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Corvette-Killer... or Career-Killer? Virgil Exner's Unusual 1960 Chrysler Concept

By Rain Noe - July 13, 2012

in Cars

We had to show you this car because it's so freakin' bizarre. In the late 1950s, Chrysler sought an answer to the popular Corvette, which was eating U.S. auto manufacturers' high-end sports car breakfast. The task for designing the Corvette-killer fell to Virgil Exner, the industrial designer who had worked for—and had a falling out with—Raymond Loewy, and who would eventually become Chrysler's first Vice President of Styling. Prior to that, Chrysler engineers (shudder) controlled the design process.

What Exner came up with was unconventional, to say the least.

His XNR (get it?) concept resembled an assymetrical shark and took tailfins in an unexpected direction. The lopsided car seemed designed for the driver to belittle his passenger, with a tiny vestige of a passenger-side window and even a hatch you could close over that side altogether, reminding your shotgun-rider which of you was literally in the driver's seat.

Needless to say, the conservative Chrysler brass nixed the car. And before long, they nixed poor Exner.

The one-of-a-kind prototype pictured here is currently in the auto world news because it's about to go up for auction in California.

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Herk Milman

12 years ago

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Another fine example of Chrysler's bizarre styling. No wonder clubs always use the name Mopar rather than Chrysler. Even they are ashamed to be associated with some of this stuff.
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Meagan

12 years ago

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This design just blows me out of the water. The concept is beautiful all away around. If this was ever made into a car, I'd save up for this beauty.
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john murphy

12 years ago

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one of the greatest designs of the twentieth century. ask any car designer of today.
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Carlos

12 years ago

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Didn't George Jetson drive a single fin?
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derek

12 years ago

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Actually, the design isn't as bizarre as one thinks, as pointed out by Rob the single fin design has been used before in classic racers. The panel covering the passenger seat is to improve aero dynamics during racing. If you really study the components you can see visual cues adopted by the like of Newson and Arad.
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Rob Curedale

12 years ago

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The Jaguar D Type in 1954 had a single fin which predated, Exener's concept by a few years.

http://www.classics.com/images02/pb02-06.jpg
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Diego

12 years ago

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OPINION ALERT: I don't believe it's accurate to characterize the XNR as some sports car to compete with the likes of the Corvette. Rather, it is a sports car-influenced show car showcasing the new Valiant, which made its debut in 1960, along with the "Slant Six." Remember, America was a V-8 country and the Corvette didn't experience success until the small-block V-8 became available in 1955, upon which Zora Arkus-Duntov took it racing to prove that yes, Virginia, America could build a viable sports car.

If anything, the XNR was more like a precursor to cars like the Mustang - look at Ford's show cars leading up to the Mustang and see.
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