automotiveidea: 2012

Smart saved with Renault partnership

A recently announced deal between Daimler, and Renault-Nissan will see the next generation of Smarts sharing platforms with the French marque. The alliance also sees each company taking three percent of the other's shares.

This news is good for Smart, as the company has long been struggling to turn a profit and the deal guarantees its future. A short wheelbase platform being developed by the new pairing will underpin the next generation Smart, as well as the Renault Twizy and a new Nissan small car to take on Toyota's iQ. A longer wheelbase will also be used, which could provide a replacement for the short-lived Smart ForFour.

The move also increases the chance of a full production electric Smart, given that the Twizy is currently an electric-only concept.

Autocar reveals first picture of Murray T25

Autocar have published the first picture of Gordon Murray's city car proposition, the T25.

The car has been seen testing in Surrey, and Murray expects the first cars to be ready for production in two years time. The T25 is smaller than a Smart and weighs in at only 650kg.

Judging by the photo it's not the prettiest of vehicles (though you can't go too far wrong with matt black paint...), but if the car lives up to expectations it could bring about a change of thinking in the city car market. We're already starting to see smaller vehicles being put forward for serious production, such as Renault's Twizy, which will form the basis of the next Smart itself.

benefits of EV technology

Propulsion aside, it again feels just like a regular petrol or diesel powered car. It's difficult to make too accurate a judgement on the finished product given that I only got a three laps of a very short circuit in which to test the car, but both ride and steering seemed fine - presumably no different from the petrol-powered Tiida. Again, this is important in attracting the buying public to the car - all the benefits of EV technology but with none of the drawbacks of cars like the G-Wiz.

Ford Fiesta

To this end then, the Leaf is off to a good start. It's a five-door hatchback with space for five, a good boot, and an inoffensive shape that manages to retain a bit of character. The front is modern and equipped with large headlights similar to those on the Ford Fiesta, and the rear has a hint of the last-generation Renault Megane about it. Even the interior is much like a normal car, with normal controls and two hooded instrument clusters. Only the large digital display in the centre console really hints at the Leaf's high-tech drivetrain.

quadricycles

First impressions of the concept car are good. It looks, too all intents and purposes, like a regular car. This of course is for good reason, as regular cars are what people actually want. With the best intentions in the world, electric quadricycles like Reva's G-Wiz will never become commonplace as they can't offer the space and pace that people accept from the cars they're used to.

Maserati Gran Turismo 2008

Hi there cool automotive fans, today we would like to present you the 2008 Maserati Gran Turismo. This two seat coup sport car has a curvy design on the body it’s gives the simple modern looks to the exterior, with dual xenon lights this cool car also providing a maximum visibility to the surrounding specially in the middle of bad weather. The High-low control beam unit gives a quick speed information and control to the driver.

The interior has a longitudinal interior, a horizontal V shape dashboard and amazing interior detail such as chrome switch at the dashboard and steering wheel. A trident logo also decorated the seat to reflect the sporty looks and to show how magnificent Maserati is.

Spyker Cars

Spyker Cars has introduced Spyker Aileron 2009 at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show, this cool automotive has 400Hp (298KW) Power and 300Km/h (187mph) Top speed. The exterior of this fast sport car has a rough and tough design line with a futuristic touch. With 4617mm length, 1972mm width, 1270mm height and 1425kg weight this cool car able to reach 0-100km/h (0-60mph) in just 4,5 second.

Spyker Cars is a premium sport cars manufacturer from Netherlands, they used the Audi 4.2 litre V8 engine for the Spyker C8 Aileron 2009. The exterior is made from aluminium body panels over aluminium spaceframe, creating a classic and contemporary looks at the same time.

The Interior of this luxurious sport car is using a vibrant color leather and also available in 14 standard colors for it’s seats and dashboard, the customer also has the option to choose other color option that they desired. The interior has a retro design, the highest quality leather cover and the metallic silver on dashboard design give a classical design touch to this super fast car.

The BMW Project i Design

BMW's i lineup includes the BMW i3 and i8, which are going to be released in 2013. Their lineup also includes the BMW i4 and i5, whose designs are currently being developed. While none of the cars are in circulation today, there are reports already about their supposed designs. Images for the i3 and i8 versions have already been released.

The kind of technology that will be incorporated into the future models is not clear as of today, but the public now knows that the i3 and i8 concepts include lightweight, safety, eco-friendly, and efficiency features. Similar elements may be incorporated in the future models. As you may see in the pictures, the cars do have transparent surfaces and aerodynamic shapes. Despite the new features and its new overall design, you can still see the familiar BMW model.

Design

The exterior of the BMW i cars come with basic architecture. This is called the LifeDrive construction, where the major parts of the cars are divided into the Life module and the Drive module. The Life module is composed of materials made of CFRB. The Life module is where the passenger compartment is. The Drive module is where the operating mechanism of the cars is located. This includes the engine, motor, and battery. The LifeDrive design involves the layering of these two major components.

Streamlined Exterior

The aerodynamic design of the new cars guarantees that they have an efficient driving force and reduced pull. This optimized design allows air steam to move along the surface of the car smoothly, reducing the effects of air friction. This design is particularly important in the i8 concept. The vehicles have covered underbodies so that their undersides are smooth. This removes too much air turbulence under the cars while on the road. The vehicle's "air curtains" and "aero flaps" also enhance smooth movement of air along its surface. All these features ensure efficiency whether the cars run on fuel or battery.

Colors

Light silver and glossy black are the most famous external colors of the BMW i vehicles. The color combination gives the cars a technical and modern look, but not too stern. There are no signs that the company will come up with i models that have different color combinations. However, the silver-black combo matches the cars' exterior. But the color blue invades some parts of the cars, like the kidney grille or the door sills. Blue also breaks the silver-black monotony, and somehow treats the starkness. The Stream Blue color is also found inside the car, particularly on the logo (though subtly). The seat stitching also has this blue color. However, the interior color is dominated by warm tones, probably to provide a cozy feel. Interior colors include dark brown and porcelain white to give a homely atmosphere.

Eco-friendly Materials

The concept of BMW on its new cars includes the use of renewable and naturally treated materials. This may be evident in the i3 and i8 concept, which indicates the use of sustainable materials. While there is still little information about the possible BMW i4 concept or i5 concept, the future cars may still incorporate the CFRB technology. There is a good chance that these cars will use the same materials as the i3 or i8 does.

Most Affordable Cars Available Today - The Nano Car

The most affordable cars available today begin with the Nano car. This car was developed in India and holds an interesting story.

It began with a thought to offer a "peoples car" to the India population, most of which are fortunate enough to make $1,000 American dollars per year. In India, most transportation is provided by scooters and quad-bikes. Ratan Tata wanted to offer the people of his country more than this standard transportation.

The chairman of Tata Motors, Mr. Tata challenged a 32 year old engineer, Girish Wagh to develop a car with three requirements: must comply with regulatory stipulations, must be low-cost, and yield performance goals of acceleration capacity and fuel efficiency.

The proto-type was 4 wheels supporting bars with plastic flaps instead of doors to protect the driver from the rain. This looks more like a quadra-cycle than a car but this mistake led to the design team to build an actual car design.

Mr. Tata decided he needed the help of suppliers that could bring him the materials to build a proper car. Most suppliers he approached were skeptical to say the least. Let's face it, Tata wanted to build the cheapest car in the world and keep the price tag at $2,500.00 American dollars.

Imagine the faces of these suppliers when he presented this "crazy" idea to them.

Tata appealed to them that they would make world history as well as develop their own businesses and slowly some of the suppliers jumped aboard with the idea. The rack and pinion steering was produced by Rane Group. The major goal was to reduce the weight and a steering rod replaced the typical steel tube that makes up the steering mechanism.

GKN Driveline India provided the technology for the drive shaft. This attempt failed 32 times before they got it right! And, the balance of the suppliers who were challenged with providing quality parts at low prices can tell similar stories.

Eventually, Wagh's team included over 500 engineers working on the Nano car. The designing of this car was a feat unmatched, but has paid off. The Nano provides a status symbol to the country-men of India.

Today, the Nano is just 5 feet wide and a little over 10 feet long. The car will travel 65 mph and holds a 33 horsepower engine. To provide smooth handling the 4 tires sit directly on each corner of the vehicle. The Nano weighs in at 1,300 pounds with no need for power steering to turn such little weight.

Other cost saving features that are missing include:
*No airbags
*No air conditioning on standard models
*No stereo systems on standard models
*Only one windshield wiper rather than the standard 2
*One wing mirror

It's amazing when you consider the ingenuity to design this car by saving costs and not offering so many features that we take for granted, such as a car stereo.

Mr. Tata has accomplished his goal by providing a "peoples car" at a low cost.

This is an amazing story behind the most affordable car available in the entire world. Our hats are off to Mr. Tata and his team who are continually improving on the Nano Car.

Designing the Cars of the Future One Question at a Time

Well, this may come as no surprise to you if you have ever done any collaborative work and brainstorming. The other day, we learned something very interesting in our think tank, at one of our regular local meetings at a local coffee shop. As a warm-up we had a quick brainstorm on the designing of cars for our future. Specifically we've been concerned that the Chevy Volt seems to have crashed (not literally, but production has been halted), the car costs too much, there are too few buyers, and it's just not pulling for all those 100s of millions of dollars invested in R&D and retooling. Okay so, let's talk about this, and let me explain what we learned through trial and error during our brainstorming session.

We first started with the typical concept of someone taking notes, and others just blurting out whatever came to their mind on new auto designs and ways to build our future cars. After 4 or 5 people spoke out in rapid succession one person asked; why does it have to have wheels?

Well, that completely sent all the other comments back to the drawing board, and we made a quick right turn if you will. Next folks were talking about hovercrafts, low pressure area, and the types of blowers that would be needed. Others began discussing how they would prevent all the noise from blowing out the driver's ear drums, and taking that noise and vibrational energy to power up all the other systems in the vehicle - noise recapture.

Then they started discussing the types of motors such as gasoline and diesel. And the same person who asked the question before asked; why does it have to run on liquid fuel?

Then we started talking about electricity, batteries, and gas type fuels like hydrogen. We decided that electric batteries were too heavy, but that the weight doesn't matter as much in a hovercraft, many of the hovercrafts are quite heavy. However, others still wanted to reduce the weight, and they started talking about how to redesign the batteries to be more efficient, lighter, and not use materials which were hard to get, or very costly.

As we began talking about body design styles, and braking systems because this vehicle would not have wheels, the same individual asked; why can't the body of the vehicle also help in the braking? One of the folks in the group was a former aerospace person, and we started talking about air brakes, spoilers, wing flaps, and things of this nature. Interestingly enough, just in our little brainstorming session we totally redesigned the future of human cars.

Honda Civic SI

Reviewers agree that the 2010 Honda Civic is a winning combination of substance and style that has deservedly staked its claim as a class leader. It is one of the most reliable, fuel efficient and solid-performing vehicles in the affordable small car class.

The Civic isn't flawless. Despite its great performance, excellent fuel economy and impressive list of features, it lags behind certain class competitors when it comes to interior comfort and cargo capacity.

Overall, reviewers are impressed with the Civic's high level of performance. Although most models are sluggish away from the line, they work just fine in both stop-and-go city traffic and higher speed highway passing maneuvers.

Toyota Prius. Easy Carbon Car.

Since introduced up to now, 1.8-liter twin-engine vehicle is able to achieve sales of 1.2 million units worldwide. Toyota's Prius is a mainstay for targeting the eco friendly consumers. Advantages it has, among others, exhaust emissions are lower, fuel-efficient, environmentally friendly, safety-oriented, stylish design. Although dimensional compact but impressive space in the spacious and comfortable. This unit capacity of 5 seat passenger.

Safety features visible on Electric Power System (EPS), Projector Headlamp with manual leveling, Airbags, Active Headrest, and Crash Safety Body. Output last series Prius also apply sound insulation and shock absorbing power so high that created the silence in the cabin.

Larry Watson very first Scallop paint job

Bob Schremp's 1954 Chevrolet was the first car that Larry Watson scalloped.

This is how Bob's 1954 Chevy can be seen on the
Clock drive-in Bellflower poster by Steve Stanford.

Bob was from Norwalk California, his car was a mild custom car with removed trim on the hood and trunk and the door handles where shaved. All the body work was done by Brandson Body shop in Artesia.

The shop also lowered the car and according the 1958 Custom Car Annual the ground clearance was just 1 1/2 inch, which was more than likely measure from the lake pipes to the ground. But still Bob's car was very low.

Bob installed the 1956 Oldsmobile hubcaps on medium size white walls on all four corners and no fender skirts where used as was the trend in the later part of the 1950's with this style of custom car. Bob also used a set of Spotlights which looked to be early style dummy spots that had still the shape of the Appleton Spotlights but no handles.

In 1956 Bob drove his car to Larry's Watson house and asked him if he knew how to fix the bad runs he had on his freshly painted hood and trunk. Bob did not want flames on his car, and he realized the runs where to big to be hidden by some pin striping.

Larry had been having scallops on his mind for a while, and he figured this car would be perfect to use them on. He could sand off the runs, and cover up those sections by the scallops. Bob had no idea what scallops where, but he let Larry do them anyway.

Larry painted the scallops in teal blue with white fading tips in 1956 in Larry's driveway. He remembered that he wanted Bob to flip the front bumper on his car so he told him he would not pin stripe the scallops until he modified the front bumper on his Chevy. Bob agreed, flipped the front bumper and Larry striped the scallops initiation gold.

This is the only photo in the Larry Watson Collection of this
car that shows some color. But I'm unsure if this the actual
color of the scallops, or that its just a chemical process that
gave the scallops color.
There is no other color visible in this photo.

Bob's car set the trend, and for a while Larry was asked to scallop a lot of cars for people who had seen Bob's Chevy at the local drive in's.

Bob Schremp stands proud next to his 1954 Chevy mild
custom with the first Larry Watson scallop paint job.

The photos of Bob's Chevy shown here, where taken by James Potter to be used in various magazine features on the car, the test sheets these scans where taken from are part of the Larry Watson Personal Collection.

Honda Accord 2011 Sedan

Honda accord 2011 sedan

Thank You to all my 2011 3D Conceptual Designer clients

Thank You to all the 2011 clients for 3D Conceptual Designer!

It has been a great year for 3DCD, I have established some nice new clients in Theatrical Print, and other areas, and was brought back in with a very old familiar client, Walt Disney Imagineering. Thank you too all those who have continued to use my services throughout the year.

Cheers to you all as we approach n the new year FAST!!!!

Thom Schillinger 3D Conceptual Designer.