All Editorial articles – Page 71
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Driven: Vauxhall Astra GTC
Ford, Opel/Vauxhall and VW are in perpetual battle for the C-segment title, the toughest European segment to compete in. Visual differentiation is key, but so is practicality and performance - all attributes that the respective offering must possess. And so the fight continues, heating up with the arrival of the ...
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Driven: Peugeot 308 RCZ concept
The deliciously curved roof rails are made from aluminum and will remain so in the production model. It's only at either end that things go slightly wrong. At the front the stock Peugeot gaping grille and swept back lights is a love it or hate it affair. And from certain ...
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Driven: Peugeot 308 RCZ concept
Every now and again Peugeot produces a model that causes a real stir. The 205 GTi was one such car. The 406 coupé another. And the 308 RCZ could be about to follow in their wheel tracks. The sleek 2+2 coupe was first shown at last year's Frankfurt Motor Show ...
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Driven: Jaguar XF
It is possibly harder to design a Jaguar than any other premium car brand. The essence of the firm's highly regarded design language is over 40 years old with the shadow of the 1961 E-type and 1968 XJ6 - and even the 1955 Mk1/1959 Mk2 - looming large. For decades ...
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ArticleDriven: Honda FRV
The Honda FRV is a misunderstood car. It’s a European market orientated compact MPV that unusually has two rows of three seats, a configuration shared only with the earlier Fiat Multipla design. But unlike the bulbous, short, tall and deep-windowed Italian, the Honda shares almost identical dimensions to the five seat Renault Scenic that is the compact MPV market leader
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Driven: Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback
Around the back the rearward rising beltline runs through the rear lights before gently dropping off, neatly framing the bowtie, while a detail line runs off the bottom of the DLO. The two come together to create a negative surface on the tailgate that adds a feeling of depth to ...
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Driven: Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback
The C-segment is one of the most important sectors of the automotive market, with every mainstream manufacturer having at least one car competing within. From Alfa Romeo's Giulietta through to the Lexus CT200h and Volvo's C30, there really is a car for everyone.
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Driven: Lexus GS450h
Unfortunately this tech-forward effect is ruined by the lack of consistency between each element. The graphical design and quality of the cluster and the corresponding 12-inch centre screen and HUD (which features a rev-counter graphic straight from an 80s child's toy) feel unrelated. It's a shame Lexus doesn't have a ...
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Driven: Lexus GS450h
Lexus' identity is still unclear, even 20 years after it launched. Toyota's premium brand has perpetually failed to establish a clear identity of its own due mainly to a lack of consistency and detail refinement across its products.
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Driven: Alfa Romeo Spider
Seldom do automotive manufacturers create designs that continue in the tradition of an earlier successful model. Often, the evolution of the once groundbreaking lines of an automobile will be diluted over time, as new generations of designers seek to create a car that will appeal to its target demographic. Sometimes ...
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Driven: Lexus IS-F
The Lexus IS-F is a significant new design for one core reason: it introduces a performance sub-brand parallel to that of the M-cars from BMW, AMG from Mercedes-Benz, and the S and RS sub-brands from Audi. This then is Lexus making a logical next step to further encroach on the ...
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Cars meet Chairs - Reciprocity in Design
Having seen what product designers were up to at Milan’s Design Week, it isn’t always that car designers get involved too. All too often one has to rely on a vehicle concept in Geneva to see what the studios have been up to. What isn’t always obvious is the extent to which car designers influence product design- and indeed vice-versa, as the Renault Zoe showed with its Ingo Maurer-inspired roof. T
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ArticleDesigner Interview: Lowie Vermeersch (Part 2)
This evolution should be enough of a reason not to start an independent car design studio anymore, except that Lowie doesn’t function that way: “It’s a fact that any car designer who starts his own studio for personal fame is in for a nice series of frustrations. The era of independent car design heroes like Bertone, Giugiaro or Gandini is clearly over. In the ‘60s or ‘70s, when design wasn’t…
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ArticleSurface Design Show: materials exhibition
London’s Surface Design Show is the only UK show focused solely on cutting edge designs and innovative manufacturing and materials for commercial surfaces and architectural feature walls. We’ve joined forces with our partner WGSN-homebuildlife to bring you all the latest trends from the 2013 show.
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Driven: Hyundai i40
CDN recently spent a day sampling Hyundai’s new i40 Tourer, which has just been launched in Europe. For the launch, Hyundai invited us to Waddesdon Manor, the home of the Rothschild banking family and a venue that has been used for previous Louis Vuitton events. It has recently added a new art gallery with fabulous views across rolling countryside, and contains work by Anish Kapoor, Michael Craig-
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Driven: Honda CR-Z
One-mile rear seatThis latest interpretation also offers a 2+2 seating package (though not in the US market). It has been misunderstood by much of the media but it's actually a great feature; an essential part of this car's appeal. For a start, it makes the CR-Z stand out: it's not ...
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Driven: Honda CR-Z
The Honda CR-Z has been a long time coming. Although the concept debuted in 2007, as a project it's been kicking around Honda for over 10 years. Since the first Insight was launched in 1999, there have been numerous stop-start projects to produce a hybrid successor to the much-loved CR-X ...
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Driven: Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Stepping into the C200 Sport test car, one notices how the basic interior architecture is notably different from the previous model, which was soft and flowing in character. This is more 'blocky', with flat surfaces that echo some of the old W202 C-Class in the shape of the binnacle hood, ...
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Driven: Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Just over 25 years ago, in November 1982, Mercedes Chief Designer Bruno Sacco introduced his new 'baby' 190, codenamed W201. Billed as the new compact Mercedes, it was a successful model that lasted a full ten years until being replaced by the first C-Class (W202). This model - the first ...