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The Crossfire is all about striking and thought provoking
design. In the article below, extracted from the IdeasFactory website, Crossfire designer Andrew
Dyson discusses the processes involved in creating such a
car.
BREAKING
THE MOULD
Visionary 'concept
cars' can provoke strong reactions, but truly iconic design should
survive the test of time. So claims Midlands-born Andrew Dyson,
design manager at Chrysler. Nick
Carson tracked him down to
find that even the dreamiest of cars start life as a humble
sketch.
It's taken decades to put the risk
factor back into car design, shedding the stereotype of the
box-shaped one-size-fits-all 'world car' of the 1970's. But classic
design doesn't happen automatically; before any stunningly rendered
computerised models see the light of day you need someone with a
vision, and the talent to express it. "Computer technology is only
as good as the people operating it," Dyson points out. "Ideas are
generated by sketching."
INSPIRATIONAL
SURROUNDINGS
Before anything gets down on paper you
need a source of inspiration, and personal pride shouldn't get in
the way: if another manufacturer does something right, there's no
shame in having a look. "We were into retro design," he recalls:
"The PT Cruiser and Prowler were inspired by the Hotrods of the
past. But we're no longer focussed on particular cars; we're
projecting our image into the future."
Architecture is a common muse: your surroundings, Dyson believes,
are pivotal to the style of car you create. Ironically, the
Chrysler building - an icon of 1930's design, itself inspired by
Chrysler cars - helped shape the vision of the company's latest
revelation, the Crossfire. "The art-deco style used in Detroit is
expressive, using refined shapes," Dyson enthuses. "This suits our
current image: we need to be over-expressive to show we're an
American company, but on a palatable level. It must be wild, but
not outlandish - in good taste, in other words - to be successful
internationally."
CREATING
TIMELESSNESS
Artistic movements come and go but
great design, he argues, should never lose its edge. "On a personal
level I prefer designs that survive long-term, so that when you
show them to people years down the line they still like them," he
explains. "I dislike trend-setting cars that lose their style.
Iconic designs are good when they come out and remain good: I
always question things that are designed purely for the sake of
raising eyebrows."
This is not to say that a car shouldn't cause a stir: as Chrysler's
head of design Trevor Creed, also from the Midlands, has said, the
worst possible response to a new car is bored indifference. "You
have to be slightly shocked by something," Dyson proposes,
"otherwise when it reaches production it will not be on
target."
DESIGN
PSYCHOLOGY
Hitting the right note with everyone
seems an impossible challenge, but the visceral appeal of a 'dream
car' boils down to basic aesthetics. "The way a car looks is an
emotional thing. The eye is drawn to something it finds attractive
and drawn away from something it doesn't. For some, function is
beautiful, hence the success of the pick-up in the US. They're
icons in their own right: cool-looking because of what they do. But
the two cross-link no end: you need cars at whatever level that are
still attractive to you."
The compulsive attraction many feel towards their personal 'dream
car' is as highly individual as a dream itself, according to Dyson.
"When you dream about something, you have a vision that's unique to
you," he explains. "With a show car it's not always important that
it works; it can still create a subjective emotional effect. All
cars start as a vision, like a dream on paper: you then need to
make it a reality."
SKETCHBOOK
TO SHOWROOM
Some designers use computers to develop
that initial sketch, but a white screen is essentially no different
from a blank sheet of paper. "You use all the resources you can
get; it's not important what method you use," Dyson insists.
"Computers are not necessarily better; but they can improve
communication."
The 2D sketch must then be translated into 3D before the final
surface is rendered using high-end CAD software such as CATIA and
Alias Studio. The pinpoint-accurate mathematical curves that define
the vehicle's shape are tweaked to perfection, before the real
hands-on work begins on a one-fifth actual size model.
An aluminium core is built up using wood and Styrofoam, and a 50mm
deep shell of clay is literally hand sculpted to achieve the
desired effect. Concurrently every individual component and
interior detail needs to be lab tested and adjusted accordingly,
while a process known as Design Quality Assurance attempts to keep
the designer's original vision alive amongst the flood of technical
considerations before it reaches the manufacturing
stage.
SENSE
AND SENSIBILITY
"Design is a creative activity, so you
must have an emotional connection to it," Dyson advises. "But it
can be frustrating: you need to make designs personal and fit them
to what the company is looking for. People will often mess them
around, and you need to get used to it," he warns. "Every single
day you are challenged by others that your vision can't be done in
the way you want it. It's important at this stage to make a
conscious decision, and either consider alternatives or fight for
what you know is the best solution."
To be successful then, you can't afford to become too attached to
your design. "You must connect with the emotional side and step
back and think logically," is Dyson's recommendation. "Natural
talent will always shine through in creating a design and getting
it chosen, but unfortunately there are talented people in the
industry without the business sense to get any
further."
NO
CUTTING CORNERS
The car design industry is fiercely
competitive and to reach the top, he insists, there are no short
cuts: "You will certainly need a BA at least in industrial, product
or automotive design; possibly a Masters." But while professional
training is unavoidable, a fresh approach should not be stifled by
years of design theory: "Too much history can inhibit your creative
judgement," he asserts.
Dyson's own career path pans out as follows:
• Post A-level
Foundation course at Bournville School of Art (now part of BIAD -
Birmingham Institute of Art and Design)
• BA (Hons) Product Design at Manchester University
• Masters in Vehicle Design at the Royal College of Art,
London
• Gained sponsorship from Rover Group in 1988; worked there
for 2 years
• Chose to move to Volkswagen in 1990, where he worked for 10
years
• Moved to Chrysler in 2000
What does his home region have to offer
in the field? "Coventry University does some good courses in
Vehicle Design and there are lots of graduates working in the
Midlands area," he acknowledges. But Dyson suggests many designers
spread to London or abroad simply because Birmingham can't provide
the iconic architecture so crucial to design inspiration: "It's not
as big, and scale restricts the general appreciation of design," he
concludes.