Wedge Play: Why the door-stop design trend was spotlighted at the 2024 Pebble Beach Concours (2024)

For 364 days of the year, wedges are a common sight at coastal California’s Pebble Beach golf course, and following this past Sunday’s 2024 Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance on the 18th fairway of the fabled track, we can round that up to a full year’s worth. For the first time ever in the 74-year history of the iconic competition, there was a category dedicated to the “wedge” design trend. Two of them in fact, with the official titles “Wedge-shaped concept cars & prototypes early,” and “Wedge-shaped concept cars & prototypes late.”

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And while the well-dressed, well-heeled crowd found, as always, the greatest appreciation for the finest cars in life, exemplified by a 1934 Bugatti Type 59 Sport claiming this year’s Best of Show award, there was nevertheless considerable interest in — and amazement shared over — the eclectic collection of wedges assembled on the water’s edge of the verdant fairway.

As no amount of words could ever do these 20 vehicles justice, we’ll keep things simple and instead present an image and a brief historical biography of each, arranged chronologically from the wedge that started it all; to an all-electric, state-of-the-art wedge designed as a 50th anniversary homage to, well, yet another wedge design.

1955 Ghia Streamline X ‘Gilda’ Coupe

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Many automotive design experts consider the Alfa Romeo Carabo to be the car that launched the ‘wedge’ craze, but 13 years earlier, Chrysler commissioned Virgil Exner to create a concept car that upended conventional car design and would help Chrysler revive its image as a forward-thinking, modern automaker.

It was originally built without an engine, but today it is propelled by a gas turbine said to sound like that of a jet. The concept vehicle received the name ‘Gilda’ from Ghia technical director Giovanni Savonuzzi, who was smitten with actress Rita Hayworth’s performance in the movie of the same name.

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1960 Plymouth XNR Ghia Roadster

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This wedge is named in honour of the Gilda’s designer, Virgil Exner — get it, Exner as in “XNR”? Plymouth sent a Valiant chassis fitted with a 225 Slant Six powerplant to Ghia, which decided to form the body in steel, not fibreglass, as was the trend with concepts in the Sixties. The asymmetrical design sees the rear fin, seat, and and hood scoop positioned to the left of centre.

The car was once owned by the Shah of Iran, and was discovered years later in a semi-destroyed garage in Lebanon during the civil war. Karim Edde moved it to a safehouse, and eventually got it out of the country for a full restoration. You may have recently spied it in the Fallout TV series.

1966 Cannara Roadster

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This influential design was penned by then-Pasadena ArtCenter student Ray Cannara, and was initially fitted with a front-mid-mounted 283 cubic-inch Chevy V8, then a larger 350 cubic-inch Chevy V8. The car was built in St. Petersburg, and when it was finished, Cannara and his mother drove it to Pasadena, California. Cannara was mentored at the ArtCenter by design legend Strother MacMinn, the genius behind the iconic 1939 Opel Kapitän.

1969 Lancia Fulvia HF1.6 Competizione Prototype

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If you’re seeing hints of the Ferrari 365 California and the De Tomaso Pantera in this wedge prototype, it’s for a good reason. This wedge was designed by Ghia director of design Tom Tjaarda, who worked extensively on the initial bodywork of both of those legendary vehicles, too. The Lancia prototype was created for the 1969 Geneva and Turin motor shows, and was built on a Lancia Fulvio 1600 frame with a unique rear suspension. Believe it or not, this vehicle has never been restored nor repainted since its debut 55 years ago.

1970 Ferrari 512 S Modulo Pininfarina Coupe

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Even the most devout Ferrari-philes would be hard-pressed to recognize this as a Prancing Horse. The one-off experimental Berlinetta was built on a 512 S chassis, and design house Pininfarina was heavily inspired by the space-age aesthetic that was sweeping the globe following the moon landing a year earlier.

It was first shown at the 1970 Geneva show, without an engine, and for a number of years toured the world as an automotive “celebrity.” This showing at Pebble was not its first: in 2006, it was part of the 100-years-of-Pininfarina celebration.

1970 Lancia Stratos HF Zero Bertone Coupe

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This influential wedge car was designed by Marcello Gandini — of Lamborghini Miura and Countach fame — without Lancia’s knowledge. Coachmaker Bertone was trying to get business from Lancia, and the Stratos HF Zero was presented to the company’s executives as a demonstration of Bertone’s abilities.

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The concept is just 84 centimetres (33 inches) tall, some 10 cm taller than the Pininfarina Ferrari Modulo, and Niccio Bertone drove the Zero under a parking barrier at the Lancia workshop. To get in the co*ckpit, you have to raise the windshield, step over the hood and into the reclined seats.

1970 Mercedes-Benz C 111/II Sports Car

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It wasn’t just the Italians who were taken by the wedge, as this tasty offering from Mercedes-Benz can attest. Three of these concepts were built, each slightly different than the other, and power comes from a four-rotor Wankel engine.

When you consider Benz production vehicles from this era, this design is a radical departure, but it was intended to showcase that Wankel engine and the company’s ability to create cars with avant garde styling. As such, and unlike some of the earlier Italian wedge concepts, this one never came close to production.

1972 BMW Turbo Concept

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BMW followed Mercedes-Benz’s philosophy with the Turbo Concept, presenting it as more of a technology test-bed than a wedge design statement. The tech on display included such revolutionary ideas as self-generating crumple zones, safety steering, fully surrounding impact strips, and luminescent paintwork. Under the hood is a tweaked — to the tune of a 200-horsepower boost from a turbocharger — BMW 2002 Series engine.

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1973 Audi Asso di Picche Italdesign Coupe

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Asso di Picche, or Ace of Spades, was the brainchild of Italdesign founder Giorgetto Giugiaro, who directed his designers to create a compact sports car with a wedge design. The chassis and running gear of an Audi 80 was used, and the concept debuted with great fanfare at the 1973 Frankurt Motor Show. While the Ace of Spades never really translated to an Audi production car, many of its design elements were incorporated into the Volkswagen Scirocco.

1973 Chevrolet Aerovette

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This all-American wedge started life as the Chevrolet 4-Rotor, a concept showcasing GM’s short-lived rotary-combustion-engine program. The body was styled by GM designers Jerry Palmer and Henry Haga, with silver leather and bi-fold doors.

When the rotary engine program was shuttered — the terrible fuel efficiency made Chevy big blocks seem economical — a Corvette 400-cubic-inch small-block V8 was fitted in the rear, and the car was renamed the “Aerovette.” And 47 years later, a production version of a mid-engine ‘Vette became a reality.

1975 Lamborghini Countach LP 400 Periscopio

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Countach is the Piedmontese word for “amazement,” and this production model certainly conjures up that emotion. The Countach debuted in 1974, and a year later, this model was produced, one of just 150 LP 400s to roll off the production line. It was the 44th Periscopio, named for the rear-view mirrors built into the roof. It was delivered new to Prince Bandar Bin Saad of Saudi Arabia, and features a 4.0-litre V12 engine pumping out 375 horsepower.

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1976 Ferrari Rainbow Bertone Coupe

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Fiat X1/9 fans might love this Bertone design, but Enzo Ferrari did not. After first laying eyes on the Rainbow, he vowed that Bertone would never work with Ferrari again. Never intended to be a high-volume Ferrari, the Rainbow’s design was heavily influenced by the Ferrari 308 GT and the Lamborghini Countach, and was a bit of a radical departure from the Prancing Horse designs. Power comes from a 3.0-litre V8, and the retractable hard-top design was a precursor to the 458 Spyder, albeit 35 years later.

1979 Aston Martin Bulldog

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This British wedge was developed as an answer to the rising raft of Italian supercars, and the name “Bulldog” came from Aston Martin Managing Director and designer William Towns’ favourite aircraft — the two-seat Scottish Aviation Bulldog trainer. Towns is also the designer behind the Lagonda and DBS.

The Bulldog became famous for its gullwing doors and five centre-mounted headlamps. And in 2023, it lived up to its reputation as a 200-mph car when it – finally, for the first time – hit 205 mph (330 km/h) at the Machrihanish Airfield.

1979 Ford Probe I Ghia Concept

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The fact that the Probe I was a one-off prototype makes the news that this very vehicle was totally destroyed in a fire while it was being transported away from Pebble Beach following the show just heartbreaking.

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The Probe I was designed by Ford design chief Don F. Kopka along with Carozzeria Ghia, and was based on a Fox-body Mustang platform with a turbocharged 2.3-litre four-cylinder Cobra engine. With its rear wheel spats, elongated rear deck and large glass greenhouse, the Probe I influenced many future Ford production cars.

The car was owned by Scott Grundfor Co., a California restoration shop that has worked on and also owns some 15 other rare Ford prototypes. The company’s Drew Grundfor told Motor Trend that the burned-out shell of the car will still be displayed in the Scott Grundfor showroom, and that they still have to decide whether they will attempt to restore the car or leave it as-is.

The estimated value of the car has been rumoured to be about US$1 million.

1984 Honda HP-X Pininfarina Concept

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Built as a working prototype, the HP-X played a significant role in the design and production of the NSX supercars, and was sculpted by Pininfarina with the use of the aerodynamic principles of ground effects from Formula One. The HP-X has no doors, and access to the cabin is achieved by lifting the canopy, composed of a single piece of Perspex for the windshield, with a transparent roof; it also acts as an air-brake at a specific speed. The concept is still owned by Pininfarina.

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1988 Cizeta-Moroder V16T Prototype

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So, why is the name of a music composer, Giorgio Moroder, part of the badging on this supercar concept? Well, Moroder teamed with Automobili Cizeta founder Claudio Zampolli to create this 6.0-litre V16 engine monster.

It was designed by Marcello Gandini — he of the Miura, Countach, and Lancia Stratos — and incorporates classic wedge design cues, including a nose close to the ground and a rear high up in the air. It debuted at the 1979 Los Angeles and Geneva auto shows, and was owned by Moroder until 2022.

1993 Vector W8 Coupe

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Designer Gerald Wiegart launched the Vector Aeromotive Corporation in 1989, and four years later unveiled the Vector W Coupe as a street-legal supercar. Power comes from a 6.0-litre Rodeck twin-turbo V8, working with a three-speed transmission. The body is an aluminum honeycomb monocoque with carbon-fibre and Kevlar panels. Seventeen W8s were produced before the company went out of business in 1993 due to a lack of funding.

2016 United Nude Lo-Res Car

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Remind you of something? Well, it should, as designer Rem D Koolhaas was present during early design meetings of the Tesla Cybertruck. The Nude Lo-Res is a design exercise that aimed to apply “de-resolution” to the Lamborghini Countach, stripping away the 3D resolution to leave just a basic interpretation of the original object.

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Under the smoked polycarbonate body is an angular steel frame. Actuators lift the body from the front of the vehicle for cabin access. And, yes, it is fully functional but, not suprisingly, not street-legal. It is still owned by Koolhaas.

2017 Ken Okuyama Kode0

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This 21st-century take on the wedge is the brainchild of Japan’s Ken Okuyama, a graduate of the ArtCenter in Pasadena and a one-time Pininfarina supervisor overseeing the Ferrari Enzo and P4/5 designs. The carbon-fibre monocoque covers a big 6.9-litre V12 engine with a power output of 690 horsepower.

2023 Italdesign Asso di Picche in Movimento Concept

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Yes, another “Ace of Spades” name, and this one a direct tribute to Audi’s 1973 Italdesign wedge (see above). Only this one is fully electric, and is a three-door 2+2. The roof and windows are polycarbonate and are polarized to filter 100 per cent of UV rays. The steering wheel is an F1-inspired rectangle, cameras replace the side mirrors, the dashboard is essentially a suspended screen, and the doors are double-hinged to slide forward and rotate.