There are many unforgettable names in the history of the automobile that represent massive achievements in both engineering and design, but there’s one who’s been mostly forgotten: Aurel Persu. In 1922, the Romanian engineer and designer created a vehicle that may look strange by modern standards, but actually represented a breakthrough in aerodynamics. If it was built today, only a handful of cars would beat it in that department. Persu was granted a patent for an aerodynamic automobile that had its wheels tucked into the bodywork. That was a big deal, as most cars at that time were open-wheeled. What he came up with was a car that looked like a raindrop, with a big, smooth front end that tapered off to a much smaller, narrower rear. The car had a wheelbase of just over 10 feet, an overall length of 15 feet, and a much wider front wheel track up front (3.9 feet) than at the rear (2.2 feet). It was reportedly capable of 62 mph. Persu only made one example of his slippery shoe-shaped car and used it as his daily vehicle. He clearly enjoyed driving it, as his raindrop-shaped car has over 100,000 miles on it. Even though he built just one car, it was one of the most innovative automobiles of all time. Today the car is on display at the Dimitrie Leonida Technical Museum in Bucharest, Romania.
