Explore our top 10 production cars of 2023

2023 has seen selected car designs get transformed into real-life vehicle models, albeit some of them are limited or one-offs. These cars – be it an electric vehicle, hypercar, or sports car – all showcase their distinctive design and technological features, from the projection of driver’s information onto the entire front windshield to restoring a classic model into a retro-futuristic ride in 3D-printed titanium.

Other car models even spotlight copper-orange alubeam paintwork, an installed HD camera to replace the removal of the entire rear window, and a removable roof for an electric microcar. There’s even a solar car carpeted with photovoltaic panels that managed to drive from Northern Morocco to the Sahara. Our annual round-up of this year’s BIG stories continues. Read on for our TOP 10 production cars of 2023.

BMW BRINGS YOLK-YELLOW INTERIOR TO ITS VISION NEUE KLASSE

BMW Vision Neue Klasse in our TOP 10 production cars of 2023 | image by BMW | read more here

During the IAA Mobility 2023 in Munich, Germany, BMW unveiled a real-life model of its Vision Neue Klasse, an electric car outlined by a clean-white exterior topped with a transparent glass roof to offer the passengers unobstructed views of the outside. The seemingly glossy white exterior becomes interrupted by the appearance of a yolk-yellow interior, and the electric BMW Vision Neue Klasse even glows as it detects the driver and passengers approach the vehicle. As soon as the driver and front passengers sit down, they can see that the driving information is projected across the entire width of the windscreen rather than on a device.

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MERCEDES-BENZ IMAGINES FUTURE OF SPEED WITH VISION ONE-ELEVEN

Mercedes-Benz Vision One-Eleven in our TOP 10 production cars of 2023 | image by Mercedes-Benz | more here

Bringing back nuances from iconic cars inspires Mercedes-Benz to produce Vision One-Eleven. Its design cues were taken from the likes of the Type 300 SL and C 111, both with gullwing doors, before adding distinctive elements such as a bow-shaped silhouette, copper-orange alubeam paintwork, and muscular hindquarters. Mercedes-Benz’s electric sports car is even powered by liquid-cooled cylindrical cells alongside advanced motors to ensure that Vision One-Eleven can provide efficiency in driving. The striking copper-orange alubeam paintwork pays homage to the iconic C 111 which lends the vehicle a sense of power and extravagance. Its shade even changes with the light, adding a touch of opulence and setting the Vision One-Eleven apart from its predecessors.

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PORSCHE UNVEILS MISSION X, ITS ROAD-LEGAL ELECTRIC HYPERCAR

Porsche Mission X in our TOP 10 production cars of 2023 | image by Porsche | read more here

During the eve of the ‘75 Years of Porsche Sports Cars’ exhibition opening at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart Zuffenhausen, Porsche introduced what may be dubbed as its fastest road-legal electric hypercar yet. The car brand envisions Mission X to have a low and sculpted body and certain parts carried out carbon-weave finish. A lightweight glass dome covers both the driver and passenger, made of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic, and the butterfly doors open forwards and upwards, similar to those used on the Porsche 917 racing car. The Porsche crest on Mission X has also been made modern with a brushed precious metal finish and other tweaks including a three-dimensional honeycomb structure, a refreshed heraldic beast, and a more subtle gold color. Inside the car, the two seats have different colors, with the driver’s seat in Kalahari Grey and the passenger seat in Andalusia Brown.

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LANCIA INTRODUCES ITS FIRST 100% ELECTRIC CAR, PU+RA HPE

Lancia Pu+Ra HPE in our TOP 10 production cars of 2023 | image by Lancia | read more here

During Milan Design Week 2023, Lancia exhibited the real-life model of its first 100% electric car, Pu+Ra HPE. The word Pu+Ra is a moniker for pure and radical which refers to the design language that Lancia employed for its electric car, and HPE stands for High-Performance Electric to signal the vehicle’s mission to be eco-sustainable. The car company says that it takes little more than 10 minutes for the Pu+Ra HPE to be fully charged. Inside, the driver and front passenger can easily control the sound system, cabin temperature, and brightness level of the lighting simply by clicking a button.

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POLESTAR 4 ELECTRIC SUV REPLACES REAR WINDOW WITH CAMERA

No rear window? It’s not a problem for Polestar 4 since its electric SUV installs a camera to replace its rear window. The feed is shown on a high-definition screen in front of the driver and flashes a real-time feed from the rear HD camera, enabling a far wider field of view that relies on technology over manual action. The rear camera is capable of showing the landscape views of what is happening behind the vehicle to enable the driver to maneuver the electric SUV well when they are parking or want to check the views from the car’s tail.

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MEYERS MANX DEBUTS NEIGHBORHOOD ELECTRIC BUGGY ‘RESORTER’

Meyers Manx’s Resorter in our TOP 10 production cars of 2023 | image by Meyers Manx | read more here

An electric buggy that can be driven around cities and has a removable roof? Meyers Manx debuted just that during Monterey Car Week 2023. Its neighborhood electric vehicle named Resorter hides an aluminum monocoque chassis and pouch-cell lithium-ion batteries in its bodywork. Even if it can be roofless, the electric vehicle comes equipped with standard A/C and heating alongside power steering and regenerative braking. Since Resorter is more suitable for city driving, it may make sense that its top speed can reach up to 25 miles per hour.

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FIAT TOPOLINO RELEASED AS DOLCEVITA ELECTRIC CAR WITH OPEN DOORS

Fiat Topolino Dolcevita in our TOP 10 production cars of 2023 | image by Fiat | read more here

La dolce vita – always a lifestyle, now a Fiat Topolino electric car variant. Fiat puts its own spin on Dolcevita by transforming part of the Italian way of life into an electric minicar with rollable fabric sunroof and open-air doors. A noticeable feature in the Dolcevita model is its door sills and rope that lend the aura of the movie star stepping out of a luxurious hotel lounge. Owners can still opt for the closed version which is offered with customization of wooden effect stickers on the doors. With both versions, a rear carriage is included, but the Dolcevita has vintage chrome effect mirrors to live up to its model’s name.

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ECCENTRICA’S LAMBORGHINI DIABLO HYPERCAR COMES IN TITANIUM

Restoring a classic 1990s Lamborghini Diablo hypercar may be deemed laborious, but Emanuel Colombini of Eccentrica Cars and design studio BorromeodeSilva managed to pull it off by transforming the vintage hypercar into a retro-futuristic vehicle with a 3D-printed titanium body. The restomod, produced only in 19 custom models, takes its design cues from the sporty Diablo GTR with an overhauled bodywork except for its original windshield. Eccentrica’s Lamborghini Diablo hypercar is thought of to be a street-legal vehicle that can also be driven on racetracks.

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WORLD’S FIRST OFF-ROAD SOLAR CAR ‘STELLA TERRA’

Stella Terra in our TOP 10 production cars of 2023 | image by Bart van Overbeeke and Rien Boonstoppel | more here

Solar cars have emerged, but the 22 students from the Eindhoven University of Technology that make up the group Solar Team Eindhoven took it further by driving the dubbed world’s first off-road solar car named Stella Terra from Northern Morocco to the Sahara. Stella Terra managed to run for around 1,000 kilometers all through the generated energy using the absorbed solar power from the photovoltaic panels on its vehicle roof. The panels cover nearly the entire upper surface of the solar car, including the hood, and Stella Terra, which is road-legal, drove up to a top speed of 145 kilometers per hour.

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REAL-LIFE TESLA CYBERTRUCK IS FINALLY HERE

After months of delays and waiting, the real-life production line of Tesla Cybertruck has finally come alongside three models and their expected delivery timeline. Tesla began Cybertruck’s delivery on December 1st, 2023, following the announcement during the  Cybertruck Delivery Event on November 29th, 2023 where Elon Musk led the presentation. The three models include the Rear-Wheel Drive, which is expected to be available in 2025; the All-Wheel Drive, which may come out in 2024; and the Cyberbeast, which is foreseen to be shipped in 2024.

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