Cadillac Aera
Vehicle weights have been going up for years as consumers demand more features, the government pushes stricter safety regulations and designers seek stiffer vehicle structures.
So for this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show Design Challenge, organizers asked design studios to envision a 1,000-pound, four-passenger car. It had to be comfortable, be capable of meeting government safety regulations and have satisfactory driving performance and styling to meet consumers’ demand.
It’s a daunting challenge. The government wants ever-improving safety and buyers want everything from more features to better handling, meaning stiffer and heavier chassis.
Previously, the award was focused on the Southern California design community. But this year, Mercedes-Benz studios in Germany and Japan contributed to give the competition to add an international perspective.
Honda Air
The main criteria for the judging was meeting the weight constraint of 1,500 pounds with four occupants. But vehicles also were judged on artistic beauty, comfort, uniqueness of design, roadworthiness, sustainability, performance and user friendliness.
Entries included vehicles made from organic materials, some powered by compressed air and futuristic models with the latest high-tech advances.
Maybach DRS
The winning design will be announced Nov. 18 during the Design Los Angeles Conference at the Los Angeles Auto Show.
2010 Design Challenge entries include:
General Motors Advanced Design California – The Cadillac Aera (Aero + Era) is a 1,000-pound, 2+2 coupe, with a range of 1,000 miles using alternative fuel. The Aera’s advanced body structure utilizes a polyhedral, 3D lattice, mono-formed frame with a flexible pressurized polymer skin for body panels.
Honda Advanced Design Studio, California – The Honda Air concept is a look at the future of lightweight and alternative fuel performance vehicles. Inspired by the modern roller coaster, as well as skydiving wing-suits, the Air is powered by a compressed air and pneumatic regulator system. At just under 800 lbs., Honda’s concept emphasizes the fun of driving.
Mazda MX-0
Mercedes-Benz Research and Development: Advanced Design Center, Japan – The Maybach DRS – Den-Riki-Sha, or electric-powered rickshaw – uses a ultra-light construction with luxurious exterior and interior design. The DRS is powered by a “self-balancing” electric drive system that is designed to plug into a city’s transportation infrastructure.
Mazda Design Americas, California – Each component in the Mazda MX-0 is redesigned to carry out the functions of several components in conventional cars. Many parts are replaced with fewer, simplified ones, using lightweight materials. With its ultra-light mass pushed by high-torque electric motors, the MX-0 delivers excellent acceleration and instant cornering. “It’s more like flying than driving,” Mazda says.
Mercedes-Benz Biome
Mercedes-Benz Research & Development North America, Inc.: Advanced Design Center, California – The Mercedes-Benz Biome utilizes technologies from nature to achieve ultimate light weight and integration into the ecosystem. Mercedes says the Biome is “grown in the ecologically sustainable Mercedes-Benz Nursery. Each vehicle is grown from two seeds. One seed, the front star, grows the interior of the vehicle from Mercedes-Benz DNA, while the seed capsule creates the vehicles exterior. Both seeds grow together and are genetically engineered into customer’s specifications.” Are we still talking about a car of peapods?
Nissan iV
Nissan Design America – The Nissan iV is a lightweight sports tourer that showcases “organic synthetics,” a sustainable manufacturing technique in which automotive parts are cultivated like agriculture. Derived from fast-growing ivy and re-enforced with spider silk composite, the biopolymer frame is flexible and ultra-light, yet robust.
Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Germany – The Smart 454 is manufactured by high-tech robots that look as f”riendly and cuddly as our grandmothers.” The Tridion-frame (chassis), knit by “Smart Granny Robots” (otherwise know as SGRs), creates complex shapes and forms out of carbon fiber, enabling the geometry to be optimized in strength and weight.
Toyota NORI
Calty Design Research, Inc. – Toyota’s NORI concept presents the idea that the body and chassis are one, in what Calty calls a “pod-ular” form; that is designed to be strong, light and beautiful. Created using nori, the Japanese word for seaweed, combined with a carbon fiber weave for strength, the NORI not only reduces weight, but minimizes the impact on the ecosystem.
Volvo Car Corp.: Monitoring and Concept Center VMCC – Minimizing weight and complexity, while maximizing driving enjoyment, is the philosophy behind the Volvo Air Motion concept. Thousands fewer components are employed than in a traditional car thanks to simple compressed air motors. The company says the Volvo Air Motion demonstrates the beauty and purity of Scandinavian design.
Volvo Air Motion
Entries will be judged by Tom Matano, director of Industrial Design at San Francisco’s Academy of Art University; Imre Molnar, dean of Detroit’s College for Creative Studies; Stewart Reed, chairman of Transportation Design, Pasadena’s Art Center College of Design and Clive Hawkins, president of Aria Product Development.
About the Design Challenge
The Design Challenge is part of the Design Los Angeles Automobile Designers’ Conference, held during the Los Angeles Auto Show Press Days, November 17-18, 2010. Each year, for the past seven years, a new Design Challenge theme is chosen and the major automotive design studios showcase their talents, competing against each other to flex their creativity and further explore new ideas in automotive design. The Design Los Angeles Conference also gives designers access to design industry leaders and provides the opportunity to address common industry issues.
For more information, and more images, visit www.LAAutoShow.com/DesignChallenge.html