AUTO & DESIGN

"The merging of expertise is key to a successful project". So says Joaquin Garcia, head of design at Italdesign, who with his team has created the Quintessenza concept car (page 17), a hefty vehicle in which pick-up and grand tourer converge in a new way of experiencing the motor car. Unveiled at the Beijing motor show and showcased again at Pebble Beach, it shows how markets as distant from each other as China and America can share the same trends - specifically, the desire to experience the outdoor dimension in harmony with nature - that are increasingly felt in Europe too. Fusions also occur between where a car is designed and where it ends up. So the Lynk & Co Z10 (Cover story on page 4) was born in Europe,…

Don't make the mistake of saying that the latest addition to Lynk & Co, the Z10, is called Zee-ten. Oh, no: it’s called Zee-one-zero. Who knows, maybe it’s sexier. And perhaps it is better not to suggest to its designers that this Zee-one-zero is the straight commercial transposition of the splendid and innovative The Next Day concept presented two years ago (Auto&Design 256). The spirit is the same, they will admit, but the Z10 is a five-metre electric sedan (5.02, to be exact) while The Next Day was a compact and very sporty GT. “That one – says Stefan Rosén – was automotive haute couture, whereas this is an elegant sedan, whose style will last longer without that ‘wow’ effect that would have seemed too extreme to customers.” The Next…

A return to the roots. For Robin Page, who took over as head of Bentley design last September, it really was a matter of picking up a thread that had been interrupted for ten years (responsible for interiors and then head of design at Volvo) but which he had already followed for 17 years, from the time Bentley and Rolls-Royce were one. Much has changed since then: “Because customer expectations have changed,” says Page: “There is more colour, more personalization. At Bentley there were many black or gray cars, when a splash of colour appeared it was probably on a car for California or the Middle East. Now, however, there is a bright colour palette and the level of craftsmanship has increased, as in the new Continental GT Speed.” It…

With its Quintessenza, Italdesign pioneers a conceptual journey, a revolutionary architecture targeting the new generations in the global marketplace. Inspired by the four elements - earth, air, water, fire – the project places humans at its core, a tradition deeply rooted in the company’s 55-year history. Under the banner of innovation and sustainability. Con la Quintessenza Italdesign intraprende un viaggio concettuale che sfocia in un’architettura inedita, concepita per le nuove generazioni e rivolta al mercato globale. Un progetto che prende avvio dai quattro elementi naturali – terra, aria, acqua, fuoco – per porvi al centro l’uomo, da sempre protagonista dei progetti della design house nei suoi oltre 55 anni di storia. Nel segno dell’innovazione e nel rispetto della sostenibilità. JOAQUIN GARCIA – THE NEW VALUES OF MOBILITY "The merging of…

With its latest lineup, including EVs, Kia has made significant progress in its quest to attain premium segment status. Renewal has mainly involved the top end of the range, with the launch of the EV9 that also inspired the recent update of the Sorento based on the "Opposites United" philosophy. In this vision, seemingly contrasting goals such as the pursuit of quality and sustainability, elegance and practicality blend with Kia's efforts to create a truly universal design language that cuts across markets, tastes and segments. A language that the new EV3 now aims to apply, along with the brand's ambitions, to the key compact SUV segment. Karim Habib, Executive Vice President and Head of Global Design at Kia since 2019 after filling top jobs at BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Infiniti, explained…

In 2024, global electric vehicle (EV) sales will reach 17 million units, accounting for more than one-fifth of total sales. By 2030, it is expected that global EV sales will exceed 70 million units, with a cumulative volume of 380 million vehicles. “Rather than tapering off, the global EV revolution appears to be gearing up for a new phase of growth,” said Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency. Amidst the global trend towards intelligent electric vehicles, the Chinese independent automotive brand Geely Auto has unveiled its answer after 20 years of global development: the Geely Galaxy E5. Facing a market explosion of diverse global populations, aesthetics, and cultures, the Galaxy E5 adopts a "balanced and restrained" design strategy. This approach simplifies design by eliminating unnecessary lines and…