A variety of interesting concepts are on their way to the Geneva Motor Show this year, but when it comes to offering something unique and different, Ed Design just may take the cake. The Italy-based company is known for fashioning concept vehicles for marques like Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, and Maserati, but this latest creation is something completely from out in left field.

From the single teaser image, it looks like the Torq will be an angular, wedge-shaped supercar with minimal ground clearance, copious swoops and spoilers, and a long wheelbase. Italian publication quattroruote is reporting that total height will not exceed 43.3 inches, which could very well be correct, gauging from this shadowy picture.


No windows would mean less drag, which should go a long way to helping overall downforce efficiency. Seeing as this is a performance vehicle, materials used will probably focus on weight savings. That means a platform built on a carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic monocoque, aluminum, and possibly a splash of magnesium and titanium for good measure. The doors will probably swing upwards in a dramatic, scissor-like fashion. Lighting might be provided by LEDs, and the whole thing will be doused in either bright, candy-colored paint, or raw, all-business carbon fiber.

The idea of riding around in a windowless, two-seater race car controlled by a computer sounds insanely scary. Personally, I’d want to be able to spot the braking points to prepare my neck for heavy deceleration, not to mention bear witness to the jukes and feints for position. This could be with a camera system that projects onto door- and dash-mounted screens, possibly with some kind of augmented reality coming into play. Perhaps passengers in rival vehicles would shoot virtual missiles at one another while the cars handled all the racing duties, sort of like a much more expensive Anki Overdrive.


All-electric performance tells me that this car should use more than one electric motor for AWD propulsion. And with a name like “Torq,” you can bet output will be lofty as well. I’ll float some numbers out there that seem appropriate – how about 500 horsepower and 750 pound-feet of torque, with 0-to-60 in 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 180 mph.

In the automotive industry, all-electric, fully-autonomous, and performance-oriented are not by-words for cheap. In the highly unlikely scenario that the Torq actually goes into production, I’m guessing a figure around half a million dollars.