Author: Richard Heseltine
Images: Pininfarina
Italian styling and Lotus once went hand-in-glove, not least during the ‘Giugiaro period.’ The car you see here, by contrast, never made the leap from show car to production reality. It wasn’t for the lack of trying on Pininfarina’s part. Back in the early 1990s, the Turin firm was engaged as a collaborator and foil to General Motors, not least in the creation and partial manufacturer of the Cadillac Allanté. Given that the biggest of Detroit’s ‘Big Three’ at one point owned 91 per cent of Lotus, it wasn’t that big a leap to suggest that Pininfarina might also work in partnership on another project; one based on the Opel Lotus Omega (Vauxhall Lotus Carlton in the UK).
The thing is, this was strictly a case of Pininfarina touting for business. The Chronos project was not instigated by GM. Basis for the car was a shortened Omega platform, to which a carbon-fibre body styled by an unheralded artiste was added. The car’s signature feature was its removable glass roof which was impregnated with liquid crystals. When an electrical current was applied, the glass darkened in an instant. Mechanically, the donor car was otherwise unchanged, retaining its twin-turbo, 377bhp straight-six unit.
The lavish brochure trumpeted, not altogether coherently: ‘Pininfarina’s intention in this design study is to give concrete evidence of the company’s collaboration with General Motors that goes way back to the 1950s/’60s, and to return to a theme, that of the coupé, that is attracting increasing attention from customers. The big manufacturers have today developed increasingly refined technologies, and are able to bring to market sedans with more and more sophisticated mechanicals, enabling them to achieve performance levels that, until a short time ago, were confined to pure sports cars. This new layout broadens the designer’s potential because he is more readily able to match outstanding performance to equivalent styling distinction.’
The Chronos was displayed at the 1991 North American International Auto Show in Detroit and the Geneva Motor Show, or rather a static model was. A fully-functional prototype was subsequently constructed, Pininfarina going so far as to loan the one-off to Auto Week and Motor Trend, the latter reporting: ‘Low, streamlined, and compact, the Chronos eschews traditional add-on aerodynamic elements in favour of an essentially clean, basic design. Even so, it retains a truly distinctive appearance, whether its removable hardtop is on or off. The first thing that strikes you is the relatively small size of the Chronos. With an overall length of 170in, and a wheelbase of 96.4in, it’s amazing how well the engineers have installed the inline engine and related turbo hardware under the hood and still created a wide, comfortable cockpit and fairly generous trunk compartment.’
The same title went on to suggest that it might even wear a Cadillac badge and become a replacement for the Allanté. Of course, that never happened. Instead, the Chronos became just another concept car that time forgot.
Can you think of any other concept cars that deserved to make it to production? Let us know at hdc@hagerty.co.uk