Mid-week trip to Koln on b’iness. Highlight of an otherwise unremarkable 2 days was last-night’s autobahn thrash in the boss’s 1981 Renault Alpine A310.
Hidden in the depths of a labyrinthine underground car-park….
I haven’t seen one of these for a while, it’s still an amazingly aggressive little beastie and its form manages to look almost contemporary; only the scrappy detailing and generous cutlines let the side down….though that’s a bit unfair – the driver’s door was open in this shot
Though weedy by today’s standards (150hp from the PRV V6), it weighs a bantam-weight 980kg, so feels pretty quick up to 100mph or so.
This shot shows either; a- How miniscule this car is, or b- how fat a Mondeo is…..or possibly both, but I couldn’t comment on that.
A mixed bag – and a big apology for being remiss in keeping up the blog. All i can say is i’ve been struggling for time.
Firstly, just about finished my entry to the first-ever CarDesignNews design competition. To be honest, I’m disappointed not to have spent more time on the Alias model. I ended up rushing it and it shows…! Managed to get some renders done, but seeing as the main deal about the comp was the model I think i blew my chances :0 Still, really enjoyed the brief, and I might redo the car properly sometime. I think it has potential, well i would wouldn’t I…
Just back from a whistle-stop weekend in Manhattan. Did a Sunday am walk across the Brooklyn bridge and explored Williamsburg – great place, loads of crazy little clothes stores and the odd gallery. Met up with (almost didn’t) old pal Chris who took us to Big-Daddy’s diner for a top-shelf burger+shake combo; outstanding! Cheers fella.
A few NY piccies;
Jeff Koons on the Met roof;
Mad-Max on 5th Ave
Williamsburgh Ice-cream Sundae
Central_park casualty
Quite scary: think this is called Dadda-Japanese mythical super-hero…whatever, it gives me the fear..
Entering the CarDesignNews competition-first round of submissions is next week, then i think any that progress are given another month or two to develop their models. This time all the work has to be done in Alias AutoStudio, with no ‘traditional rendering’. I guess that reflects the way the industry is heading, but there’s always room for some biro sketches! Anyway, the briefs are all set in 2028 in various hot-spots of predicted growth around the world; Shanghai, Rio de Janeiro, and New Delhi. I chose the Rio brief, as it looks at a light and fuel-efficient car that offers a little bit of racing potential.
Started off with this:
Then these:
To this rough CAD blueprint:
Could have done with more time to develop more of the initial concept ideas (seats that fold up and slide into the central ‘backbone’ of the car, clip-on functional units etc etc.) but hey, it’s all good Alias practice! Here’s some Alias development stuff:
Hopefully I’ll get some work done over the next week and get this submitted in time. Will post up finished renders soon..
Saab 9-x Hybrid concept
This from Saab’s press-release: “Echoing Saab’s roots in aircraft design, the 9-X BioHybrid also explores the potential for using active aerodynamics to reduce drag – and fuel consumption – at cruising speeds. Above 70 kph (43 mph), the upper and lower bodywork is reshaped as the roof spoiler automatically extends to further lengthen the roof line and an underbody diffuser is deployed from the bottom of the rear bumper. “
I’m absolutely sure that active-aero features such as this will be filtering through to production very soon. Saab/GM have patented this mechanism, while BMW currently uses active flaps behind the grill on their Efficient Dynamics cars to only allow air not the engine bay when needed. The next stage, which is why the Saab is interesting, is to explore how the surfaces on a car can be altered and changed using active-aero techniques and advanced materials. It’s a massive subject with most of the cutting-edge research going on in aeronautics and shipping (where frictional drag is much higher than through air). I scratched the surface of it for my thesis back at university and came up with something a little bit less practical than the Saab for my MA degree project, but essentially using the same principle:
Brown-watch. episode 3
As you might know I’ve been quietly championing the return of Brown to the automotive colour palette. Ever since Nissan showed their Bevel concept and Rogue in brown back at the 2007 Detroit show, I’ve been convinced this is the hue of choice for the environmentally-enlightened trend-setter. Then the Lambo Reventon showed that a true supercar could wear brown with no shame. Just seen Fiat’s 500 offered with ‘Punk Grey’ which in their brochures looks distinctly earthy…maybe ‘Punk Brown’ ain’t cool enough.
And now this:
What is it with all the West-Country English emigrating to the US? Some Plymouth connection?!
Finally, The Face announces that he’ll be re-joining the rat-race as of next week as a ‘Design Trend and Innovation Analyst’ at a major car company. Developing concept-car themes and implementing new technologies into them. Can’t wait!
An SUV described as ‘inspired by sports car design’ is usually an invitation see something hideous. And no, I didn’t mention the Cayenne…
The redesigned Inifiniti FX has broken cover and to be honest, I’m blown away. If this isn’t the best-looking SUV out there I’d like to know what is. The profile of the FX has always been rakish, almost dangerously sleek, but the new car mixes beautiful proportions with sensuous surfacing. This is the version coming to Europe this year. I think Range-Rover and Porsche dealers might be breaking into a sweaty rash sometime soon. “2009 INFINITI FX50 — SUV INSPIRED BY SPORTS CAR DESIGN — All-New, iconic Infiniti FX50 Offers Power, Refinement, Safety and Exhilaration —
Already a strong contender in the United States and other global markets, the Infiniti FX performance luxury crossover SUV takes on Western Europe with an all-new, second-generation design featuring a newly developed 5.0-liter V8, 7-speed automatic transmission, enhanced exterior styling, advanced interior design and innovative technology and safety equipment.”
No apologies for the plentiful pics – I love this car.
Just reading some comments about the Scirocco on a few other sites. Seems this car’s grille and light graphics are a bone of contention. According to one poster on a UK car-magazine site, the reason for the drastic concept-production change is:
‘If I may remind you, the ScIROCco concept was shown while Wolfgang Bernhard was still in charge of VW and Murat Günak was the brand’s head of design. When Martin Winterkorn took over from Pischetsrieder and Bernhard he asked Audi head of design Walter de’ Silva to come along; every model that was in the pipeline at that point was reviewed by Winterkorn and de’ Silva, which spared us a hideous Phaeton facelift, but left the gravest traces on the Scirocco, whose design was deemed not ‘classy’ enough by the new management. Therefore we now have a car that’s lacking its main showpiece, namely its gaping front grille (as seen on the concept) and is therefore a clash of two different styles. And I stand by my word that it’s hard to tell what brand the car is from the outside without referring to the badge attached.’
….Probably impossible to prove, but it indeed would be a shame if politics had obscured an interesting concept from evolving into an equally interesting production car..
