A few comments, and I will try to be gentle... as I full well realize some PM from Acura's design studio just has to be reading this thread and sweating their next performance review.
While initial impressions do count, and I
really tried to look at each of the prototype shots- front 3/4's, and tail and *not* jump to a negative impression like everyone else- hey, it was difficult what else can I say? After finally reading the official Honda press release unveiling speech, I inserted my own helpful annotations for JON IKEDA per below which you are free to pass on to him:
Good afternoon, everyone. After almost 20 years of designing vehicles I can honestly say that I can't remember being as excited about a car as I am about this Advanced Sports Car Concept. When the team and I designed the latest generation TL, we had to be concerned with all the practical aspects of a production car, but with this concept we could really let our imaginations run wild. We could break free of conventional design theories and explore whole new styling concepts and design languages, and with good reason.
That is fantastic. In the first paragraph he announces that he used to be on the team that designed the TL. Not the lead engineer whom is responsible for having dominated Super GT in 1998... this guy was stuck in meetings figuring out how many cup holders can flip out of a DIN sized hole in the dash or how much the voice activated navigation system would impact project costs on an excel spreadsheet. Very confidence inspiring. Bury yourself in the first few sentences.
Over the past few years, automotive designers have faced a growing challenge. Like all of you, we want to embrace the incredible new technology that's currently being developed at an accelerated pace, especially here at Acura. But at the same time, we don't want to lose the emotional appeal we all love about the most striking and evocative automotive designs. In other words, designers must find a way to allow technology and emotion to co-exist; to creatively fuse precision engineering with passionate execution.
What is that growing challenge? Making good designs or finding steady work? Sounds like some non-specific press BS to me. Passionate execution??? We don't care if the designers are having a good time, buy them some video games if they want to goof off... our NSX is serious business over here.
This is especially important for us, as technology and emotion have been the two main tenets of the Acura brand since our beginning more than 20 years ago. With all that in mind, we embarked on an aggressive new approach to design. And we developed this, the Acura "Advanced Sports Car Concept."
It's a bold and provocative design execution that attempts to define the concept of "Advance" which Mr. Fukui mentioned earlier. It's our idea of what an exotic high-performance sports car can look like in the not so distant future, while retaining some subtle design cues from our first generation NSX.
Perhaps he is referring to the fact that the original NSX had two doors.
In the exterior styling, you'll see definitive design elements that communicate that fine balance of technical precision and emotion I spoke of a moment ago. For example, laser-sharp edges throughout the vehicle represent a powerful sense of engineering precision. The side of the car and the dramatic hood surfaces feature what we call sheer, machined, surfacing, again, to convey a feeling of technical exactness.
This precision is subtly balanced by more natural design elements. Free-flowing directional lines, like the one here on the car's flank, appear and then disappear into the body to mimic the random patterns found throughout nature. These taut lines and unexpected surface transitions also add an element of tension and suspense, contributing to the strong emotion of the overall design. Together, these three design elements create what we call "Keen-Edge Dynamic". They represent the Precision, Technology, and Emotion inherent in our styling.
I get it, we won't have to buy Taitec rear quarter panels and you also think defined lines look cool and will use it to set you apart from GM.
The long, powerful hood, low slung cabin and short wide deck work together to create a powerful sense of anticipation - almost like a slingshot pulled back and straining to be released.
Like the Pontiac Cross fire? Let me guess, HR got a deal on now out of work college grad designers from Detroit.
And with a V10 engine and Super Handling All-Wheel Drive power-train it will be a very powerful and precise slingshot.
Right... true to the minimalist NSX design philosophy from 91' right? If we just throw a V10 and AWD in that front engine bay then we'll have our own marketable GTR. That is what took you 15 years to figure out? 4 more cylinders and AWD?
We even pursued the direction of "Keen Edge" styling in the wheel design. They are 19-inches at the front, 20 at the rear and in my opinion, are the most visually striking we've ever designed at Acura.
I didn't even have to read the press release to know that design idea came from LA. 19 and 20" wheels? That's Honda's super secret advanced sports car technology? That sure didn't come from Suzuka.. what is this a Dodge Magnum or a sports car you are building? No spinners?
This "Advanced Sports Car Concept" was designed here in the United States, and you can anticipate more forward-looking, ground-breaking, designs from us as our new Acura Design Center in California comes online in just a few months.
*Great * We can't wait...
On behalf of Mr. Fukui and myself, thank you for attending. Now, I'd like to invite all of you to take a closer look at our new Acura Advanced Sports Car Concept.
The only thing I'll be taking a look at is my NA2 in my garage. To think the corvette guys sweated fixed headlights on the new C6. Let the Cali designers take reign and those enthusiasts would have burnt that design studio to the ground.
