CAR manufacturers showcase exciting new designs and technologies that may make into the market in the future through concept cars.

Depending on various factors, usually financial and market-related, some concept cars managed to see the light of day but many did not.

Here are 10 concept cars that should have been made into production models:

Lamborghini Estoque

Designed to compete with the likes of the Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide, the Estoque featured a striking four-door coupe design and a screaming V10 engine sourced from the Gallardo. Unfortunately, the project was canceled due to market uncertainties at that time.

Yamaha OX99-11

This concept car amassed all of Yamaha’s automobile technology and know-how gained over the years since first manufacturing the Toyota 2000GT. It had a 3.5-litre V12 engine capable of spinning up to 10,000 rpm and a motorcycle-like seating configuration. Yamaha had to cancel its plan to sell the OX99-11 in 1994 due to the global economic recession.

Saab Aero-X

Saab’s Aero-X concept car was rather interesting, featuring a a twin-turbo V8 engine producing 400 hp and a seven-speed manual transmission. Though its aircraft-like cockpit canopy garnered attention at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show, Saab’s then-boss Victor Muller said its production was not a priority.

Nissan IDx

Unveiled some 11 years ago, Nissan presented the IDx concept as a basis for an affordable rear-wheel-drive coupe. Due to unfavourable market conditions and various other factors, the spiritual successor to the iconic Datsun 510 remained a concept car to this day.

Hyundai N Vision 74

This writer rarely wants a Hyundai concept car to make it to production but the N Vision 74’s modern retro styling and hydrogen fuel cell powertrain generating 671 hp was too compelling to ignore.

Chrysler ME Four-Twelve

It’s hard to believe that this sleek concept car was developed by the same company that made the PT Cruiser. The ‘ME’ in its name stands for ‘Mid-Engine’ while Four-Twelve refers to amount of turbochargers and engine cylinders. Sadly, the global financial crisis made it irrelevant.

Mitsubishi Concept-RA

Introduced at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in January 2008, the Concept-RA was a unique all-wheel-drive sports coupe as it came with a diesel engine. Not only that, its bulbous body panels were made from plastic resin.

Lotus Eterne

The Eterne, a four-door grand tourer with a supercharged 5.0-litre V8 engine, was one of the five concept cars that was proudly showcased by Lotus at the 2010 Paris Motor Show that never made it to production.

Maserati Birdcage

Designed by Pininfarina, which took inspiration from the Tipo 63 race car, the Birdcage had a carbon fiber frame from the MC12 GT1 race car and a 700 hp V12 engine. As it lacked doors, the driver had to use the roof to get into the cabin.

Mazda Furai

Developed to be a street-legal race car, the Furai had a three-rotor rotary engine running exclusively on ethanol to produce 450 hp. Sounds interesting, but what happened to it? The gorgeous car burned to a crisp during a Top Gear test drive in 2008.