Currently reading: The weird and wonderful cars of 2014 – picture special
While 2014 saw the wraps pulled off many high-volume production cars, there were still plenty of bizarre concepts and controversial vehicles to keep an eye on. Here's our pick of the best

This year provided an eclectic mix of production and concept cars from motor shows all the world.

While some examples were nothing more than manufacturer chest-beating exercises that won't see production, others previewed future technologies that will be given the green light.

Here are our favourite weird and wonderful cars from 2014. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Biofore concept

Making its debut at the Geneva motor show back in March, the Biofore concept is a technological showcase made from renewable materials. Students at the Metropolia University of Applied Sciences in Helsinki in Finland built the Biofore from biocomposite and thermoformable wood.

Carlsson S-class

The striking Carlsson take on the Mercedes S-class features a 700bhp twin-turbocharged V12 powertrain. The exterior is coated in £10,000 worth of gold leaf, with 1000 sheets applied in a process that took 200 hours.

Citroën C4 Cactus Aventure concept

The Geneva motor show gave Citroën the opportunity to explore customisation with the C4 Cactus Aventure. The concept has a raised ride height, larger suspension travel and chunky off-road tyres.

Edag Genesis

Inspired by the shell of a tortoise, this concept car demonstrated a one-piece car body production technique that could be built in a single process, thus ensuring huge savings in manufacturing costs.

LandWind X7

Launched at the Guangzhou motor show last month, the LandWind X7 caused a stir for its striking resemblance to the Range Rover Evoque. Land Rover was clearly not happy with the situation, as they confirmed to us they will be filing a complaint to Chinese officials regarding the standalone Chinese manufacturer.

Quant e-Sportlimousine

The e-Sportlimousine features new advanced battery storage technology that, according to Quant, performs five times better than current lithium ion batteries. The e-Sportlimousine is truly gargantuan; measuring 5.35m long, its four motors kick out 912bhp, according to its maker.

Roding Roadster R1

This German two-seat sports car has an appetising recipe: 3.0-litre turbocharged six-cylinder engine, 950kg kerb weight, 316bhp and 295lb ft of torque. Lashings of carbonfibre complete the styling, which almost has a mini-Nissan GT-R look about it.

Brilliance V5

At £10,500, this reasonably priced Chinese SUV underwent revisions in order to try to keep buyers interested over its next life cycle. Customers get the choice of a 120bhp 1.6-litre engine or the 136bhp 1.5-litre petrol engine.

Back to top

CH Auto Event

Revealed at the Beijing motor show in April, this was CH Auto's take on an all-electric sports car. Thanks to a 400bhp/479lb ft electric powertrain, it will crack 0-62mph in five seconds and top out at a limited 124mph. The firm says a full charge takes six hours.

JAC SC-9

Another star of the Beijing motor show, the SC-9 featured a unique 2+2+2 seating configuration with the seats in the middle row able to pivot. It even showcased such technology as a "gesture motion interactive system". It enables users to wave a hand to tune the radio station, for example. JAC is working on a production version with similar styling cues for 2017.

Lifan 320

The previous version of this car bore a striking resemblance to the Mini hatchback. The updated 320 unveiled at the Beijing motor show demonstrated more of its own character, with an aggressive front end and sculpted rear styling.

Honda N-Box Element concept

Revealed at January's Tokyo Auto Salon, the N-Box Element mated styling from Honda's N-One and discontinued Element models. The result was a strict, boxy design on minuscule wheels. Despite the disproportionate styling, the interior appeared highly functional with lots of storage space.

Toyota Voxy Modellista

Also on display at the Tokyo Auto Salon was a Toyota Voxy endowed with an emphatically named 'Wing Dancer V' Modellista body kit. As well as the aggressive bodywork, the Voxy was fitted with a chrome exhaust tip and 'WingDancer III' double-spoke alloy wheels.

Toyota C-HR

One of the stars of the Paris motor show, the hybrid-powered crossover concept previewed new design themes that Toyota is keen to move on to future production models. Such a car would sit below the Toyota RAV4 compact SUV in the Japanese firm's line-up, with a likely on-sale date of 2017.

Venturi America

Back to top

Eclectic French car maker Venturi tried to steal the limelight in Paris with the exclusive America two-seat electric crossover. Wearing a whopping £290,000 pricetag, the America is described as a half sports car, half beach buggy. Its three-phase electric motor produces 400bhp, enabling a 0-62mph sprint in 4.5sec with a claimed range of 155 miles. Production is limited to 25 units.

Get the latest car news, reviews and galleries from Autocar direct to your inbox every week. Enter your email address below:

Add a comment…