In the 1980s Bede Aircraft Co. tried a super-small lightweight plane with both prop and jet engines (the latter BD-5 seen in the James Bond movie "Octopussy"). It was a neat little plane but came in kit form which limited its sales. So Bede sought to take advantage of the gas price scare of the early 1980s (estimated $3.50+ in the future) to sell an aerodynamic car in kit form- the BD-CAR. It was a real oddity with a fuselage like body and was driven by a fan powered by an internal Kawasaki 1000cc motorcycle engine! The fan was shrouded for safety and louvers moved the exhaust upward until it hit the freeway. To back out it had an aux. electric motor and to save weight the 4 tires were motorcycle types with disc brakes! It could seat two, driver and 1 passenger and had limited cargo space. It looked futuristic but again... was in kit form for est. $8000. Although Bede advertised it heavily, the BD-CAR never caught on. However, his car led to a wide range of experimental "cycle cars" that are still sold today (usually still in kit form or custom orders)! Although claimed 120 mpg was for 55 mph, the prototype only made it up to 52 mph in reality (the low hp motorcycle engine not powerful enough for 55 mph and the car had no towing capability at all).

http://www.autocycles.org/images/bedecar.jpg