe they’ll end up influencing a future production vehicle, but maybe not. Of course, some end up being a barely disguised version of a car that’s already coming, but that’s usually not the case.
But that doesn’t stop us from loving a cool concept, nor does it stop us from being a little disappointed every time something gorgeous is announced with no plans for a production version. When designers do a great job, we also tend to remember those cars for years. Just imagine what a better world we would live in if automakers had actually built concepts such as the Cadillac Ciel, Mazda RX-Vision, Buick Avista, Toyota S-FR and Maybach Exelero.
Not every concept makes a name for itself, though, so it can also be fun to look back at previous car shows and remember the obscure concepts that were quickly forgotten. Like the 2000 Dodge Maxx Cab shown above. It was never meant to go into production, but just look at that lil guy. He’s the anti-TRX. He’s got a big nose and that little smile. It’s not a truck for pulverizing pedestrians and frightening children; it looks like it wants to cuddle on the couch while you scratch behind its ears.
At the time, it was also cool to see an American truck manufacturer finally focusing more on passenger comfort. These days, we’ve gotten so used to trucks having all the creature comforts you could possibly want, so it can be easy to forget that at the turn of the century, even a loaded Dodge Ram was still a far cry from a luxury vehicle.
So what about you? What’s your favorite obscure or forgotten concept car? Let us know down in the comments.