Normally the Geneva Motor Show is all about the beautiful brands; the Lamborghinis, the Ferraris, the Audis, the BMWs, and so on.
But for every blue-chip manufacturer present, there's an obscure coach-builder, forgotten design house, or fresh start-up also muscling in for their own pound of flesh. And among the latter group is misfits is this searingly orange high-rider sports car; the GFC Style Kangaroo concept.
Yes, you read that correctly. One of the weirdest names in motoring history comes attached to a car that straddles three or four different segments all at once.
Not a lot can be learned off the internet about GFC Style's past. As you'd expect, a Google search of their name comes up with lists and lists of frazzled financial reports and fear-mongering. More is known about this car's co-builders; CH Auto.
The Chinese company, like many others, house ambitious goals which include plans to roll out electric sports cars — including the Qiantu K50 we profiled last week. Currently, they perform bespoke third-party modifications to car interiors.
Their fingerprints on the GFC Style Kangaroo can largely be traced to its electric powertrain. It utilises two 180kW batteries and a 90kWh battery pack, which create an overall 360kW of power and 600Nm of torque (more power than the aforementioned Qiantu, but less torque).
Helping the sports-SUV's efficiency and performance abilities are exterior panels made largely out of carbon fibre and polycarbonate. The doors, in true supercar fashion, scissor upwards.
Acceleration from a stand-still to 100km/h is said to take 3.8 seconds. No top speed number has been offered, but given that might not be a surprise given this strange car's SUV intentions. Range is a claimed 450km plus.
Yes, if the images of the Kangaroo skipping on the snow aren't enough for you, know that GFC have put a serious amount of effort into this car's suspension set-up.
There are three different core settings for the suspension; Road, Off-road, and Racing. Racing mode sees ride-height sit at 140mm, while normal use in Road mode raises ride-height to 190mm. Slot the Kangaroo into Off-Road mode, and the suspension rises further to 260mm.
In Road and Racing modes, GFC says each corner of the Kangaroo operates in conjunction with a single-spring shock absorber. In Off-Road mode, two springs will work in series. It's a strange sequence of points to make, but given the success of the Lamborghini Urus perhaps there's a market for this tangerine machine.
The Kangaroo's interior is just as blinding as its exterior. The steering wheel has a carved out top, which guarantees to make three-point turns hellish. A digital cluster, enormous central infotainment screen, bucket seats made by Sabelt, and camera based visibility on top of the dashboard are among the other notable mentions.
For now, the GFC Style Kangaroo is still a concept car. But, given the trends currently engulfing the motoring world, don't be surprised to see something just as weird hit production in the imminent future.
Hopefully, it'll have a better name.
