General Motors Le Sabre

The Le Sabre is owned by the GM Heritage Center, and still occasionally appears at car shows.

The Le Sabre was the brainchild of General Motors Art Department head Harley Earl.

[2] With a body made of aluminium, magnesium, and fiberglass,[citation needed] it was powered by a supercharged aluminum V8 able to run on gasoline (petrol) or methanol (like Indy roadsters of the period did), and was GM's first use of a rear-mounted transmission.

Typically, the twin fins on Le Sabre serve the functional purpose of carrying aircraft-type 20-gallon rubberized fuel cells.”[3] In addition to its jet-inspired design, the 1951 Le Sabre featured numerous other advanced features, including a 12-volt electrical system (all American cars of 1951 were 6-volt), heated seats, electric headlights concealed behind the center oval "jet intake", front bumper Dagmars[2] (made famous on 1951-8 Cadillacs), a water sensor to activate the power top,[2] and electric lifting jacks integral to the chassis[2] to aid tire changes.

Although they shared a common displacement of 215 cu in (3.5 L), this concept engine is not the same as the production "Oversquare" aluminum Buick 215 introduced in the GM Y-body compact cars in 1961.