Jalopnik: design los angeles

LA Design Challenge Entries Push The Boundaries Of Racing Madness In 2025

Ben Wojdyla — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 18:15:00 EDT

As part of the LA Auto Show, the 2008 LA Design Challenge competition places some of the world's most creative designers into a steel battle cage with a cadre of vicious weapons d'arte, forcing them to battle to the death. Okay, we made that up, but the LA Design Challenge is a competition, although one which features creative designs all based on a central theme. This year's theme is the shape of racing in the year 2025. Letting designers run wild with ideas is as dangerous as it sounds and while there will be no bloodshed on the field of battle, madness might beset the eventual winner. Although we've already seen one of the entries — join us as we take a look at all nine incredibly crazy entrants in detail.

The Audi R25 is basically the wet dream of Audi Design Center California and the Audi racing team. Imagine an R10 on acid with a bespoke race track and virtual reality viewing for spectators. Bonkers? Yes. Awesome? Ja.

We've seen the Mitsubishi MMR25 before, and the spidery-footed Mitsu is a more impressive concept now that we know it isn't just total baloney. There are actually wheels out there designed for fork lifts that share this design and it allows the vehicle to move sideways. That would certainly liven up the WRC wouldn't it?

This one is a race car for the Mad Max future. The BMW salt flat racer is powered by everyday hydrogen but built of scrap — leftover barrels, barbecue grill lids, etc. Heck, there are even fish swimming around in the "fuel" tank.

Mercedes proves racing doesn't really need to have fuel with the Formula Zero. Something of a hybrid between a sailboat and an ice racer, the Formula Zero is perfect for the distant future where racing on open water is impossible because there isn't any.

Now here's an EV we can get behind. The GM Chaparral Volt is designed and an EV racer first, but also takes inspiration from the legendary Chapparal 2J and uses rear turbines to capture wind power during braking, but also provide suction under power. The Volt does it's best 70' funk band impersonation and pulls power from earth, wind, and fire, or, geothermal, aerodynamics, and the sun.

The Toyota Lemans Racer is a shape changing race car with efficiency in mind. The car uses hydrogen fuel cells and photovoltaics for power to the electric motors, but it also shifts from a wide stance for cornering to a narrow on for high speed. It's actually fairly realistic, but could definitely use a more creative name.

Land, sea, and air, this Honda entry is designed to run in a reimagined "Great Race." The competitors would circumnavigate the Earth in 24 hours by land through the United States, by sea through Asia and by air over Europe. That's a hell of an ambitious race if you ask us, sure would be sweet though.

The VW Bio Runner imagines a Baja 100 race with a 10 gallon limit and no holds barred. The Bio Runner would be equipped with ultra efficient turbine engines (is that an oxymoron?) running at 500,000 rpm powering the machine through curves which it could lean into like a motorcycle. Almost as interesting is the hook-up to a helicopter to get the racers out of trouble when they wreck their rides.

Kaaaaaaaaan! Mazda Kaan that is, designed to race on a conductive surface which not only provides super smooth running up to 250 MPH, but powers the car on electrons only. And it looks like a shoe... to boot!

[Design Los Angeles]

LA Auto Show: Winner of the Design Challenge, Robocar 2057 is... the Volkswagen Concept Slipstream

Jonny Lieberman — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 17:15:00 EST

A panel of experts consisting of car designers, robotics specialists, Art Center faculty and (presumably) Stephan Hawkings' wheelchair looked at all the entrants and decided that the Slipstream is the coolest dog in the window. To refresh your memory, around town the Slipstream rides upright on two wheels and occupies 1/5 the space of a conventional car. Once on a specially built freeway (also called Slipstream), the Slipstream lays down like a regular car, deploys rear fins and can hit speeds exceeding 250 mph. Jalopnik would like to point out that the Slipstream's top speed is a full 50 mph slower than the Vector A-WX-8. Just sayin'. In conclusion, ~~Mercedes-Benz was robbed!~~ congratulations to the VW team of Derek Jenkins, Ian Hilton and Patrick Faulwetter.

Design Challenge, Robocar 2057: Volkswagen Concept Slipsream

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 16:45:12 EDT

Yet another prediction of dense population and saturated roadways in 2057 guides Volkswagen's design brief for its Slipstream concept. V-dub's Design Los Angeles entry is a two-wheeled, teardrop shaped pod that can tilt upward to occupy one-fifth the space of a normal car. Most notably, the Slipstream will ride on a special freeway lane, allowing the solar-powered vehicle — resembling an electric toothbrush with the head detached — to reach speeds in excess of 250 mph. And, naturally, that means a titanic municipal boondoggle could in the offing for the late 2040s. But all the bond-issue and construction headaches may work to motorists' favor, considering the Slipstream's potential to hearken a new era of personal, high-speed travel. And a desperately lonely populace. [Design Los Angeles]

Press Release:

Volkswagen Concept Slipstream
In the year 2057, population centers have become unimaginably dense and the roadways have reached the point of total saturation. Volkswagen's solution is an advanced autonomous vehicle that dynamically adapts to minimize its footprint in the city and its drag coefficient on the highways.

When in the city, these two-wheeled, teardrop shaped pods travel in an upright orientation that occupies one fifth the size of a traditional vehicle. When on a special freeway lane called the "Slipstream," it tilts to a horizontal orientation optimizing its aerodynamic shape. Rear fins slide out to allow the rear of the vehicle to float like the tail section of an airplane to achieve speeds in excess of 250 mph.

The skin of the vehicle is made of hyper-efficient solar panels that power the vehicle.

Volkswagen/Audi Design Center California
Design Team:
Ian Hilton
Derek Jenkins
Patrick Faulwetter

Design Challenge, Robocar 2057: Mazda Motonari RX

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 13:00:37 EDT

Now, this here is what we call next-level thinking. Imagine a car in which the driver is indistinguishable from his conveyance. Where the two entities merge to become some manner of cyborganic motoring organism that allows the driver to experience the feel of the road as if the car was an extension of his own cells. That's the idea of Mazda designer Matthew Cunningham, who named the Motonari RX concept in honor of a Japanese warrior. Controls are projected to be manipulated by way of a driving suit containing millions of microscopic actuators. Under the hood is a 427 ci Chevrolet rat motor. Just kidding. [Design Los Angeles]

Press Release:

Mazda Motonari RX
The Motonari RX, named after legendary Japanese warrior Mori Motonari, non-invasively integrates the driver with the vehicle making each indistinguishable from the other. A driving suit serves as the primary interface between the occupant and the vehicle, which contains millions of microscopic actuators functioning as a haptic envelope. This allows the driver to experience the road psycho-somatically, receiving electrical stimulation to specific muscle groups.

The entire structure of the vehicle is comprised of a 100 percent re-prototypable, carbon nano-tube/shape memory alloy weave with a photovoltaic coating. This enables programmable tensiometry and fluid movement while insuring efficient energy transfer to the in-wheel electro-static nanomotors.

The four omni-wheels allow 360 degree movement. Acceleration and direction is determined by two armrest mounted control points. Occupant positioning controls the effectiveness of cornering and is comparable to street luge maneuvering in appearance.

Mazda R&D of North America
Designer:
Matthew Cunningham

Design Challenge, Robocar 2057: Mercedes-Benz SilverFlow

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 11:45:28 EDT

Fifty years from now, at least as projected in Mercedes-Benz's entry for this year's Design Los Angeles, parking won't be an issue for Merc drivers. That's because cars like the SilverFlow concept will be built from micro-metallic particles that can be assembled and disassembled by way of magnetic energy. That means instead of garages, we'll be able to park our cars in duffel bags. When drive-time comes, reassembly will be a matter of pushing a button on a smart key fob and getting the hell out of the way. Plus, the idea of cars returning to the look of 1930s Grand Prix racers will totally add a whole Fritz Lang vibe to the future. Maybe we'll even have those cool electric-arc gadgets in our home laboratories. [Design Los Angeles]

Press Release:

Mercedes-Benz SilverFlow
The Mercedes-Benz SilverFlow utilizes micro-metallic particles that can be arranged via magnetic fields in many different forms based on pre-selected models. The vehicle, which can be completely dissembled into a pool of ferromagnetic material for easy storage, can adapt and transform its shape to best suit its required purpose.

The magnetic assembler, activated by a simple key fob, creates whatever vehicle its user needs. All of the programmed modes for the SilverFlow are inspired by the Mercedes Benz Grand Prix cars from the golden era of motorsports with distinct low slung shape, tall thin wheels and dramatic open-wheel design.

Any damage can be self repaired and any color/configuration/size is possible depending on the amount of source material available.

Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design of North America

Design Team:
Gorden Wagener
John Gill
Kevin Kang

Design Challenge, Robocar 2057: Honda One to the Power of Four

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 11:15:42 EDT

In 2057, according to Honda, the hybridization of automotive powerplants will encompass solar power, making designers' One to the Power of Four concept eligible to travel in the HOV lanes of the future (who knew they'd still be around?). Designers also project the 50-year population increase will require much more flexibility than current cars allow. That problem will be solved by advances in molecular engineering, which will allow the car's body panels to shape-shift as needed. The use of gyros (no, not the Greek sandwich) and artifical intelligence will make such transmogrification possible. We'd imagine all this automotive mutability will get pretty unnerving in LA traffic. [Design Los Angeles]

Press Release:

Honda - 14 - One to the Power of Four
The solar-hybrid powered Honda 14 is an energy efficient, fully robotic commuting solution. A suburban community re-population movement in the 2050's has increased consumer demand for a truly flexible commuter vehicle.

The solar-hybrid Honda 14 solves the carpooling dilemma because it allows carpoolers to take advantage of HOV lanes, share commuting costs and once near the passengers' final destinations, robotically transforms from one to four separate and unique modes of transportation.

Through a combination of gyros, artificial intelligence and molecular engineering, each individual vehicle instinctively reconfigures as a fully functional vehicle. When traveling as one, the division points are undetectable. The latest advancements in molecular engineering allow the body panels to divide and reshape to form each individual vehicle.

Honda Research & Development
Design Team:
Ben Davidson
Khrystyne Zurian
Shae Shatz

Design Challenge, Robocar 2057: GM OnStar ANT

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 10:30:51 EDT

With its entry in Design Los Angeles this year, GM's projecting the future of its OnStar service, on which the company just introduced new perp-thwarting gear. Apparently, in 2057, the telematics service will facilitate a vast network of embedded intelligence, enabling cars (i.e., foldable rolling pyramids) to communicate with each other. That, they say, will maximize traffic flow and prevent accidents, though some believe it may cause the formation of unhealthy attachments, a result of the futuristic machines' narcissistic sense of entitlement. The cars themselves, will be reconfigurable, by way of single-walled, carbon-polymer nanocomposites that form flat surface panels. The panels will incorporate the carbon nanotube battery that powers their e-motors. That settles it, in 50 years we're totally shorting jiffy lube stock. [Design Los Angeles]

Press Release:

GM-Onstar ANT
Much like the self-regulating traffic system found in nature's best commuter, the ant, OnStar enabled vehicle-to-vehicle communication and ubiquitously embedded intelligence allow GM's ANT to act independently yet communicate with other vehicles to optimize traffic flow. Quantum computing power also allows each ANT to virtually recreate a highly personalized space for any occasion or personal need.

Omni-directional propulsion, provided by three independent Nanorb wheel systems, operate as independent robots and can arrange themselves in different configurations, turning virtually anything into a mobile device. Layered, environmentally friendly, single-walled, carbon-polymer nanocomposites form the flat surface panels, which incorporate the carbon nanotube battery.

All body panels are connected with electro-active polymer actuators (a.k.a. artificial muscles), allowing the easy and silent reconfiguration of body panels, depending on their optimal street use.

General Motors Advanced Design, California Design Team:
Frank Saucedo
Steve Anderson
Jussi Timonen
Jose Paris
Lorne Kulesus
Tony Liu
Jay Bernard
Phil Tanioka

Design Challenge, Robocar 2057: Audi Virtuea

Mike Spinelli — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 10:00:00 EDT

That's right, being it's October going on November, it's time for Design Los Angeles, where car companies answer a call for futurism with sci-fi craziness. This year, the call went out for robocars from 2057. And we'll be posting the entries throughout the day. First up is the Audi Virtuea, a car Audi designers say "combines artificial intelligence with avenues of self expression." That means its design can change to suit a particular momentary proclivity. It does it by eliminating that pesky material surface and replacing it with a holograph of a body style surrounding the outside. That way, drivers can change the car's looks on the fly, thwarting the police and confounding crooks by turning into a '78 Ford Granada in bad neighborhoods. We'll take it. [Design Los Angeles]

Press Release:

2007 Design Challenge Entry Summary: Robocar 2057

Audi Virtuea Quattro
It's the year 2057 and Audi continues to revolutionize through technology, offering a hydrogen-powered vehicle that combines artificial intelligence with avenues of self expression.

This single-seat, autonomous driving machine functions as a solid unit at its core, while providing a myriad of possible holographic exteriors stored in a library and accessible through the vehicle's interactive holographic interface.

Virtuea's holographic exterior provides a variety of possibilities, allowing the driver to select from the most innovative designs from one minute to the next. The vehicles image can now be proudly displayed without environmental impact as no physical materials are needed regardless of size.

Audi takes pride in introducing personal transportation that combines passion with intelligence, which not only positively affects the environment but your life as well.

Volkswagen/Audi Design Center California
Design Team:
Heather Shaw
Jae Min
Mattijs Van Tuijl
Karl Strahlendorf
Christian Schoen