It’s super cool to look back at concept cars from decades past. It gives us a window, typically, into the styling direction of a particular brand or even lets us see some stuff that the companies were getting ready to roll into new models. Well, Ford and Pontiac had two weirdly similar concepts in 1989 and we’re not too sure either of the actually influenced anything going forward. The Pontiac Stinger and Ford Splash are cool in their own way but they certainly aren’t vehicles we look into the 1990s and see a lot of from either company. Basically these guys beat the side-by-side UTV boom by about 20 years plus.
The Pontiac Stinger was made to be some sort of a Jeep competitor. Open air, active off-road suspension for more adventurous driving, interesting concepts like side saddle bag storage that could be swapped onto the doors, a detachable radio, and other features, it was totally a “futuristic” take on the SUV and one that once you study it for a second is a lot like the larger and most loaded side by side UTV rigs that people buy today.
The Ford Splash was a design study created by college kids and it has a scuba diving theme. The interior was neoprene (wet suit material) and the whole look is again, very kind of side by side right down to the shoulder harness style belts. It’s really similar to the Stinger in ethos and even in shape some ways.
There’s some bonus Japanese concept car stuff in here as well but the Stinger and the Splash give us an idea of what the companies were thinking about the kids in the late 1980s. Shockingly, it’s what the “kids” have always wanted in cars. Something unique, something that they could call their own, and something that they could customize to their tastes on the order sheet. Interesting, right?
Make them electric and you have a winner. The 31 yo design still looks good.