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- 1974 Warrior Concept Car - When McKinley Thompson, Jr., joined Ford Motor Company in 1956, he was one of the automotive industry's first African American designers. In 1974 he completed a rugged, easy-to-build vehicle designed for developing countries: the Warrior. Thompson's prototype, built on a Renault 10 chassis, featured a buoyant plastic body and a removable top. Thompson couldn't interest automakers or investors in his bold idea.
- 1974
- Collections - Artifact
1974 Warrior Concept Car
When McKinley Thompson, Jr., joined Ford Motor Company in 1956, he was one of the automotive industry's first African American designers. In 1974 he completed a rugged, easy-to-build vehicle designed for developing countries: the Warrior. Thompson's prototype, built on a Renault 10 chassis, featured a buoyant plastic body and a removable top. Thompson couldn't interest automakers or investors in his bold idea.
- 1962 Mustang I Roadster - This sharp looking little two-seater created a great "buzz" when racing driver Dan Gurney introduced it at the United States Grand Prix in Watkins Glen, New York, in 1962. Featuring a rear-mounted V-4 engine, it was unlike any Ford ever seen before. The Mustang name later appeared on a sporty four-seater that created its own buzz in 1964.
- 1962
- Collections - Artifact
1962 Mustang I Roadster
This sharp looking little two-seater created a great "buzz" when racing driver Dan Gurney introduced it at the United States Grand Prix in Watkins Glen, New York, in 1962. Featuring a rear-mounted V-4 engine, it was unlike any Ford ever seen before. The Mustang name later appeared on a sporty four-seater that created its own buzz in 1964.
- Model of the Ford Gyron, February 1961 - Ford Motor Company revealed its Gyron concept car in 1961. Designers intended for a gyroscope to keep the two-wheeled car upright, but the technology was too expensive for a show car. Instead, the fiberglass Gyron used outrigger wheels to keep its balance while an electric motor moved it at 5 mph. The Gyron was destroyed in the 1962 Ford Rotunda fire.
- February 15, 1961
- Collections - Artifact
Model of the Ford Gyron, February 1961
Ford Motor Company revealed its Gyron concept car in 1961. Designers intended for a gyroscope to keep the two-wheeled car upright, but the technology was too expensive for a show car. Instead, the fiberglass Gyron used outrigger wheels to keep its balance while an electric motor moved it at 5 mph. The Gyron was destroyed in the 1962 Ford Rotunda fire.
- 1994 Mercury Sable Aluminum Intensive Sedan - Ford Motor Company built 20 functional 1994 Mercury Sable sedans with unitized bodies and body panels made from lightweight aluminum. During tests in real-world driving conditions, the experimental cars rated better fuel economy and suffered less corrosion than their steel-bodied counterparts. Aluminum Sables never went into regular production, but lessons from the project informed Ford's aluminum F-150 pickup introduced 20 years later.
- 1994
- Collections - Artifact
1994 Mercury Sable Aluminum Intensive Sedan
Ford Motor Company built 20 functional 1994 Mercury Sable sedans with unitized bodies and body panels made from lightweight aluminum. During tests in real-world driving conditions, the experimental cars rated better fuel economy and suffered less corrosion than their steel-bodied counterparts. Aluminum Sables never went into regular production, but lessons from the project informed Ford's aluminum F-150 pickup introduced 20 years later.
- DARPA Urban Challenge T-Shirt, 2007 - The 2007 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Urban Challenge was the third in a series of competitions organized to promote the development of autonomous vehicles. For this "urban" challenge, DARPA used George Air Force Base in Victorville, California, as a simulated city environment. Competitor vehicles had to maneuver through streets, traffic signs, buildings, and other vehicles -- without human intervention.
- 2007
- Collections - Artifact
DARPA Urban Challenge T-Shirt, 2007
The 2007 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Urban Challenge was the third in a series of competitions organized to promote the development of autonomous vehicles. For this "urban" challenge, DARPA used George Air Force Base in Victorville, California, as a simulated city environment. Competitor vehicles had to maneuver through streets, traffic signs, buildings, and other vehicles -- without human intervention.
- DARPA Urban Challenge T-Shirt, 2007 - The 2007 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Urban Challenge was the third in a series of competitions organized to promote the development of autonomous vehicles. For this "urban" challenge, DARPA used George Air Force Base in Victorville, California, as a simulated city environment. Competitor vehicles had to maneuver through streets, traffic signs, buildings, and other vehicles -- without human intervention.
- 2007
- Collections - Artifact
DARPA Urban Challenge T-Shirt, 2007
The 2007 Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Urban Challenge was the third in a series of competitions organized to promote the development of autonomous vehicles. For this "urban" challenge, DARPA used George Air Force Base in Victorville, California, as a simulated city environment. Competitor vehicles had to maneuver through streets, traffic signs, buildings, and other vehicles -- without human intervention.
- C. Spencer King in New York City Showing the Rover Gas Turbine Prototype Car T.4, 1962 - The Rover Company, Ltd., a British-based car company, experimented with passenger-car gas turbine engines after World War II. This 1962 publicity photo shows Spencer King, Rover's chief designer, pointing out the engine's features in this Rover T4. The car had been shipped to America for display at the New York International Auto Show. The car never went into production.
- 1962
- Collections - Artifact
C. Spencer King in New York City Showing the Rover Gas Turbine Prototype Car T.4, 1962
The Rover Company, Ltd., a British-based car company, experimented with passenger-car gas turbine engines after World War II. This 1962 publicity photo shows Spencer King, Rover's chief designer, pointing out the engine's features in this Rover T4. The car had been shipped to America for display at the New York International Auto Show. The car never went into production.
- Model Operating the Center Console of a Ford Gyron, 1959-1961 - Ford Motor Company revealed its Gyron concept car in 1961. Designers intended for a gyroscope to keep the two-wheeled car upright, but the technology was too expensive for a show car. Instead, the fiberglass Gyron used outrigger wheels to keep its balance while an electric motor moved it at 5 mph. The Gyron was destroyed in the 1962 Ford Rotunda fire.
- 1959-1961
- Collections - Artifact
Model Operating the Center Console of a Ford Gyron, 1959-1961
Ford Motor Company revealed its Gyron concept car in 1961. Designers intended for a gyroscope to keep the two-wheeled car upright, but the technology was too expensive for a show car. Instead, the fiberglass Gyron used outrigger wheels to keep its balance while an electric motor moved it at 5 mph. The Gyron was destroyed in the 1962 Ford Rotunda fire.
- 1953 Ford X-100 Concept Car - Ford Motor Company celebrated its 50th anniversary with the X-100, a fully functional concept car billed as a "laboratory on wheels." The X-100 featured more than 50 innovative ideas. Some of them, like the heated seats and the telephone, eventually became commonplace. Others, like the variable-volume horn and the in-car electric shaver, never quite caught on with the public.
- 1953
- Collections - Artifact
1953 Ford X-100 Concept Car
Ford Motor Company celebrated its 50th anniversary with the X-100, a fully functional concept car billed as a "laboratory on wheels." The X-100 featured more than 50 innovative ideas. Some of them, like the heated seats and the telephone, eventually became commonplace. Others, like the variable-volume horn and the in-car electric shaver, never quite caught on with the public.
- 2010 Edison2 Concept Car - The Progressive Automotive X Prize was a competition to build a high-efficiency automobile. The Edison2 was designed to win that prize -- and it did. The car's designers used sleek wind-cheating lines and extremely light weight to produce a car that seated four people but got 102.5 miles per gallon.
- 2010
- Collections - Artifact
2010 Edison2 Concept Car
The Progressive Automotive X Prize was a competition to build a high-efficiency automobile. The Edison2 was designed to win that prize -- and it did. The car's designers used sleek wind-cheating lines and extremely light weight to produce a car that seated four people but got 102.5 miles per gallon.