Italdesign’s latest creation combines a sleek GT car with a van to create a bespoke stargazing vehicle. There’s some debate over whether the Quintessenza succeeds in being either body style, as it’s only a concept, but the EV’s sleek design hides wild styling features that should excite the astronomer in all of us.
The Quintessence is great. It’s longer than the shortest Ford F-150, with a 127.6-inch longer wheelbase. All that space accommodates four seats with a center console in the middle that houses the infotainment controls and other switches. It also contains an organizer and a refrigerated mini bar large enough to hold a bottle of wine and two glasses.
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You’ll want a drink when you flip the rear seats and remove the rear hardtop, opening the cabin to the outside world. The center console can slide rearward, bringing the minibar directly to you while you recline the rear seats and enjoy the view.
At the front of the cabin, a central dashboard floating at the base of the windshield blends into the doors and wraps toward the rear of the car. Italdesign made the dashboard from a marble-based fabric that hides the controls underneath until needed, using a projection-based system to display them. It looks sophisticated and difficult.
The main interface of the vehicle is located behind the steering wheel, which is nothing more than a holder for your smartphone, which connects to the car via a single application. Users can control various vehicle parameters through the phone, which can also display vital information when connected, such as battery level, speed, turn signals, etc.
The minimalist interior is serene compared to the rugged exterior. The Quintessenza features big fender flares on 24-inch wheels, sharp vertical and horizontal lighting elements front and rear, and a fastback roof that hides the truck bed. It can adjust its ground clearance from 7.9 to 11.0 inches. There are even full-length scissor doors and an electronically controlled tailgate.
The electric vehicle is powered by a 150 kilowatt-hour battery powering three electric motors: a drive unit on the front axle and two motors on the rear axle in the wheels. Total output is 777 horsepower and can hit 62 miles per hour in less than three seconds, but Italdesign doesn’t mention anything about towing or payload capacities.
Either way, this thing is cool. Even though it will probably never be produced, we’re glad it exists.
