Join 350,000+ subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of
The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Geneva Motor Show's weird and wonderful cars
Questionable taste, bold design and engineering marvel make up some of the oddest vehicles on display
Aside from new supercars, big sellers and jaw-dropping concepts, the vast amount of exhibitors at the Geneva Motor Show makes for a little madness sometimes, too.
Here's some of the oddest machines that have been on display this week.
Morgan EV3
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
It seems no manufacturer can escape the development of electric cars and now "good old-fashioned Morgan is acknowledging the future", too, says Top Gear.
Morgan revealed an electric version of its 3 Wheeler, replacing the 80bhp V-twin engine with a 62bhp motor fed by a lithium battery to give a range of 150 miles.
Despite the hefty weight of the powertrain, the EV3 actually weighs less than the petrol-powered version – its body panels are made from carbon fibre to save weight. It takes nine seconds to do 0-62mph, with a claimed top speed of around 90mph.
Morgan says the EV3 will be priced "comparably" with the 3 Wheeler, which currently starts at £25,950.
Sign up for our Culture & Life newsletter
Your weekly digest of stories about entertainment and leisure, delivered every Friday
Toyota Kikai
Toyota introduced the Kikai Concept at last year's Tokyo Motor Show and now it's in Europe.
It's a strange, steampunk-like hot-rod that could only be Japanese. Unlike most concept cars - which place an emphasis on new design and technologies - the Kikai draws attention to the mechanics under the skin.
According to Jalopnik, it looks like the car equivalent of "Terminator with its skin burned off" and was designed to "explore and emphasize the fundamental appeal of machines". There's no big screens or tech in the cockpit, just analogue dials and a window in the footwell so the driver can see the suspension at work.
Lazareth LM847
It takes a particularly mad bike to get the attention of a car show, but the Lazareth LM847 just about does it, thanks to the 4.7-litre Maserati V8 with 470bhp sandwiched within its frame.
It's a "terrifying tilting quad bike" with "four single-sided swingarms, rim-mounted brakes, dual hub-centre steering and a bunch of other crazy touches", says Gizmodo.
Citroen E-Mehari Courreges
In the latest naff automotive-industry-meets-fashion-world tie-up, Citroen handed one of its E-Mehari electric beach buggies to French fashion house Courreges for a makeover.
The E-Mehari is an odd thing to start with, being a small, 124-range mile EV inspired by the rugged, cult icon original of the late 1960s. It uses thermoformed plastic body-panels and has a waterproof interior ideal for beach trips.
The Couregges version sees almost every surface of the car dressed in white - with some orange accents in places. A new steering wheel and matching luggage set in the boot sets it apart from the standard E-Mehari, which is set to go on sale in France later this year.
Bee Bee XS
It's been quite a year at the show if you like small, French, electric beach buggies in white, with the Bee Bee XS vying with the E-Mehari Courreges – and even channelling the Citroen off-roader.
Bee Bee started out back in 2013, as a start-up project looking for investors; three years later, it's delivered one of the most bonkers reveals of Europe's biggest motor show,
According to Car Magazine, some of the cars from less well-known operations at Geneva can be a barometer of taste- and "gems" such as the Bee Bee remind you that the "the world is a very mad, very strange place".
