Seven brilliant and perfectly formed tiny concept cars

The upside of pouring money into F1 is that your road cars reap the tech benefits. At least, that’s what Renault tells the accountant. The Twizy RS F1 is a bonkers £1million showcase of KERS energy recovery that more than quadruples the standard car’s power. Add slicks, carbon everything and it’s job done. (Not for the accountant. Who is crying.) 

Between the demise of the old Mini and the birth of the slavishly retro new, there was an attempt to design a car as revolutionary as Issigonis’s original. At just 10ft in length, it was just as small, but impressively spacious thanks to a rear engine layout and zero overhangs. But the BMW brass said “Nein”, and nostalgia took over where ingenuity left off. 

Celebrating the 4CV’s half-centenary, Renault unveiled the Fiftie in 1996. Part homage, part futuristic showcase, the Fiftie used the Sport Spider’s aluminium underwear, cloaked in a retrofuturistic body with foldaway roof panels and a picnic basket. The front end echoes the 4CV’s Gallic moustache, while the rear pre-empts the Audi R8. No one could figure it out. 

Accessing those parts of the forest that other SUVs cannot reach, the Toyota Moguls ploughed a lonely but ingenious niche. Proper ground clearance was achieved by doing away with a propshaft in favour of valves and pumps, with independently driven wheels enjoying half a metre of suspension travel. The seats are offset, allowing for that narrow footprint. 

Powered by a 3.5-litre V6, the Twin’Run puts 320bhp through its rear wheels. In deference to its obvious widowmaking potential, the Twin’Run’s handling was developed by Group B rally driver Jean Ragnotti, who called it a “sound car with a strong pedigree”. Which, considering he was on the payroll, is pretty much him saying, 'I nearly died'.

Looking like it could’ve been drawn yesterday, the Ford 021C was created to seduce America’s pre-millennium youth, with its designer observing that he had simply brought to life what a car means to a child. A single headlight, suicide doors and a drawer-pull boot notwithstanding, the triumph of the 021C is its Steve Jobs-alike simplicity.

Harking back to the mid-Seventies Datsun 180 Coupe, the IDx’s target market was modern youth, keen to customise a small, affordable rear-wheel driver. Good-looking, mechanically simple, with a modest but tuneable engine, it made perfect sense and everyone went mad for it. Except Nissan’s beancounters, who went all pale and sweaty and pulled the plug.