In the same way that there are trends in fashion and technology, there are also trends in the designs of cars, which results in similar vehicles being produced to match the latest craze. However, sometimes a car comes along that is nothing like anything else on the market, allowing it to stand out amongst the rest. Below, we will go through a list of some of the most unusual cars that took everyone by surprise, thus gaining popularity in the world of cars. Popular motoring brands such as BMW, Lamborghini, and General Motors are some of the most quirky and unique cars to produce such vehicles in the last 50 years.
BMW XM Red Label
Up first on the list is the BMW XM, which was released in autumn 2022. One of the main reasons that this car stood out upon arrival on the market was due to both its size and price. It is 5,110mm in length and costs around £145,000 without the possibility of upgrading it. This car was impressive enough, but when BMW released the BMW XM Red Label, people really started to get excited. It was the same car; however, the power of the vehicle had been increased by 19%, improving the acceleration of the car from 0–62mph to just 3.8 seconds. This is very fast for a sporty vehicle, but for a car the size of the BMW XM, this is near impossible — but they seemed to have made it happen.
In addition to the fast acceleration of this huge vehicle, it also has a top speed of a whopping 180mph. Together with a new sleek design of the addition of the stylish red accent on the all-black car, this vehicle has many people excited. The price of the BMW XM Red Label is around £171,000, which means many people will be hoping for it to appear in a car raffle so they have the chance of getting behind the wheel of this beast of a vehicle. One thing is sure: if you are driving this car on the road, then you will most definitely have heads turning to get a glimpse of this monster.
Lamborghini LM002 (1986)
Lamborghini is a car manufacturer that is famous for producing high-speed supercars, so when the company decided to release an SUV, many people were both confused and intrigued. In 1986, Lamborghini released the LMOO2 after trying to secure a contract with the US Army to create an off-roader for them to use. The first attempt to do this was with their Cheetah prototype, which was rear-engined and heavy and somewhat lacklustre and unimpressive. The US Army decided to go with the Humvee from AM General instead.
Lamborghini were quick to use the money that they had invested into creating a powerful SUV and used their research and knowledge to create what is now known as the LM002. This vehicle was the first SUV that Lamborghini had ever released to the general public and was met with positive reviews. Since then, Lamborghini has released a second SUV in 2017, which was also a huge success. The V8 Urus has 600bhp and is proof that Lamborghini’s ability to produce an SUV that people love was not a fluke.
General Motors EV1 (1996)
Moving away from big muscle cars, the next vehicle on this list is the EV1 from General Motors. This car was not something you would expect a massive car manufacturer like General Motors to ever produce. The EV1 was futuristic in design and fully electric with a 137hp electric motor powered by a 16.5kWh battery. The EV1 was super ahead of its time, weighing just 1,400kg thanks to the plastic and aluminium used for its build.
Although the EV1 was extremely innovative for its time, it wasn`t profitable for General Motors to continue manufacturing the car, so the project was shelved in 2003. The car was initially released on lease only in the United States, so when the project was cancelled, all those who had the car had to return it to GM. In the end, around 1147 EV1 were recycled; however, the CEO of General Motors, Rick Wagoner, would later go on to say that cancelling the EV1 project was one of his biggest regrets in his professional career. Although there wasn`t a happy ending to the story of the EV1, it is still considered a huge turning point in the world of car manufacturing and paved the way for the production of electric vehicles.
Conclusion
These are some of the most unusual and quirky vehicles that took the motoring world by surprise. Although these cars were produced almost 40 years ago, in some cases, they will always be remembered for their uniqueness and innovative technology that played a role in changing the way in which future cars were manufactured.
