GMC Pad: Why Commute?
Designers: Steve Anderson, Senon B. Franco III, Jay Bernard, Phil Tanioka, Sidney Levy, Brian Horton, Alessandro Zezza, Christine Ebner, Frank Saucedo; GM West Coast Advanced Design Studio
The designers' description
Why commute? Adapt instead. That's the thinking behind the GMC Pad, which offers an innovative look at an urban loft with mobility. It's a home ownership concept that enables cultural and geographic freedom for the modern city dweller. The GMC Pad features a diesel-electric hybrid powerplant that produces propulsion while in DriveMode and also serves as a generator for the on-board power grid in LifeMode. The media-rich environment is unlike any other, and comes with an endless variety of entertainment, information and security options. With the GMC PAD, home is where you want it. And commuting is what other people do.
Our take
Airstream trailer meets modern motorhome, a reaction to the staggering cost of real estate in Los Angeles and the pittance that young designers earn.
Honda L.A. Rolling Film Festival
Designers: Honda Research & Development
The designers' description
The Movies! That's one common attribute of L.A. that's recognized worldwide. In honor of L.A.'s movie persona, the designers at Honda have created vignettes of vehicles and lifestyles for several of the cultures, lifestyles and images of L.A. And they designed them with the imaginative consideration of the second most important characteristic of L.A.-living on roadways. For the fitness crowd, there's the Running Bus, and this ingenious human-powered hybrid bus features ten stationary running machines as its power source. Then there's the Jacarzzi, a sleek sports car that doubles as a hot tub. And the vehicles are presented in the most easily understood language of L.A., the movie poster.
Our take
Totally high concept, as they like to say during power lunches between Hollywood executives at the Ivy, but also about as much content as a situation comedy on Fox.
Hyundai Greenspeed Gator
Designer: Eric M. Stoddard; Hyundai Kia America Design Center
The designer's description
What happens when drag racing moves beyond internal combustion and nitrous oxide? It's the Hyundai Greenspeed Gator, which pushes the boundaries of both design and fuel-cell performance. Inspired by the front-engine, "slingshot" drag-racing cars of the 1960s, this alien shape is purely functional. The overall design consists of a main fuselage with integrated rollover protection above the driver's "seat sling," while the chassis is tied together by a center-spine configuration with integrated fuel cells. The giant hood blisters conceal the hydrogen storage tanks, while the oversize rear wheels conceal gargantuan electric motors.
Our take
Looks like an oversize radio-controlled racer, yet it also has an RC car's inspired simplicity and purposefulness. ...next page >>