This Retro Futuristic Chinese EV Is Just A Concept, But We Want One

Here in the UK, you’ve probably only heard of Great Wall Motors thanks to the cheap and cheerful Steed pick-up. It’s a huge company, though, which shifts around a million vehicles a year and is mostly known in its native China for an SUV-heavy line-up.

There are signs that the company’s focus might pivot slightly away from the high-riders, though, one of which is the Ora Futura. Isn’t it delightful? It’s like a softer, classier Ford Mustang from an alternate universe, with a modern grille and headlight combo matched with retro touches like cream and chrome wheels, front spotlights and shiny bullet-shaped mirrors.

Inside, the retro-futurism is turned up even further. The cabin is a sea of cream leather and chrome trim, with a steering wheel that looks like it’s been lifted straight off a car built in the 1960s. These classical touches are matched with modern features like a tablet infotainment screen and a mobile phone charger.

We know precious little about the Futura - it was hard enough tracking down the official images seen above. Details of its plug-in powertrain are not forthcoming, although according to Electric Vehicle Web, the car sits on Great Wall’s ‘Lemon’ platform. This new vehicle architecture has been launched alongside two other platforms called, erm, ‘Tank’ and ‘Coffee Intelligence’.

Former Land Rover man Phil Simmons - who joined Great Wall a couple of years ago - is behind the design, and the Mustang was indeed an influence. It’s unclear if it’ll go any further than the concept stage, but other than the steering wheel and the tiny mirrors, there doesn’t look to be much on the Future that’d need to change to make the car a production reality.