Cybertruck Who? Meet the Italdesign Quintessenza, Presumably the First Pick-Up Truck GT EV

The Beijing Motor Show was paused for six years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so the Auto China 2024 had to go full steam in a country pushing the limits of electromobility. Many of the 200 or so domestic car manufacturers were present, as well as most of the very popular global players that used to steal the automotive shows when ICE was the undisputable king.

However, as China is the locomotive of the global electric cars market, this show emphasized EVs, mostly as crossovers and SUVs. There were also plenty of concept cars, and some of them were really out-of-this-world.

I bet everybody has heard about Italdesign, but not everybody is very enthusiastic about their concept cars. It's okay not to be a fan of Italdesign because this company is more oriented to the "form follows function" concept than other design studios out there.

I mean, almost any Italdesign concept car could be mistaken for a pre-production prototype, and some of their creations spawned unmistakable stars. For instance, the 2015 Cala concept led to the very successful Gallardo in the supercar realm, while the 1993 Lucciola translated into the Daewoo Matiz in the city cars field.

But for now, it's not my intention to go through the history of Italdesign, although I have to mention that this design studio was acquired by Volkswagen Group in 2010. Maybe this is a hint regarding its down-to-earth approach to car design.

Back to Auto China 2024, the Quintessenza was a different animal than other concept cars on display. At first glance, it looks just like a high-performance SUV-ish GT coupe, but it can morph into an unusual pick-up semi-convertible. It's not the first time we've seen this idea, but by no means is it a different approach.

Between you and me, this Quintessenza could signal a "cousin" from Audi to the questionable Porsche 911 Dakkar and Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato. After all, last year, the Activesphere Concept was a clear hint that Audi wanted to join the SUV-ish supersport segment, but it was more of a preview for a future A7 or A9 four-door coupe than an SUV-ish performance two-door coupe.

I'll let you enjoy Quintessenza's lines; it's useless for me to blah-blah about its design. The decision whether you like it or not is yours, but you'll probably end up enjoying its aerodynamic silhouette. The wheel arches don't really mess up the whole package, after all. It's not flashy and kind of anonymous in terms of brand image.

But hey, almost all Chinese car brands are kind of dull, so Quintessenza quite fits the Asian environment. That is until you discover its peculiarity: the tailgate can be removed, and this way, the back of the car somehow reminds you of a pick-up truck – but not your usual boxy F-150 truck; it's more like an El Camino (if you nearly close your eyes…).

Actually, the "bare-headed" Quintessenza reminds me of the Suzuki Vitara / Geo Tracker convertible, but in a flattened and elongated shape. Some of you remember that only the seats in the back were enjoying the convertible style, while those in the front could only remove the top over their heads. In the Quintessenza, that's not even an option, as the glass roof is fixed.

So, the guys from Italdesign must have thought, "How can we expand this cabrio feeling for the two users in the back?" And the solution they got is plain simple: the back seats can rotate 180 degrees – pardon me, actually they are designed to flip… - for the passengers to enjoy the "experience and feeling of connection with nature and the outside world."

Oh, how I missed this marketing bulshit… err, nicely packed expressions meaning almost nothing! I mean, it's kind of stupid to think anyone would enjoy traveling at high speed backward and with all those aerodynamic turbulences messing with their faces. Unless…

Did you know that the Chinese government is worried because of the declining birthrate in this country? Yes, ladies and gentlemen, India currently has more people (1.44 billion) than China (1.43 billion), although India is smaller than China. Why is this relevant to our story?

Well, imagine a young, wealthy, and healthy couple from China going on a romantic journey in the middle of nowhere with this Italdesign Quintessenza. In the evening, they stop by beautiful scenery, flip the backseats, and remove the tailgate (by the way, there's no place to store it in the car…).

Throw in some champagne, romantic music, and a stargazing sky. This is, no doubt, the perfect adventure for conceiving a baby. Please, don't get shy with me now - just how many Americans were conceived on the backseat, huh? This is the quintessence (pun intended!) of freedom and love on wheels!

Even if this wasn't the main reason for Italdesign designers, it could help the Chinese government with the birthrate problem. Expect some unheard-of Chinese brands to copycat Quintessenza's idea of a semi-convertible-partly-pick-up car. It's pretty original and not too hard to implement on a production car.

Frankly, at this point, it's almost of no use to mention Captain Obvious: Italdesign Quintessenza is an electric car. Its total output is 580 kW (that's close to 800 horsepower), and the 150 kWh battery promises a range of 750 km (that's more than 450 miles). The three electric motors work together for an under-3-second sprint from 0 to 100 kph.

It's not bad for a 5.5-meter long (18 feet) 2+2 coupe, but again, it's not out of the ordinary for a modern-era concept car. Interesting to note: the ground height is adjustable between 200 and 280 mm (0.65-0.92 feet). That's similar to the new electric Mercedes-Benz G 580, which also premiered on Auto China 2024 ground.

As I said earlier, the powertrain of this concept car is not really a point of interest. Italdesign Quintessenza has its merits for exploring what other original ideas can be derived from the SUV-ish style that keeps invading the car world.

Its creators use the term "multi-role vehicle" falling "within the performance pick-up and sport activity vehicle category." It's definitely a niche worth exploring, but I doubt it can ever become popular. For now, I wonder if the Quintessenza really previews a future Audi model or is just another one-of-a-kind product for VW Group's gallery.