page_title: Gas turbine
section_title: Concept cars
hierarchical_section_title: Gas turbine / In surface vehicles / Passenger road vehicles (cars, bikes, and buses) / Concept cars
caption_attribution_description: GM Firebird concept car
context_page_description: A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous and internal combustion engine. The main elements common to all gas turbine engines are:
  an upstream rotating gas compressor
  a combustor
  a downstream turbine on the same shaft as the compressor.
  A fourth component is often used to increase efficiency, to convert power into mechanical or electric form, or to achieve greater thrust-to-weight ratio.
  The basic operation of the gas turbine is a Brayton cycle with air as the working fluid: atmospheric air flows through the compressor that brings it to higher pressure; energy is then added by spraying fuel into the air and igniting it so that the combustion generates a high-temperature flow; this high-temperature pressurized gas enters a turbine, producing a shaft work output in the process, used to drive the compressor; the unused energy comes out in the exhaust gases that can be repurposed for external work, such as directly producing thrust in a turbojet engine, or rotating a second, independent turbine that can be connected to a fan, propeller, or electrical generator.
context_section_description: The first serious investigation of using a gas turbine in cars was in 1946 when two engineers, Robert Kafka and Robert Engerstein of Carney Associates, a New York engineering firm, came up with the concept where a unique compact turbine engine design would provide power for a rear wheel drive car. After an article appeared in Popular Science, there was no further work, beyond the paper stage.
  In 1950, designer F.R. Bell and Chief Engineer Maurice Wilks from British car manufacturers Rover unveiled the first car powered with a gas turbine engine. The two-seater JET1 had the engine positioned behind the seats, air intake grilles on either side of the car, and exhaust outlets on the top of the tail. During tests, the car reached top speeds of 140 km/h (87 mph), at a turbine speed of 50,000 rpm. The car ran on petrol, paraffin (kerosene) or diesel oil, but fuel consumption problems proved insurmountable for a production car. It is on display at the London Science Museum.
  A French turbine-powered car, the SOCEMA-Grégoire, was displayed at the October 1952 Paris Auto Show. It was designed by the French engineer Jean-Albert Grégoire.
  The first turbine-powered car built in the US was the GM Firebird I which began evaluations in 1953. While photos of the Firebird I may suggest that the jet turbine's thrust propelled the car like an aircraft, the turbine actually drove the rear wheels. The Firebird 1 was never meant as a commercial passenger car and was solely built for testing & evaluation as well as public relation purposes.
  Starting in 1954 with a modified Plymouth, the American car manufacturer Chrysler demonstrated several prototype gas turbine-powered cars from the early 1950s through the early 1980s. Chrysler built fifty Chrysler Turbine Cars in 1963 and conducted the only consumer trial of gas turbine-powered cars. Each of their turbines employed a unique rotating recuperator, referred to as a regenerator that increased efficiency.
  In 1954 Fiat unveiled a concept car with a turbine engine, called Fiat Turbina. This vehicle, looking like an aircraft with wheels, used a unique combination of both jet thrust and the engine driving the wheels. Speeds of 282 km/h (175 mph) were claimed.
  The original General Motors Firebird was a series of concept cars developed for the 1953, 1956 and 1959 Motorama auto shows, powered by gas turbines.
  In 1960's, Ford and GM were developing gas turbine semi-truck.  One such concept truck was known as the Big Red.  With the trailer, it was a 96-foot-long, 13-foot-high truck painted crimson red.  It contained the Ford developed gas turbine engine, with 600 horsepower and 855 pound-feet of torque.  The cab boasted a highway map of the continuental U. S., a mini-kitchen, bathroom, as well as a TV for the co-driver.  The fate of the truck is unknown, but video of it still exists.
  As a result of the U.S. Clean Air Act Amendments of 1970, research was funded into developing automotive gas turbine technology. Design concepts and vehicles were conducted by Chrysler, General Motors, Ford (in collaboration with AiResearch), and American Motors (in conjunction with Williams Research). Long-term tests were conducted to evaluate comparable cost efficiency. Several AMC Hornets were powered by a small Williams regenerative gas turbine weighing 250 lb (113 kg) and producing 80 hp (60 kW; 81 PS) at 4450 rpm.
  Toyota demonstrated several gas turbine powered concept cars, such as the Century gas turbine hybrid in 1975, the Sports 800 Gas Turbine Hybrid in 1979 and the GTV in 1985. No production vehicles were made. The GT24 engine was exhibited in 1977 without a vehicle.
  In the early 1990s, Volvo introduced the Volvo ECC which was a gas turbine powered hybrid electric vehicle.
  In 1993 General Motors introduced the first commercial gas turbine powered hybrid vehicle—as a limited production run of the EV-1 series hybrid. A Williams International 40 kW turbine drove an alternator which powered the battery-electric powertrain. The turbine design included a recuperator. In 2006, GM went into the EcoJet concept car project 
caption: GM Firebird I
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