Have you ever wondered what the low-polygon cars of a video game played with a crappy graphics card would look like in real life? Wonder no more because the United Nude Lo-Res Car is here to show you what a Lamborghini Countach looks like in very low resolution. It’s for sale, and it’s just begging for a drivetrain swap.
I love bizarre concept cars that actually work. There’s something about the idea of driving around in an artsy cube that makes me laugh. Earlier this year, Cars & Bids sold the street legal and brutal “Consumer Car” that was an old Ford Fiesta underneath. Bring A Trailer now has its own weird art car with this United Nude Lo-Res Car. Check this thing out.
According to the ad, the founder of the United Nude clothing brand drew up this concept based on an “abstract, low resolution version of a Lamborghini Countach.” It’s like what happens when you try to play Crysis or Microsoft Flight Simulator with an integrated graphics chip.
I don’t really see any Countach in it, even a low-poly one. My first thought seeing the thing is that it’s a router with some wheels.
The Low-Red car is covered in clear tinted polycarbonate body panels formed into a shell and bolted onto a hinge, then dropped onto a steel frame. The body very slowly electrically opens for ingress and egress. Former Jalopnik contributor Doug DeMuro reviewed this recently and he shows how it works:
The low-res theme continues inside, where the steering wheel looks ripped right out of a car from Grand Theft Auto 3. Even the seats look like they were crafted using as few pixels as possible. I love the dedication to following the concept through all over.
The vehicle is covered in all sorts lights, which make for quite a striking display when it’s parked. There are LED light bars front and rear, but they aren’t really bright enough to be truly functional. Inside, you get rows of fluorescent lamp tubes. One of them was broken when DeMuro reviewed the concept car, and it still hasn’t been fixed.
Amazingly, this vehicle is actually functional — at least somewhat. Unlike the Consumer Car, which was a cut up Ford, this one is essentially a golf cart. Power comes from a KDS 5-kilowatt electric motor driving a single-speed transmission.
Doug DeMuro’s video shows it to be pretty slow, so don’t expect to take it on a commute, even one just in the city.
It’s basically a blank slate for a drivetrain swap. Put a Hayabusa engine in there, or even drop the body onto a cut-up Nissan Leaf or something.
This design is definitely a winner and the first one got a Wallpaper Magazine Design Award in 2016. Other prototypes have gotten screen time in music videos and put on display at the 2018 Grand Basel auto design showcase. One made it to the Petersen Automotive Museum’s Disruptors exhibition in 2019.
That’s this one, chassis three, and the Petersen is sending it off to a new home. The Petersen says that 50 per cent of the proceeds will go towards museum upkeep while the other 50 per cent will go to Energy Independence Now. So the buyer gets a weird concept while the money does some good. This is a Bring A Trailer auction where everyone wins!
This article has been updated since original publication.