1955 FLAJOLE FORERUNNER COUPE CONCEPT

Details

One of the most beautiful and innovative concept cars of the 1950's, the Flajole Forerunner was stylist Bill Flajole's vision of the future. Featured on the cover of Motor Trend magazine in September 1955, the Forerunner was the result of over 7,000 hours of design and construction. The subject of numerous magazine articles, Motor Trend featured the Forerunner on the same cover as Ghia's groundbreaking Gilda design study. Sports Cars Illustrated gave the Forerunner a three page feature article

in October 1955, Mechanix Illustrated wrote about the car in September 1955 and the car was recently featured in Octane Magazine. Designed and built by automotive designer Bill Flajole, then Advance Styling Consultant for American Motors, and a well-known industrial designer, the Forerunner incorporates many futuristic design elements like retracting tinted Plexiglas roof, headrest bucket seats and contrasting color fender coves, well before any of these items were put on a production car. Its chassis is among the best of its day, Jaguar's high performance 180hp XK 120M with an SCCA race class win to it's credit while Flajole's studio was creating the Forerunners body. The glass fiber body employed molded-in open louvers and elaborate compound curves never before attempted in fiberglass. Its windshield header mounted rear view mirror foreshadows later designers' use of periscope optics. This important one-off automobile has been completely restored and was shown at Amelia Island in 2010. The car is complete with magazines that featured the car when first built as well as photos of the car taken during its construction in the Flajole studios in the 1950's that have been supplied by Bill Flajole's daughter. A fabulous one-off concept car with great history.