New Aston Martin Valhalla: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
And the original 'concept' Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
More from Pininfarina. Auto & Design magazine Image Unavailable, Please Login Pininfarina presented Teorema, its first ever 100 per cent virtually developed concept car. A new interpretation of fully electric, autonomous mobility in the name of user experience and technology. Auto&Design had the chance to discover it during a press preview in Cambiano, testing the Mixed Reality technology that merges the virtual concept car with real background. “Pininfarina has always looked to the future using concept cars as an innovation tool to chart the direction and introduce new visions in terms of usability and technology in the automotive industry – comments Chief Creative Officer Kevin Rice. – Teorema, in particular, wants to give people back the pleasure of living the car, driving and travelling, without the frustrations of increased congestion and other compromises, all while integrating AI, 5G and the latest technology to drive passengers towards new incredible experiences along the journey.” Image Unavailable, Please Login The design teams in Cambiano and Shanghai created the interior experience before developing the exterior, starting from an electric skateboard chassis which allows the car to have a comfortable large space on its inside. Over the course of the project, the Pininfarina Virtual Lab, which is integral part of the design process, employed Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality and also new Mixed Reality technology to explore different shapes, experiences and scenarios quickly. 1400 mm in height and 5400 mm in length, Teorema is conceived both to allow passengers to share experiences along the journey and to provide moments of privacy when desired. Getting inside the Teorema takes place by simply walking inside of it as the rear opens and the roof extends upwards and forwards, leaving ground to a foot-triggering floor that guides passengers to their seats. The side of the car can be used as backrest when passengers want to, as there is no side entry, thus also making the car stiffer and lighter. Image Unavailable, Please Login Teorema also embeds an innovative aerodynamic concept validated though CFD assessments. When seen from above, Teorema is split into three separate parts. Between the central living space and the outside surface of each side of the car, open air channels allow air to stream through the whole vehicle. Duct sections smoothly decrease their area and this shape generates an acceleration of air flow passing through them. The high-speed jets that exit at the rear end of the car reduce the wake dimension improving the aerodynamic performance, helping reduce drag and improving the car’s efficiency. Image Unavailable, Please Login Teorema is completely autonomous but it can easily switch across different driving modes: Autonomy Mode (with the driver facing the other four passengers), Drive Mode and Rest Mode, when the car is stationary and the whole interior becomes a social space, with the smart seats automatically changing to allow people to socialize or lounge. Pininfarina’s Virtual Concept Car features different technologies integrated thanks to the collaboration of selected leading partners who worked together to deliver the most incredible passenger experience. WayRay for True Augmented Reality, Continental Engineering Services for Smart Surfaces and Intelligent Glass, Poltrona Frau for Seats and Benteler for the Rolling Chassis. Image Unavailable, Please Login
A trip down memory lane for the MoPar/Chrysler crowd. Those Chargers were very cool for their time. Allpar.com Content Premium Member Joined May 7, 2017 2,291 Posts Discussion Starter · #1 · 6 mo ago (Edited by Moderator) The '68 Charger: Nothing Copied, Copied By None The Making of a True Icon by Diran Yazejian, courtesy of the WPC News While thumbing through an old copy of Automotive Industries, from November 15, 1967, I ran across an interesting article titled "Styling the '68 Charger," written by Elwood P. Engel, Vice President and Director of the Styling Office, Chrysler Corporation. It included sketches and renderings made during the development of the body, and also a photo of the "Dodge stylists who developed the exterior concept." Image Unavailable, Please Login It made me wonder, "what made these guys tick?" They came up with the excitement that brought 96,000 buyers to the Dodge dealers, instead of the 20,000 originally planned. They created a true icon: a design that wasn't copied from anything, and has been copied by no one since. They shaped what is, today, arguably the most sought-after of the Mopar muscle cars. Delving into it, I found a great story; but first, things have to be put into the proper setting. In the Chrysler Design Office (then called Styling Staff), there were "brand" studios: Plymouth Exterior Studio, Dodge Exterior Studio, and a Chrysler and Imperial Exterior Studio. Each was locked, and only the people who belonged in there had a key. The competition between the studios was friendly but fierce! Image Unavailable, Please Login What fueled this competition? Esprit de corps. It was a self-perpetuating drive to try to outdo the other studio with better designs, over and over again. It wasn't until show day when the finished, dinoc-ed (applied painted film) clay models were wheeled into the showroom that you knew which studio had the best stuff. This was the environment that drove each designer, sculptor or entire studio for that matter to take risks, reach out beyond the norm, and exaggerate the initial design statement. There was always time to pull back a little, to refine. "Brand" studios fell by the wayside in the early to mid '70s, yielding to "body size" studios meaning, for example, Plymouth Satellites and Dodge Coronets were designed by people in the same studio, ditto for the '75 Cordoba and Charger. With this change went some of the competition, enthusiasm, and maybe innovation connected with the business. Image Unavailable, Please Login The photo of the five designers on the team ironically lacked the sixth, Richard Sias, who was off work the day the photo was snapped. He was the principal designer. It was he who created the double diamond concept on the 1/10th scale "way-out," "aircrafty" clay model, approximately 20 inches long. The three "board" designers and three management level designers had one thing in common: they all had gasoline in their blood. Image Unavailable, Please Login Sias graduated from the Los Angeles Art Center College of Design (then called Art Center School), after a stint in the U.S. Army. He was hired by G.M. Styling and then came to Chrysler. He drove a dual quad 1958 Corvette, and loved to draw aircraft but also had a passion to hunt and fish. He was 26 years old when the genius in him created the 1/10th scale model and about 28 when the photo was taken of the rest of the design team. Harvey Winn graduated from the Cleveland School of Art, was about 23 and drove a new 1966 Mustang Shelby GT 350. Image Unavailable, Please Login William Brownlie, age 40, was the charismatic Chief Designer of the Dodge Exterior Studio and a WWII Navy vet. He took courses at Meinzinger School of Art in Detroit but other than that his automotive design sense was intuitive. He worked at Ford Styling in the early '50s, was hired by Chrysler's Virgil Exner, and worked on the trendsetting Ghia show cars of the '50s. The Norseman which went down with the Andrea Doria was Bill's design. He was always a gentleman, was well groomed, wore Bill Blass suits, and drove a Porsche 356 coupe. Image Unavailable, Please Login Charles Mitchell, age 45, was the studio manager, second in command under Brownlie and also a WWII veteran. As an Army Air Corps pilot, he was shot down behind enemy lines and made it out without being captured. Like Winn, he also graduated from the Cleveland School of Art. He was into rallying with MGs but then currently drove a Formula S Barracuda. He was the one who kept eyeing Sias' progress on the 1/10th scale clay model and wondering if it could possibly be "morphed" into a B body sized car. Sias said he thought it could be done but to do so he would need a couple of form sensitive sculptors who could move a lot of clay fast. He also thought it would help to have a walled-off area in the studio where planning, cost, and feasibility people couldn't involve themselves too early. Mitchell recognized the risk but complied. Image Unavailable, Please Login Diran Yazejian, age 34, was a Korea-era U.S. Army vet who also attended California's Art Center. After graduation in 1959, he was hired into Chrysler/DeSoto Exterior, then into Special Projects where the Turbine car was designed, before going into Dodge Exterior. He had two Vettes, first a '58 dual quad 4 speed followed by a 1964 327/365 H.P., 4 speed with a 4.11 gear. Frank Ruff, Dodge B-body Design Supervisor, age 33, was also a self-taught, intuitive designer. He worked at Ford Styling, then was hired by Bill Brownlie into the Dodge Exterior Studio and was later promoted to Supervisor. His wheels were a '63 Vette Roadster. It was he who had the second stroke of genius in the program: with his design experience and Sias' vision, plus the talents of two ace clay sculptors, Jim Romeo and Don Kloka, the elements of the 20" concept model were put directly on to the full size clay buck. It already had the established package requirements in place, ie., wheel base, track, Coronet windshield, cowl, etc. In one fell swoop, voila!, the '68 Charger shape was born. Image Unavailable, Please Login But, along the way, Bill Brownlie started to have second thoughts. While it was exciting enough, there wasn't any design evolution whatsoever from its predecessor, the '67 Charger. Meanwhile, the timing people were getting nervous because the '68 Coronet development, mundane by comparison, was falling behind schedule and missing studio release dates. As Brownlie was leaving on a business trip to Europe he gave strict instructions to stop work on the Charger (which didn't even have a schedule yet) and concentrate on the Coronet finalization; it was the prudent thing to do. He came back two weeks later, walked into the studio, saw that the Charger model had progressed; and by the tone of his voice, both Sias and Ruff knew without question someone was going to be in deep trouble. At that moment the studio door opened and Elwood Engel walked in, put his arm around Brownlie and said, "Now, that's what a car should look like" (trite, but fitting, "timing is everything"). Elwood left and, predictably, returned with the entire Plymouth studio, which was always his way of spurring competition. Image Unavailable, Please Login All of the designers supported the design development of the car until it was released from the studio complete with the grille, lamps and ornamentation. The car was a natural to not have anything breaking up the surface flow of the pillars into the lower body, but they swallowed hard and put a vinyl roof on, knowing it was huge profit item. Louvers were added to the front door surface to give clearance to the lower hinge, an interference condition missed early-on. Yazejian's tail lamps departed from the evolution of the horizontal theme set by the preceding '66 and '67 Chargers by going to dual round, set in a rectangular field. The unobtrusive back up lamps were virtually unseen, until lit. The studio proposed and mocked up functional dual gas fillers on both sides of the car like some European cars. They really looked great perched on top of each quarter panel. The designers lost that one to the accountants, and nearly lost the left-only flip-up cap for the ever-popular twist-on cap with the bar handle on the side of the quarter panel. Harvey Winn restated his Coronet bumble bee stripe on the rear of the Charger R/T, which began a family identifier of performance Dodges. Image Unavailable, Please Login Dodge Product Planning proposed canceling the concealed headlamps to save money. The designers strongly opposed the proposal and Bob McCurry, V.P., Dodge Division General Manager (a.k.a. "Captain Crunch", a nickname aptly given for his performance as a Michigan State University football center) came into the studio to see the headlights mocked up both ways with a huge mirror on the centerline of the front end. He said two words, "Keep 'em," and left. So, what happened to these guys? They never again worked together. Image Unavailable, Please Login Sadly, Richard Sias didn't receive praise or recognition for his role in this program from Bill Brownlie. Bill expected more from Sias, saying a one-design designer is not enough. Later, Bob McCurry gave Brownlie a beautiful gold wrist watch to give to an outstanding designer. He chose to let the designers compete for it on a show car project. The watch was presented to Jim Ebejer, designer of the Charger III, which took a flying leap into oblivion after the first year it was shown. Even Jim was embarrassed, knowing the watch should have been given to Sias. Richard Sias resigned. He went to Spokane, Washington, then on to Seattle and worked for Walter Dorwin Teague, an industrial design house with the Boeing Aircraft account. There he owned three '68 Chargers, all at one time, and made one a convertible because he wanted to see how his baby would look as a ragtop. When he retired he had to abandon the project 98% done and moved to Montana, satisfying his first love, hunting and fishing. Harvey Winn left a short time later to an industrial design firm, then went to Ford's Special Project Studio. He was, at the time this was written, working in the advertising industry in Detroit. Bill Brownlie retired from Chrysler in 1980 as an Executive Designer, then went on to be a V.P. at Creative Industries. Bill passed away in 1996 at the age of 70. Image Unavailable, Please Login Diran Yazejian remained in the Dodge Exterior Studio, and was a major contributor to the '69 changes to the Charger and to the new 1971 Charger. He advanced to Carline manager of A and E Body Dodge, then on to the '72 Charger facelift program, and continued with various assignments until retirement in 1994. He still lives in suburban Detroit and enjoys restoring and maintaining a modest collection of antique and classic cars. Chuck Mitchell, who rose to the level of Chief Designer, also stayed on until his retirement. If anyone cares to look for the root of Chrysler's breakthrough mini-van, it will be found in a FWD model done under Charlie Mitchell using the then-developing K-car platform. He lives in the Detroit area and continues his interest in the fine arts as an accomplished sculptor. Image Unavailable, Please Login Frank Ruff was also promoted to the Carline manager level in Dodge/B Body Exterior Studio. He then continued his career at various posts and is currently enjoying his retirement in the Detroit suburbs. So, there you have it, what took place in a locked studio to produce the '68 Charger, a true icon of the '60's. There was electricity between its designers, car guys to the core, marred by hurt feelings afterwards but they created what today is indeed a rolling legend. Hollywood couldn't have written a better script. Image Unavailable, Please Login
I like it as well; nice to see Pininfarina still reaching for new forms. I'm not buying the explanation of the "interesting" aero treatment at the front end tho... The low nose version reminds me of a Dodge show car from the late 60's (Charger??) All in all, this would have been a more convincing "Breadvan" !
I just appreciate them looking forward and trying new things. Perfect Breadvan analogy. Not everything is a hit, but they're givin' it their best.
Nothing earth shattering, but it was worth reading if only for "Shooting brakes and fastback wagons should look speedy enough to make the dog vomit..." Best laugh I've had in months!
LOL- Didn't see you post on Chargers before commenting on the Pinin Breadvan, and there's the Charger concept I was thinking of, the Charger III. Spockian mind meld moment??
Much prefer this to the end result. Since Aston-Martin seems to be fixated on the letter V, I humbly propose Vacuous as more appropriate for the production version.
Charger article: When ChryCo had their first near death experience a lot of design managers got their rank busted. Charlie Mitchell was one of them. When I was there in 1977 he had been relegated to running the "truck studio". In reality it was a cubicle with 2 or 3 designers at the far end of the wing. Charlie figured he was set to ride out his days to retirement as the busted ran guys were not going to be elevated back. I remember that group doing a new instrument panel for a pick-up where all Hal Sperlich wanted was a near copy of the then current Thunderbird. Sperlich had even made them acquire a Thunderbird IP to essentially copy. A story on Charlie was during that time the prototype Lil Red Express was delivered to Design. Charlies was out back of the studio doing burnouts. The supplier of the Le Baron clay development photo is Milt Antonick. During that time he was working on the Cordoba/Mirada design. When asked about his car he would say he had a Polara. Of course that nameplate had not existed for years. One day we say him walking in from the parking lot and his Polara was an Alfa. At Chrysler at that time if one brought a non-ChryCo car to work they had to park in a lot on the other side of the chain link fence.
Funny how at one time being relegated to the truck studio was like being assigned to Siberia. Now those are the studios that make all the money for the corporations! Funny how that worked out.
BMW's massive twin-port grilles have a history. Secret BMW 7-Series Prototype From The ’90s Predicted The Tall Kidney Grille BY THANOS PAPPAS | POSTED ONJULY 15, 2021 21 BMW is back with another episode of the “Inside BMW Group Classic” series, this time detailing a quite interesting concept car from the ’90s. The never-before-seen ZBF-7er prototype was a design study previewing the future of the 7-Series flagship, featuring a large kidney grille and a luxury interior that was definitely ahead of its time. In the video, design veteran Joji Nagashima, known for his work on popular models like the E36 3-Series and the Z3 Roadster, presents the concept car as a member of the design team. In the early ’90s, they were creating studies for the future of BMW’s sedan family including the 3-Series, 5-Series, and 7-Series. The ZBF-7er had a larger footprint than the gorgeous E38 7-Series that was in production at the time. The vertical design of the kidney grille which looks like giant nostrils must have been too quirky for the ’90s. However, we have to agree that it is simpler, and a lot better integrated with the rest of the car compared to the modern G22 4 Series. The signature grille is combined with a tall bonnet, horizontally arranged headlights, and chrome strips on the fully integrated front bumper. See Also: How BMW’s 7-Series Face Evolved From Glorious Great White To Obnoxious Whale Shark The profile of the car spots a window-line that is quite similar to the E65 7-Series that followed in 2001. What is interesting is that the ZBF-7er has pop-up door handles and mirror-replacing cameras, two aerodynamically optimized features that are being incorporated in production models today, almost three decades later. Image Unavailable, Please Login The bodywork is minimal with no character lines and a discreet chrome accent from the front to the rear. All body panels were made from metal, hand-beaten in Italy using old coachbuilding techniques. The only decorative element on the profile is the enormous BMW side scuttles finished in chrome, which the designer thought were appropriate for the long wheelbase. The toned-up fenders are filled with large-diameter rims. According to Nagashima, the largest available wheels at the time were 19 inches, so they had to order custom-made hand-cut tires for the concept. The cameraman doesn’t show us the rear end but from the side view, we can see the elongated and horizontal taillights above the matching chrome accents on the rear bumper. Image Unavailable, Please Login If the outside was too cool for the ’90s, the inside was futuristic. The infotainment screen might look tiny for today’s standards but the fact that it is connected with the analog instrument cluster is future predictive. Another feature that is now a design trend in the automotive industry is the connected climate vents in the center of the dashboard. All the buttons are arranged on the center tunnel, the steering wheel, or the top of the dashboard, allowing space in the center console for several drawers. Wood and metal are combined with light-color upholstery for the seats and darker wood for the lower part of the cabin. As is the case with every limousine, the rear passengers didn’t go unnoticed. They got laptops integrated on the seatback, an expandable table, and a group of buttons that looks like a predecessor of BMW’s iDrive that debuted a lot later in all of its production models. Image Unavailable, Please Login Read Also: BMW Was Deadly Serious About Making This Freaky X5-Z4 Coupe Crossover Mashup The one-off prototype is driveable but BMW didn’t provide us with details on what hides under the bonnet. We guess that the 5.4-liter V12 from the E38 7-Series producing 322 hp (240 kW / 326 PS) and 490 Nm (361 lb-ft) of torque would be ideal for this car. Nagashima said that back in the ’90s, the prototype was well-received by the members of the board, and everyone in BMW loved it. Even though a lot of elements from the ZBF-7er found their way into later production models, the video doesn’t explain why it wasn’t presented to the public as a concept car and what followed the end of its development. If you were a BMW executive, would you want more of the ZBF-7er’s design passed on to Chris Bangle’s E65 7 Series? ,
I thought of John when I saw this today at the Klairmont Kollections in Chicago. Huge wheels, but the V12 Aston Martin motor make up for it!! 2003 Lincoln Concept. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Is it just me, or does anyone else get this kinda vibe from it? Image Unavailable, Please Login Feels more like a Bertone than a Pininfarina to me. All the best, Andrew.
Well said, except Im not so sure about this part "Think of it like this: you’ll recognize something from Hugo Boss whether it’s a suit or a pair of boots, or say a pair of shades from Prada." Can you guys really tell a Hugo Boss and Prada from other high end brands? My fav quote: 'but “creativity is subjective!” I hear you cry, “it’s all in the eye of the beholder!”. Except that’s not really true; assemble a bunch of car designers in a bar and pretty soon you’ll have a consensus about what cars are great and those that should never have left the sketchpad." I roll my eyes at non-designers who think its subjective
As a non-designer, I've thought that the initial concept is subjective while it's the execution that's either objectively done correctly or becomes a disaster. Have I escaped the eyeroll? All the best, Andrew.
