DownsideUpDesign

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxHcURXGlFE]

As a kid the Paolo-Martin penned Modulo, though only ever seen in books, scared the living daylights out of me. It still does.

I simply couldn’t understand how it could look so otherworldly and still be a car. There is a latent, alien malevolence to it that continues to send chills up my spine. It’s hard to believe, slightly dated details aside, that this Ferrari 512 S-based monster slithered into the world at the 1970 Geneva show.

The question is, seeing as I don’t think there’s been a concept as outrageous since, who’s going to top it?

[Found via Jalopnik]

Just read this really interesting extract from an interview with Simon Collins, the Dean of Fashion at Parsons where he talks about the impact of the recession on fashion.

Am I alone in thinking that what he says could be easily be translated into rationalising some of the largesse of the car industry?

“The biggest challenge was the biggest opportunity with designers eschewing big runway shows into a static exhibition. This in tandem with an internet presence is a more modern way of working and I think we’ll see much more of it.

A lot of the rubbish will be swept away. We are going to focus on brands with real integrity. There was a much more intelligence to the merchandising of the lines. There was the same level of creativity but less window dressing and more focus on salable items.”

His comments regarding shows is particularly pertinent given the impending Salon de Geneve. Yes, I will be there (hopefully) enjoying my three course lunch with champagne at Audi, I’ll admit. But what if car makers moved away from the massive cost of running their motor show stands and introduced new product like Apple will, who has decided to not continue with their traditional MacWorld keynotes?

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I’ve spent most of the day thinking about my earlier post on the BMW 5 GT concept that broke cover overnight.

It’s occurred to me that, somewhat foolishly, I’ve been looking at the market positioning from an extremely Euro-centric position.

What if BMW is taking a similar tack that they took, perhaps inadvertently, with the previous generation 7 series?

A car that initially tanked in Europe on the basis of it’s looks , the old 7 went gangbusters in the Chinese market. It also signalled a shift in BMW’s understanding of it’s future market. This shift was confirmed by the launch of the Concept CS as the Shanghai motor show (as opposed to a show in their traditional European heartland) and the somewhat lesser known introduction of a LWB (long wheel base) 5 Series sedan exclusively for the Chinese market.

In 2006 I completed my Masters thesis in automotive design and although the main thrust of my research was something else, I spent a good deal of my time coming to understand Chinese taste in the premium car market. One of the characteristics of the emerging haute-bourgoisie is the desire to be driven (having seen traffic in Hong Kong, I can understand why). And with the desire to be driven, less focus is placed on BMWs old maxim of the “Ultimate Driving Machine” and instead we start looking at the Ultimate Driven Machine.

And in this respect, as the new press images from BMW show, the GT will indeed be ultimate in the traffic choked streets of Asia’s cities. Masses of rear leg-room and stupendous head room within a package that won’t be unwieldy in traffic (unlike a LWB 7 series). Indeed, looking at the pictures, I imagine you probably would have to go to that size vehicle to get similar rear-cabin room.

 The vehicle I designed back in ‘06 aimed to recreate a limousine experience within 5 meters, reclining seats and all. The 5 GT is 4998mm long and provides the same rear cabin experience as a LWB 7 which is a full 212mm longer. Maybe I was on to something…

My doubts about the car’s success in the European market still stands, but if China is indeed the target, who cares about fighting the same old scrappy battle the German premiums always fight. BMW just jumped out of the ring and found a new playground.

It’s out! BMW’s new Progressive Activity Sedan (also known as the 5 Series GT or Gran Turismo) was revealed in a private view last night and the folks over at BMWBlog got the scoop. You might remember this as the car, the launch video of which I lampooned last week for spending three minutes saying the car wasn’t an MPV. And it’s not. It’s something almost as poisonous to the premium buyer: a hatchback.

 To be honest, its mix of Concpet CS, new 7 Series and and an immensely long wheelbase don’t upset me as much as I thought it would. You could certainly never argue that the thing lacks presence and the double opening hatch is an interesting if unoriginal idea. It did strike me that the angle of access, combined with the intrusion of the open lid, makes me think it will be a little awkward to use. At this point it seems that the similar system found on Skoda’s Superb is better resolved and more useful.

And there in lies the problem, this car counts only the Skoda Superb as a typological brother, hardly the company you want to keep if you’re BMW. The PAS is trying to be a premium hatchback and the last “premium” hatch I can remember…oh, hang on, I can’t. “Aha!” you say, “therein lies the secret to BMW’s success! Nobody has done this before!” Well they have.

Opel/Vauxhall used to produce the Signum, a similarly long-wheelbased hatch which was also designed to offer the difference between “economy and first class” (although in their case it was probably the difference between Air Congo and premium economy) and Skoda produces the aforementioned Superb (which is, actually, pretty superb for the money). However, neither of these cars will ever compete with the likes of E-Classes, A6s and A7s and their brands make sure of that. BMW is going in to battle in one of the most conservative market sectors out there and I’m not convinced people will be seduced out of their premium SUVs, sedans and wagons by an expensive rep-mobile.

Just picture this thing on the school run, driven by a yummy mummy who’s propped it on the kerb outside the prep school…

I’m not saying that a product type can’t turn premium overnight. The original Range Rover did it. But it was a able to do so because Land Rover and the types of vehicle they produced had always been associated with a certain class in English society, creating a strong aspirational pull. BMW might have the upper middle class pulling power, but hatchbacks have never been associated with aristocracy or celebrity, only with Ron the sales manager pounding the M25…

Head on over to BMWBlog to see more pics.

[Image and Source: BMWBlog]