The Mercury XM-800 was a concept car

Concept car

A concept vehicle or show vehicle is a car made to showcase new styling and or new technology. They are often shown at motor shows to gauge customer reaction to new and radical designs which may or may not have a chance of being produced....

 created by the Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...

 brand, Mercury

Mercury (automobile)

Mercury was an automobile marque of the Ford Motor Company launched in 1938 by Edsel Ford, son of Henry Ford, to market entry-level luxury cars slotted between Ford-branded regular models and Lincoln-branded luxury vehicles, similar to General Motors' Buick brand, and Chrysler's namesake brand...

, first introduced at the 1954 Chicago Auto Show

Chicago Auto Show

The Chicago Auto Show is held annually in February at Chicago's McCormick Placeconvention complex. It is among the largest auto shows in North America....

. The XM 800 then traveled the US auto show circuit throughout the 1954 season. Although it was promoted by Ford as an "advanced design, engineered to go into volume production”, the XM 800 never passed the concept phase. In 1957 Ford gifted the XM 800 to the University of Michigan"s Automotive Engineering Lab for use in training "future" automotive engineers. This car was designed by John Najjar. Mr. Najjar was the most famous designer of the Ford Motor Company and was responsible for not only the 1954 Mercury XM-800 but was also responsible for the 1955 Lincoln Futura

Lincoln Futura

The Lincoln Futura was a concept car designed by the Lincoln division of Ford Motor Company. It was built by Ghia entirely by hand in Italy at a cost of $250,000 and displayed on the auto show circuit in 1955...

 show car and the mid-engine Ford Mustang I

Ford Mustang I

The Ford Mustang I was a small, mid-engined , open two-seater with aluminium body work, that began life as a design exercise and eventually became the progenitor of the famed Ford Mustang...

 Experimental sports car of 1962. Much of the car's appearance were used on the Lincoln Premiere

Lincoln Premiere

The Lincoln Premiere is a luxury car sold by Ford Motor Company's Lincoln-Mercury division. It was produced in both 2 and 4 door versions both seating 6 people. A limousine version was also offered, which had the same wheelbase as the sedan version, but its cabin extended further back, allowing for...

, Lincoln Capri

Lincoln Capri

The Lincoln Capri was a full-size automobile sold by Ford's Lincoln luxury division. It was introduced for the 1952 model year and discontinued soon after the 1959 model year....

, Mercury Montclair

Mercury Montclair

The Mercury Montclair was a full-size automobile produced by the Mercury Division of the Ford Motor Company from 1955 to 1957, the M-E-L Division of Ford Motor Company 1958 to 1959 and by the Lincoln Mercury Division of the Ford Motor Company from 1964 to 1968...

, Ford Crown Victoria

1955 Ford

The Ford line of cars gained a new body for 1955 to keep up with surging Chevrolet, although it remained similar to the 1952 Ford underneath...

, and other Ford and Mercury products during the mid-1950s.