Nineteen cars that were never built

Jaguar XJ13

The XJ13 is the swooping 1960s V12-powered Jaguar sports prototype that never was, originally intended to take on Ferrari at Le Mans. As it happened, Ford was preparing something similar with a monstrous 7.0-litre V8. Understandably, that spooked the Jag team, who had been developing the XJ13 on and off for over six years. Just one was made in full, complete with a double overhead cam V12, good for 500PS (368kW) at 7,600rpm. Would the car have brought it home for Jag had they pressed on? Perhaps, perhaps not. Now the XJ13 is for us, the first of the cars that never quite made it.

BMW M8

No, not the doughy 5 Series in a coupe suit for 30 per cent more money. We’re talking about the original M8, that BMW was developing to house an earlier derivation of the incredible V12 that powered the McLaren F1. Blistered arches, a facia and chin spoiler treatment fit for a Group 5 car, that V12, a manual gearbox, over 550PS (404kW), all in that superb generation of 8 Series. It sounds like a dream car. Naturally, then, it never happened. BMW got the jitters when looking at the sales of the standard flagship. Adding a third to the price on the M8, was probably not a recipe for sales success.

Porsche 989

The Panamera before the Panamera, was the Porsche 989. The brainchild of Porsche executives, it was a response to increasing sales of the 928 grand tourer. What if you could make a four-door GT supercar? The 989 was that car, with a 300PS (221kW) V8 and classically Porsche curvaceous styling that was the complete antithesis to the boxy saloons of the 1980s. Too little too late was the 989, with the project slowing into the 1990s amid a slump in 928 popularity. Elements of the 989 made their way to future Porsches. The front lights made their way to the 993, while the rears influenced the 996 greatly. Then of course, in 2009, the Panamera came along, albeit with none of the 989s beauty.

Mercedes-Benz C112

The Mercedes C11 series of supercar prototypes are famed as some of the ultimate teases. None more so than the C112, we reckon. Why? Well, it was the early 1990s. Group C was going out with a bang, warranting the twinned C112 road car, hypercars were blossoming – now was the time, surely? It even had a proper V12 engine, rather than the rotary of one of the previous prototypes. It featured revolutionary active aero, active body control which, at the time, was only just appearing on F1 cars, and much more. Even with 700 pre-orders, it wasn’t to be. Merc executives decreed that the car twinned with the Group C C11, was unnecessary as a promotional flagship, because of the C11. A decision they perhaps rued, after Group C disappeared in 1994.

‘Junior’ McLaren F1 siblings

Now then, how can a car that never actually existed beyond an idea count? Well, from the off, this was earmarked for production. Following the success of the McLaren F1, Gordon Murray was excited to partner with BMW again on smaller more affordable models, following the same focused ethos as the F1, with more affordable BMW engines. Then McLaren signed with Mercedes for Formula 1 engines and the baby F1 siblings were dead before they could so much as manifest in a clay model. We are so very sad they never came to be.

Jaguar XK180/F-Type

The Jaguar XK180 and the F-Type that it influenced were tantalising prospects in their day. First appearing in 1998, the XK180 dropped jaws with its chopped windscreen, muscular curves and 180mph supercharged V8 promise. It was built to celebrate 50 years of XK Jaguars, with design influence from the man behind the XJ220. The official stance on production was that it was never on the cards. Jag had been recently burned by its last supercar and owners Ford were spooked. That does beg the question as to why the design carried forward to the F-Type of 2000, which was very much intended for production. Unfortunately, budget cuts continued, as the production feasibility of the model was in question. Looking at it, I think you can agree, we were robbed.

Jaguar XKR-R

And then we were robbed again with the Jaguar XKR-R, a concept XK from 2002 featuring a 400PS (294kW) supercharged V8, bucket seats, a manual gearbox, a limited-slip diff and fettled rear suspension. It was claimed by a Mr Jeremy Clarkson back in the day that the XKR-R was dropped because it’d make sister company Aston Martin’s then-new DB7 GT look silly. No excuse in our book.

Rover 75 Coupe

Another potentially wonderful car lost, not this time to the doubts of executives. Revealed in 2004, the 75 Coupe was conceived as Rover’s centenary present to itself and a template for a potential production flagship. Best intentions couldn’t turn the tide, however, with the marque going under just a year later, before real development and production could begin.

Holden Monaro HRT 427

The dream Holden, some say. Just 50 were intended to be made of the Holden Racing Team’s mega coupe, the Monaro HRT 427, which swapped out its 5.7-litre LS1 for a softened derivation of the 7.0-litre Corvette C5R racing V8. This was to the Monaro what the CSL was to the E46 M3, and then some. The one prototype made featured a part-stripped and caged interior with a digital dash, racing seats and a short shifter. It also featured custom-fab suspension in addition to cut slicks and lightweight wheels. The higher you climb, the harder you fall. In the case of the Holden Monaro HRT 427, it was a £26,000 coupe climbing to well over £80,000 in 2002. Details of pricing were said to have leaked too early on in the project, which in turn spooked buyers and parent company General Motors alike. The one prototype in public hands has swapped owners a few times, nudging upwards of a million Australian dollars. Oh, what could have been.

Chrysler ME Four Twelve

On the list of manufacturers least likely to build a 12-cylinder hypercar, Chrysler has to be fairly high up. Yet it came very close in the mid-2000s, with the ME Four-Twelve. Firstly a show car, the project progressed into the production of a single representative prototype that would even be made available for evaluation by journalists. Powering this curious slice of American exotica was the proven Mercedes-Benz M120 V12, most famous for its use in the Pagani Zonda and earlier, Mercedes’ own CLK GTR GT1 racer. That’s the Twelve in the name, so what about the Four? Well, distancing the Chrysler from the Zonda was the addition of four turbochargers, for a total power output of a stonking 862PS (634kW). Woof. So why was it binned? Well, the usual issue of development and production costs certainly came up. There was however also a rumour that Daimler weren’t particularly pleased with how the ME Four-Twelve would, if completed with the stated specs, stomp the newly-revealed Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren. Oh dear.

BMW M3 Touring E46

A BMW M3 Touring is finally making it to production with the new generation. We’ve come close before, though, with BMW considering a touring variant of the E46 in 2001. A production-representative prototype was assembled, with ease, according to those close to the project, with M3 modifications making the jump to the estate without issue in terms of tooling. Would it have been too expensive? Would it have robbed 5 Series sales? Would it have been too heavy, or not fast enough? Perhaps it would have been seen as diluting the brand? Wait, all the M Sport kit-equipped 116s put paid to that theory. Truthfully, there is no logical reason we can think of and none that BMW have offered, as to why they never went through with it. Robbed once again.

Audi R8 V12 TDI

File under projects that did not age well. Yes, Audi did consider putting a 6.0-litre twin-turbo V12 diesel engine into its R8 supercar. Diesel was all the rage in 2008, which in addition to helping manufacturers win the metaphorical race against CO₂ regulations, had literally won Audi three victories at the Le Mans 24 Hours. The R8 V12 TDI was mooted to be the connective tissue between road and racing that Audi so desired. It nearly happened, with just a few transmission packaging issues to engineer their way around. The 500PS (368kW), 1,000Nm (740lb ft) monster would in theory get the R8 to 62mph in 4.2 seconds, on the way to a 193mph top speed, yet do between 25 and 30mpg when not being thrashed. The project proved expensive, though. Twas cost tracking that killed the R8 V12 TDI, which if finished and released, would have cost £80,000 more than the V10 of 2009.

Lamborghini Estoque

A Lamborghini saloon car may never sound like something that was ever likely to happen but with the 2008 Estoque, it came very close to being a reality. The Maserati Quattroporte had monopolised the market for supercar makers turning to super saloons since 2003. Aston Martin also joined the fray with the Rapide, along with Porsche and the Panamera in 2009. It was a market trend we had absolutely no objections to. The Estoque could have been the king of that segment, with its Gallardo V10 supercar engine. It was under genuine consideration and was certainly within the realms of production feasibility. Unfortunately, it was a victim of Lamborghini seeing the future. Yes, the future where SUVs are more popular than saloons. As such, the marque’s foray into the four-door market would be delayed until the release of the Urus SUV.

Audi Quattro

Audi frequently flirts with tempting concepts that almost reach production, much to the frustration of enthusiasts. While truthfully we can live without the R8 diesel above, we were properly gutted by the loss of the Quattro. This concept previewed a potential tribute to the legendary model on its 30^th anniversary in 2010. Think RS5 chassis, retro-futuristic styling and a hopped-up 400PS (294kW) 2.5-litre five-pot. We likey, very much so. So did Audi given its production feasibility. A run of between 200 and 500 cars was planned, with the car reaching the prototype stage. The project was then shelved indefinitely in 2012. What could have been an instant icon never saw the light of day.

Honda HSV-10

As with the Quattro, Estoque and R8 above, we’re now recent enough that the wounds haven’t quite healed. Few cut as deep as the cancellation of Honda’s V10 supercar in 2008. This car got so close to production that prototypes were wearing production-level bodywork underneath disguises as they screamed around the Nürburgring. There was even a racing version that competed in Super GT as late as 2010 and 2011, under the dispensation that the car it was based on was production-ready. It won both the team and driver’s championship. Oh, how the loss of this thing hurt, especially given what we got. Yes, the NSX that eventually came out is an excellent car but you can’t argue it’s as tuneful as this would have been.

Jaguar C-X75

Wait, no, this one hurts more. As the hybrid hypercar powers reached new heights in 2013, Jaguar was poised to join the party with the C-X75. Ian Callum’s 2010 design for a turbine hypercar evolved into the Cosworth-hybrid knockout we so nearly got. Then the bean-counters stepped in, citing the need to free up budget to get new saloons and SUVs to market to increase production and margins. Yes, the C-X75 died so the F-Pace, XE and XF could come to be. Fine cars all, but 10,000rpm-revving hybrid hypercars they ain’t. Rubbing salt in the wounds as much as it is cool, the C-X75 was later exhumed, with the help of Jag’s supercharged V8, in 2015. It opposed Mr Bond’s Aston Martin DB10 in Spectre. It wasn’t even that good of a film, which makes it even sadder.

Bugatti Atlantic

Another one that fell to the sensible suits, who in fairness, were fending off the newly-broken Dieselgate scandal, was the 2015 Bugatti Atlantic. This was an entry-level Bugatti that could have utilised the Group’s 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8. From the off, it was intended for production, which is why it earns a place here, but this mothballed GT stayed a secret for five years before being chronicled last year. The Atlantic joins a number of projects cancelled by Bugatti in recent years, like the Galibier of 2008, though that was probably the right call.

Range Rover SV Coupe

This was a fairly decadent one from Land Rover, wasn’t it? Planned for a limited 1,000-car production run, Land Rover’s SVO division previewed the Range Rover SV Coupe in 2017. A two-door, ultra-luxe Range Rover for £250,000 would have been the darling of the driveways of Kardashians and oil baron’s alike, had Land Rover’s recent financial struggles not put it first on the chopping block. Thankfully a brilliant Dutch coachbuilder started building them, so the idea didn’t fade completely.

Jaguar XJ EV

We really don’t understand this one. Jaguar had been preparing a revolutionary new all-EV replacement for the XJ, for release next year. The project has been ongoing for the last five years, or more but it’s only now been cancelled. This, alongside Jag’s announcement that it plans to go all-electric from 2025. Colour us highly confused, especially now as Mercedes prepares to debut its futuristic all-electric limo, the EQS, in August. *Sigh*.

Commiserations: Volkswagen Nardo and Porsche 919 Street

They were never meant for production but hot damn, any excuse. The VW Nardo was a highly functional supercar prototype, which set average speed records using the revolutionary new W12 engine in 2001. As far as VW was concerned, that was job done. The Nardo was merely a mule to prove the performance and reliability of the W12.

As for the 919 Street? Revealed this year, it never passed the clay model phase and honestly, was never considered for production. Porsche design bods just wanted to act out what a road-going version of the 919 Le Mans-winning LMP1 sports prototype might look like. Oh boy, how we were robbed.

Did you get to the end of this? If so, congratulations. It’s been a long emotional journey to write and we suspect, to read also. Are there any sorely-missed almosts of the car world we forgot to mention? Which of the ones we did are you the saddest we didn’t get? Let us know.