Exterior
Exterior Design
This car is developed from the thought that a non-polluting car can be fun. It combines the Californian life-style with its environmental consciousness. The car is developed to interact with the user as the modern pet-dog does.
In proportion the car is shaped roughly as a teardrop. Although current knowledge might state that this shape is not ideal for low drag coeficients, people still percieve a teardrop as something 'aerodynamic'. The rear wheels are placed outside the bodywork to emphasize the 'in-wheel' motors and rear wheel steering. And with that loosely refers to Hot Rods.
The surfaces are cleary seperated in a sleek part as a passenger compartiment and a 'bubbled' part for the fuel cell necessities. The latter is a ventilated and 'firewalled' compartiment. The outer shell is decorated referring to water bubbles. This emphasizes the environmental conscious way of propulsion.
At the front fenders the character of the car shows by creating 'ears'. A part of the fender is made from elastic material and supported by a moving bodypart. This part can change the character of the car actively. As the user comes within range of it reacts by moving its 'ears'. The headlights are shaped to support this expression. While driving the ears will react to the style of driving.
Bowser can house three and a half people that enter the car through the large door opening at the front. The floor is elevated assuring a comfortable feel surrounded by all the SUV's on the roads. The Tweels from Michelin provide a robust feel, without losing control on the tarmac.
React
'CARacter' is created with the use of new technology and artificial intelligence. The 'wings' surrounding the front wheels will adapt to its surrounding. This means the car can show its appreciation, friendlyness or agressiveness as a reaction to the user. Here a user can also be someone that just passes the car.
This interaction also takes place on the inside of the car. The steering wheel reacts to the road surface, wheather or drive style by raising hairs on its fur.
Interior
Interior Design
Because the car is being entered from the front of the car, the way the interior is experienced changes. There can be no dashboard, while the sides are high and without much space.
The interior invites the user in. It is open, light and the direction of the shapes is towards the back. In the back is a water tap that uses the water from the fuel cell. This to emphasize environmental consciousness at the inside.
The 'furniture' is inspired by garden furniture, but flavoured with the 'natural' feeling Bowser demands. By referring to the bonestructure of the thorax the interior almost becomes as if your take place on the inside of an animal.
Discussion
As always, time is an important issue in designing. Next to this, a car is a complex subject. This is particulary clear in the availablility and control of resources. In result, not always the detailing that is desired was delivered.
There was little time for a colour study and render optimisation. Therefore the glass 'dome' window shows as a pale orange substance, while it should be highly reflective like the screen of the helmet of an astronaut. The interior colour was a bit inderterminate and has been changed in the final version.
A difficult returning subject was creating a high quality CAD-model of the car. Because a cooperation with experts was needed for this, no extensive study on the shape was possible. This made the shape of the front of the car a bit underdeveloped. The way corners are rounded and the transition surfaces need to be improved in the clay model.
The steering 'wheel', front fenders and water tap are strong things that really communicate the basic idea of the car, but without these features still the concept stands strong. The proportions of the car refer to its environmental frienlyness, creating a part of the natural experience. Its surfaces are indirect and soft and invoke the layeredness and preciousness in the interaction. Altough the detailing can be improved in further development, it already emphasises the things mentioned above and creates the final bond between the user and the car, thus making the user-product relation precious.
This design stands strong in answering to the assignment through following the vision in a very consistent way. All aspects of the design make it 'a car that enables people to show-off their environmental consiousness'.