Ah, the 1950s. Automotive design in America was closely influenced by the jet age. Folks have been loopy concerning the new-fangled jet planes, however this was additionally an period the place nuclear power was taking strides. What would’ve occurred if nuclear affect made the identical sort of influence within the motoring world?

That’s what Ford was wanting into with the curious idea featured right here, referred to as the Nucleon. Photos of the idea and the unique Ford press launch from 1958 have been lately added to the ever-expanding Ford Heritage Vault. This was merely a design examine to see how future autos incorporating nuclear energy would possibly look. The spherical factor within the “bed” of the Nucleon is the ability capsule containing a nondescript atomic core.

Beyond that, the smooth design has retractible bumpers for higher aerodynamic effectivity. The passenger compartment has digital local weather management techniques. Per the discharge, Ford envisioned a spread of 5,000 miles earlier than the Nucleon wanted recharging.

Of course, this was all purely speculative. This design by no means progressed past a 3:8-scale design experiment, so at no level was there an idea cruising the streets of Detroit with a nuclear reactor within the again. If you’ve got ever been to the Motor City, you understand that is doubtless for the very best.

The press launch acknowledged the design assumed a future the place nuclear reactors have been sufficiently small to suit right into a automotive. In 2023 these reactors are nonetheless humongous as a result of they’re principally huge steam engines. Presumably, Ford noticed a future the place nuclear reactions have been producing energy straight, although we nonetheless marvel how one would recharge a decaying aspect.

Ford’s imaginative and prescient of the long run wasn’t fully off, nonetheless. The press launch talked about charging stations taking the place of gasoline stations, and that is taking place now as electrical automobile improvement expands. Ford additionally described the Nucleon as having digital gadgets entrance and rear to warn occupants of close by autos. Today, such driver-assist techniques are widespread in new autos, even serving as commonplace tools for some fashions.

And if you happen to’re experiencing some unusual familiarity with the Nucleon’s design, you simply may be a gamer. The Fallout sport franchise reportedly based mostly its retro-futuristic fusion-powered automobiles on the Nucleon idea. We pinged Ford to see if that is correct, as we see quite a lot of similarities between the Nucleon and the post-apocalyptic rides within the sport. For now, a minimum of, it stays unconfirmed. But we’ll replace the put up if we be taught one thing new.