Between the Rolos and the Laffy Taffys and the Jolly Ranchers, Halloween was rough. No need to panic, though. Dr. Giugiaro will see you right away in his 1989 Isotron. That’s right. A dentist’s chair. Giugiaro designed a dentist’s chair.
I wouldn’t fault you for thinking that the Giugiaro Isotron is a teal mid-engined wedge of a design exercise built on a Lamborghini chassis that you steer with the pedals. It wouldn’t be out of character for the man, who has spent his life churning out some of the most important car designs of the 20th century.
But the thing is that Giugiaro’s studio, Italdesign Giugiaro S.p.A, has always been involved in designing things other than cars. You might be familiar with the Nikon D800 camera, or perhaps you’ve sat in an Okamura Contessa chair. They do tractors and trains too. So maybe it does make some sense that the designers under the great Giugiaro’s wing would try their hand at a dentist’s chair too.
As for the chair itself, it’s pretty classic late ‘80s Giugiaro to me. I like the way that the panels of the char itself have a soft, organic look to them, much like the seats in a concept car of the day. Italdesign says that the shape is designed to be non-threatening, which sounds like a good feature for one of these. The instrument console is supposedly more ergonomically friendly and encourages “good lateral mobility,” though if it is so innovative I wonder why it hasn’t caught on so far.
So, if you do need to make it in for a check-up, try to find someone who’s got Giugiaro’s chair. It could only make the experience better.