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The 1963 Chrysler Turbine Car in 1:18 Scale: A Model of a Car That Almost Never Existed
Updated: Jul 28
Most diecast collectors have a few models built around cars that were, technically, commercial successes — the Mustangs, the Camaros, the cars that sold in the hundreds of thousands and became household names. The 1963 Chrysler Turbine Car is not one of those cars. Only 55 were ever built. None were sold to the public. And yet, more than sixty years later, it's still one of the most talked-about experimental vehicles in American automotive history — which is exactly why a well-made 1:18 scale model of it is such an interesting thing to own.
If the name doesn't immediately ring a bell, that's not surprising. The Turbine Car wasn't built to be remembered by the general public. It was built to test something wildly ambitious: could a car actually run on a jet-style turbine engine instead of a conventional piston engine? Chrysler thought the idea had legs, built a small fleet of these cars, and lent them out to regular American families for months at a time just to see what would happen.
The Strange, Brief Story Behind the Real Car
Between 1963 and 1966, Chrysler handed the keys of the Turbine Car over to more than 200 ordinary families across the country, rotating them through the small fleet to gather real-world feedback. The engine could reportedly run on almost anything combustible — diesel, kerosene, even, according to some accounts, tequila, out of pure curiosity. It was a genuinely strange, genuinely bold experiment by a major car manufacturer at a time when doing something like that was almost unthinkable.
In the end, the turbine engine never made it to mass production. Fuel efficiency issues, high manufacturing costs, and tightening emissions standards made it impractical. Chrysler destroyed most of the fleet to avoid import duty complications tied to the program, leaving only a small handful of surviving Turbine Cars in existence today — mostly in museums and private collections. That rarity is a huge part of why this particular car has such a devoted following among automotive historians and collectors, despite never being available for public purchase in the first place.
Why a 1:18 Scale Model Matters Here
For a car this rare in real life, the model version is often as close as most collectors will ever get to owning one. That raises the stakes for accuracy in a way that's different from modeling a more common car.
A well-executed 1:18 scale model of the Turbine Car needs to get several distinctive details right:
The bronze/copper body color, a signature look tied directly to the real car's turbine-inspired aesthetic
The distinctive front grille and headlight design, which doesn't resemble much else from the era
Interior detailing, since the cabin design leaned into a futuristic, jet-age styling that was unusual even for 1963
Badging and trim accuracy, since small details like this are exactly what separates a serious collector's model from a generic reproduction
At 1:18 scale, there's enough size and surface area to actually capture these details properly — which is part of why this scale tends to be the preferred choice for historically significant or visually unusual cars like this one.
Why This Model Appeals to a Specific Kind of Collector
This isn't a model aimed at someone chasing muscle cars or supercars. It tends to appeal most to:
Automotive history enthusiasts drawn to the story behind the car as much as the design itself
Collectors who prioritize rarity and uniqueness over mainstream recognizability
Fans of experimental or concept vehicles, a niche within diecast collecting that values "what could have been" over "what sold well"
If your collection already leans toward unusual or design-forward pieces — something like the Solido Citroën 2CV6 Charleston 1:18 model car — the Turbine Car fits naturally into that same category: cars valued for their story and character rather than raw performance or mainstream popularity.
A Model Worth Building a Story Around
Part of what makes collecting genuinely satisfying is being able to talk about a piece, not just display it. The Turbine Car gives collectors something most models don't — a real, slightly wild backstory involving jet engines, tequila rumors, and a major manufacturer handing experimental prototypes to random American families decades before that kind of consumer testing became common practice. That's the kind of piece that gets picked up and talked about when someone new sees your shelf for the first time.
Where It Fits in a Wider Collection
If unusual, historically significant pieces like this appeal to you, our full diecast metal cars collection includes a range of models spanning eras, styles, and rarity levels. And if you're newer to collecting and want a fuller grounding in what separates a well-made model from an average one, our diecast toy cars guide is a good next stop.
Final Thought
The 1963 Chrysler Turbine Car was never meant to be common, and its 1:18 scale model shouldn't be treated as just another addition to a shelf. It's a small, well-detailed piece of a genuinely strange chapter in automotive history — a reminder that not every important car was built to sell millions of units. Some were just built to see what was possible.
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