FUTURE CAR

He doesn't say where he's gonna put the electric plug.

The future of the automobile; BMW’s Chis Bangle has ideas about where new car designs are headed
Alex Taylor III, March 12, 2007 (Fortune Magazine via CNN Money)

- At the Geneva Auto Show, worries about carbon dioxide emissions and sustainability ran laps around such traditional topics as horsepower and performance. Automakers introduced a raft of vehicles that run on natural gas, batteries, biofuels and solar power… - Chris Bangle, chief of design for BMW…is considered the most influential and far seeing designer in the world. Roundly criticized for his radical reworking of BMW's 7- and 5-series cars…he has been thoroughly vindicated by other automakers. Features he pioneered like the short, high-deck trunk -- nicknamed the "Bangle Butt" -- have since been copied by Mercedes…
- …sustainability is just a new problem to solve…For the most part, sustainability will be solved in ways that don't show up in the car design itself. It will be…differences in engines, and drivetrains, and technology…what we are seeing here is a shift in the value system…to reflect these responsibilities. At the same time…it is still okay to drive cars that are sporty or fun…future-oriented themes…replaced by the phenomenon of cars that look intelligent but not particularly sexy.

- Any time you see formality completely subjugated by functional concerns, it is usually a shock to the status quo…they were able to evolve stealth airplanes that were really pretty, too…
- I think the durability of the sedan as well as its worldwide appeal argues well for it as a concept that resonates…an area for powertrain, an area for people, and an area for their stuff…mix those up too much, people don't understand what the message of the vehicle is…I think that lies behind the [declining popularity of] minivans in America and why SUVs were the only ones of these large, two-volume vehicles accepted…they brought with them a different value scale.
- In Europe…They want to structurally show their societal position…