At last year’s Geneva auto show, Beijing-based startup Techrules displayed its AT96 supercar, a poorly constructed piece that was hard to take seriously?not least because it had motors that weren?t connected to anything. This year, the company considerably upped its game with this Giugiaro-designed Ren supercar, which is not only built better but, the maker claims, is an actual runner.
With its triple-bubble canopy over a three-seat interior, the Ren looks?if anything?even more fanciful than the AT96. But don’t underestimate the polish that a design house like Giugiaro can provide.

The Ren mesmerized onlookers as its Jetsons-style canopy powered open and the side panels of the dash rose up like wings to facilitate ingress to the central driver?s seat. That seat is upholstered with a brown microsuede upper section and a denim lower section, while the flanking passenger seats have brown leather over denim. It has a TFT instrument cluster, a second TFT screen in the center of the squared-off steering wheel, and additional screens on the sides of the canopy that replace sideview mirrors. The body’s dark central section is transparent polycarbonite through which one can see the horizontally mounted front damper units. The headlights are LED lasers; at the rear, there are a huge illuminated central blade, hydraulically actuated wings, and of course the LED-illuminated turbines.
Yes, turbines. Techrules characterizes the powertrain as a Turbine-Recharging Ele...