The Fiat Turbina is one of those odd little engineering exercises which eventually fade into the ether. As a car, it certainly was interesting to look at, beautiful even, and wore high fins way before they were cool. But the really slick stuff was under the skin. The mid-mounted powerplant consisted of three different turbines all working together. Two acted as compressors for the third, which in turn powered the wheels. With peak output of 220 HP at a staggerin 22,000 RPM, the Turbina was capable of a very respectable 155 MPH.
Though we all know how successful turbine-powered cars turned out to be, you have to admit this is a pretty novel approach to open chamber combustion. You can visit the Turbina today where it lives in retirement at the Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile in Turin, Italy.
(Photo sources here, here and here)