Rolls-Royce Serenity, Mercedes Pullman, Rinspeed Buddii: Six of the most bonkers cars at the Geneva Motor Show
The Geneva Motor Show is the highlight of the motoring calendar: an opportunity for manufacturers not only to show buyers what will be on their forecourts next year, but also to premier their wackier designs.
Whether it's submarine-style viewing, luxury bordering on ostentation or just really, really expensive paint, here are six of the craziest creations at this year's event:
1. Mercedes-Maybach Pullman
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Aimed firmly at those living a "chauffeur" lifestyle (its target market is apparently government officials, rulers and royal families), the £350,000+ S-Class Pullman has revived the name given to a 1965 limo. At 6.5m (21ft), the car packs a hefty punch. It also features a rear cabin with four facing seats upholstered in quilted leather, an electronic partition which separates the two and can be switched between transparent and opaque at the touch of the button. Naturally, a central divider includes a champagne cooler and glass storage. Everything for the aspiring dictator.
2. Koenigsegg Regera
(Source: Koenigsegg)
Swedish manufacturer Koenigsegg is known for its incredibly powerful cars. Now it's taken that one step further with the 1,500-horsepower Regera. The plug-in hybrid car has three electric motors and a twin-turbo V8 engine, and can go from 0 to 400km/h (that's about 250mph) in a little under 20 seconds. Considering a few years ago, the best electric car manufacturers could give us was the G-Whizz, that's pretty impressive.
3. EDAG Light Cocoon
(Source: EDAG)
One of the weirder looking offerings at this year's event, the EDAG Light Cocoon concept is designed to emulate a leaf, using a very lightweight material stretched over a harder frame, with a matrix of LEDs in the hollow bits to show off its… leafiness. Jack Wolfskin, the outdoor clothing manufacturer best known for its cagoules, helped to develop the concept. So at least you'll know it's reliable if it gets stuck up a mountain…
4. Rinspeed Budii
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Another car concept, Swiss manufacturer Rinspeed has designed a car that comes complete with periscope (so you can see what's going on in the traffic ahead) and a steering wheel that can be slid across the cabin, for when one driver gets too tired. It also hints at a driverless future – the steering wheel can be folded away altogether if it needs to be, although the car doesn't have driverless technology. There are also iPad screen in the sun visors and a TV for passengers. Futuristic.
5. Rolls-Royce Serenity
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The Serenity might look like an ordinary Rolls-Royce Phantom, but the company says it "introduces a completely new level of individualised luxury". For a start, it comes with "Bespoke Mother of Pearl" paint, apparently the most expensive one-off paint ever developed by the company. Secondly, its interior is upholstered using a fabric made from unspun silk thread from Suzhou, China, with blossoms hand-painted on to it (not one to take the kids to school in, then). Thirdly, the cabin is trimmed with smoked cherrywood, while the luggage compartment is lined with "Arctic White leather". Altogether, RR reckons it creates "the most tranquil, beautiful place to be, a place where time and the outside world simply slip past". Quite.
6. Aston Martin Vulcan
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No round-up would be complete without the Aston Martin Vulcan, the £1.5m limited-edition supercar unveiled last week. Alas, the 7.0-litre, 800-horsepower car isn't road-legal – although included in the price is "intensive track training" from a Le Mans-winning driver. If you want one, though, you'd better get in there quick: only 24 will be made.