ETAutolytics

News
News

Features
Features

IndustrySpeak
IndustrySpeak

Data & Analytics
Data & Analytics

Brand Solutions
Brand Solutions

View Site

April Fools' Day: Some of the best pranks ever made by carmakers

No longer will the cab driver have to stop by the local takeaway on the way home after a night out – this Vauxhall would feature two gas-fired rotisserie grills and salad bowls fitted into the armrests. Vinyl seats and floor covers are there to deal with ensuing spillages.

Text Courtesy: evo.co.uk
Skoda’s colour-changing system would, if real, be controlled by the infotainment touchscreen onboard, allowing the driver to change the colour of any panel on their car to match their mood.

Text Courtesy: evo.co.uk
Vauxhall attempted to dupe the nation with a special edition Astra Copacabana tied-in with the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

The footballer graphics on the flanks and giant Brazilian flag on the roof are just about believable.

The turf-covered seats, sand-filled footwells and on-board cocktail vending machine inside, less so.

Photo & Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
Red Bull announced a new addition to its F1 steering wheel for April Fools’ Day 2014 – technology that would allow drivers to tweet during a race.

Fittingly announced via the medium of Twitter, the new wheel was billed as the perfect way to let F1 drivers stay in touch with their fans.

Photo & Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
The car supposedly runs on tea. Capable of covering 40 miles on a single cup and equipped with Dunk Avoidance Technology to prevent unscrupulous individuals from lowering biscuits into the fuel tank.

Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
SEAT came over all James Bond with its 2008 April Fools’ Day joke. A press release revealed the manufacturer had developed a groundbreaking ‘electro reflective’ exterior panel finish that could adapt to mimic the car’s surroundings.

Photo & Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
As election fever gripped the country in 2010, BMW looked to cash in with a political April Fools’ Day effort. The Political Roundel Attachment Tag (PRAT) was an opportunity for BMW drivers to show their allegiance to a political party by changing the colours on their car’s badges.

Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
The system purported to use a magnetic field that would allow BMW drivers to creep up behind other traffic and latch on for a fuel-saving ride. “For once, we’re happy to be behind the competition,” said the tagline on BMW’s spoof ad.

Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
International Soundphoto distributed a photo of a flying bus swooping over the Place de la Concorde in Paris, France.

The photo ran in many papers, accompanied by the caption: "Well, Well, look how all those Parisians are being missed by the bus at Place de la Concorde.

Photo & Text Courtesy: hoaxes.org
BMW revealed that one of its engineers, Herr Blöhn, had developed a sunroof that could be kept open even in the rain, thanks to jets of air that blasted the water away from the top of the car.

The system worked completely automatically, even in a car wash.

Photo & Text Courtesy: hoaxes.org
BMW ran an ad in the Guardian unveiling its new Satellite Hypersensitive Electromagnetic Foodration (SHEF) Technology, which allowed drivers to cook their dinners from their car as they drove home from work.

All the dials for the home oven were built into the dashboard of the car and communicated wirelessly with the actual oven at home.

Drivers could monitor the progress of their meal via a built-in oven-cam.

Text Courtesy: hoaxes.org
BMW UK debuted the limited edition "Postnatal Royal Auto Mobile," aka P.R.A.M., inspired by the royal baby due in the summer.

The infant carrier featured "air con, reclining seat, ambient interior lighting and paparazzi-proof hood as standard." It was available in either Royal Blue or Princess Pink.

Text Courtesy: hoaxes.org
In 2008 Kia looked to capitalise on the success of the Nintendo Wii games console with a KEE_Wii concept car April Fools’ Day joke.

Kia said that the car had a portable controller instead of the conventional steering wheel and pedals.

This enabled it to be driven from any of its four seats, even by the kids in the back.

Photo & Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
Hyundai treated us to an unlikely modified version of its i10 city car in on April Fools Day 2009.

The premise behind the i10 Special Project Popemobile was that the the head of the catholic church wanted to get around in something more environmentally-friendly than the usual armour plated SUVs.

Hyundai’s press release claimed, “all leather from the seat facings was replaced with parts of tapestry woven by monks from the Indian city of Utta Bullacs”.

Photo & Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
BMW announced a new system - the Force Injection Booster which works by “extracting kinetic energy from the car’s engine and converting it into positive g-forces”.

The effect being that drivers can experience the thrill of high speed driving even at modest speeds of just 20mph.

Additional BMW ‘AirNet’ technology works to keep occupants hairdos in tiptop condition while all this is going on.

Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
Skoda introduced us to the Yeti Ice special edition for April Fools’ Day 2014. The car features a special faux fur finish developed by Skoda engineers working in the Himalayas.

Photo & Text Courtesy: autoexpress.co.uk
In 2011, BMW announced that it has created a one-off and fully road-legal M3 Pickup as a transport vehicle for the company’s workshop.

Photo Courtesy: evo.co.uk
VW’s newest ‘ultra-compact solution’ is designed to be used in the city. Featuring a tight turning circle of four metres, it can be parked at right-angles to the kerb like a Smart car.

Text Courtesy: evo.co.uk
The Japanese car maker would have us believe that a ‘Gym’ button will be fitted to X-Trial and Qashqai models, allowing all driver aids including ABS and Park Assist to be turned off.

The amount of calories burned would be logged by the car’s Gym and Go app.

Gym mode would also increase the resistance in all three pedals and the gearbox gate, allowing drivers the chance to work off the kebab they’d consumed in the Vivaro the night before.

Photo & Text Courtesy: evo.co.uk
Supported by: