RE: Lotus Esprit: the name's official
Discussion
lotustt said:
You should post up your sketch that you drew up a while back. Errr.
Edited by lotustt on Thursday 10th August 14:07
on another forum, i did post my thumbnails of what the esprit should look like; as soon as i confirmed the final body shape at lotus had been been signed off for production. didn't want them stealing ideas.
i just changed my profile picture to a concept drawn before i could legally drive.
those guys are amateurs; even with affordable 3D computer software at their disposal.
teigan said:
lotustt said:
You should post up your sketch that you drew up a while back. Errr.
Edited by lotustt on Thursday 10th August 14:07
on another forum, i did post my thumbnails of what the esprit should look like; as soon as i confirmed the final body shape at lotus had been been signed off for production. didn't want them stealing ideas.
i just changed my profile picture to a concept drawn before i could legally drive.
those guys are amateurs; even with affordable 3D computer software at their disposal.
I think there's a difference between drawing a car that 'looks pretty' and one that is technically accurate and fit for purpose. The drawings we've seen are people trying to fit the details they've heard rumours about into a suitable package. There's no doubt it would be possible to produce a more 'real' looking picture, and quite easy to produce a more 'artistic' looking car, but that's not the point. They're trying to show the major design cues and fit the proportions they expect to see used. There is a reason why people spend years on car design courses rather than just dropping out of art school. :-)
It's all very well you saying that you've drawn a better car, but does it fit Lotus' requirements, the legal requirements for modern vehicles and does it include the design elements that Lotus want to use as signatures in their new models? Until you can say that your drawings are both functional as a car and look like a Lotus rather than just a random sports car, then you're just talking hot air.
So - please drop the massively negative comments. There are some interesting themes running through the different guesses at the new design, and those are the things to look for rather than expecting a photorealistic, beautiful rendering of the car that Lotus are going to release.
Tuna said:
I think there's a difference between drawing a car that 'looks pretty' and one that is technically accurate and fit for purpose.
Agreed. And that is the difference between stylists and designers. The titles are often confused. Most of those classed as designing cars merely style them - those are the "stylised" almost cartoonesque illustrations we see. Once the designers have got to them - those are the guys that have a wholistic approach to the make-up of the car and are mindful of its appearance offset against necessary mechanical hard-points, safety regs, environmental legislation, development and production budgets etc. - they often look watered down but in fact "make" the car.
Unless an individual has the talents of a whole team of automotive engineers - even Morgan and TVR employ many people to bring a car to market - you can only consider you have a single perspective. And that, typically in such discussions, is how the car is styled.
If you have some illustrations Teigan I would happily add them as Car 6 in the list of candidates (if it is such a thing).
Edited by hendry on Friday 11th August 10:41
i agree cartoony renderings are a good starting point, but when they go to a photorealistic image, i expect the perspective on the headlights to match left and right. i have seen impressive drawings by car designers before; but everything i've seen posted of the new esprit have been mediocre, both in technique and creativity.
I would have to agree that an over abundance of negative thought is not good... However, I could make the argument that it is well founded - esp. from the last decade of the majority of automotive stylist. Or rather their bosses in management!
For a decade or better the buying public has generally been forced to pick from a lot of designs approved by management that "knows what we want". Ford, Chrysler, Mercury (what the hell happened here?), and to cross the pond... Jaguar, Mercedes, Honda, and BMW come to mind. Really boring cars with a linage that was not boring.
This had very little to do with regs and more to with "safe styling". I think this is why there is a so few cars that stand out in the current line up - and they are all "exotic" or, like the new Mustang, Challenger, and Miura - get blasted by critics as "RETRO". OOOOOOOO..... retro.
No! These cars were actually styled by people that did not have to deal with middle management for approval. The cars are ACTUALLY what they should have been all along. Nobody can say the new Mustang looks like anything but a Mustang. The old Fox platform car... well... no.
I have every confidence that the New Lotus will look good. And I agree that style drawings are the start. I might be the one person that prefers the "pen" as the CAD and wind tunnel designs are really no very pretty (Enzo comes to mind). Thank God for people like Peter Stevens that use the CAd and wind tunnel "stuff", but not to the detriment of the pen. on a good note, perhaps /some/ of the negative comments will make it back to the 'shop' and the ugly design elements will be lost to the floor trash?
Drive topless!!!
Cameron
Just be glad it is not going to be a front drive mid engine or something goofy like that!
For a decade or better the buying public has generally been forced to pick from a lot of designs approved by management that "knows what we want". Ford, Chrysler, Mercury (what the hell happened here?), and to cross the pond... Jaguar, Mercedes, Honda, and BMW come to mind. Really boring cars with a linage that was not boring.
This had very little to do with regs and more to with "safe styling". I think this is why there is a so few cars that stand out in the current line up - and they are all "exotic" or, like the new Mustang, Challenger, and Miura - get blasted by critics as "RETRO". OOOOOOOO..... retro.
No! These cars were actually styled by people that did not have to deal with middle management for approval. The cars are ACTUALLY what they should have been all along. Nobody can say the new Mustang looks like anything but a Mustang. The old Fox platform car... well... no.
I have every confidence that the New Lotus will look good. And I agree that style drawings are the start. I might be the one person that prefers the "pen" as the CAD and wind tunnel designs are really no very pretty (Enzo comes to mind). Thank God for people like Peter Stevens that use the CAd and wind tunnel "stuff", but not to the detriment of the pen. on a good note, perhaps /some/ of the negative comments will make it back to the 'shop' and the ugly design elements will be lost to the floor trash?
Drive topless!!!
Cameron
Just be glad it is not going to be a front drive mid engine or something goofy like that!
the management is always ultimately to blame. whether they microdictate the styling direction or not, they still approve the final design. that's why it's the managers' jobs that get shuffled when the sales figures come in. it's really too late to influence the upcoming esprit. it doesn't seem as if the current lotus team wanted input either. it was the same modus operandi for the europa. following that pattern, they'll get very secretive for a long time, then unveil too little too late. but at least the europa isn't a cheap lamborghini knock off. that strategy has no balls. if those drawings were done to reflect the styling cues lotus ordered, then lotus should adapt their badge to sport a bull minus any testicles.
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