blog GAMIL: an insider look at design » BMW http://www.gamil.com elements of inspiration and moments of distraction from a small design firm Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:38:22 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 Latest wrinkle in cars http://www.gamil.com/2008/06/19/latest-wrinkle-in-cars/ http://www.gamil.com/2008/06/19/latest-wrinkle-in-cars/#comments Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:55:08 +0000 aly http://gamil.com/?p=701

Textiles are so much more sophisticated as a surface than the metals and plastics we normally work with. Their micro structures (knit, weave, etc) allow for all kinds of changes in fit and drape, while the macro structure (patterns) give you all kinds of customization and optimization for fit. So when I look at this wrinkly BMW Gina- I see a cool idea- but one designed with hardware thinking – not textile thinking. C’mon Chris Bangle: get a fashion designer to do this right!

]]> http://www.gamil.com/2008/06/19/latest-wrinkle-in-cars/feed/ 5 3 wheels more fun than 4? http://www.gamil.com/2008/01/20/3-wheels-more-fun-than-4/ http://www.gamil.com/2008/01/20/3-wheels-more-fun-than-4/#comments Sun, 20 Jan 2008 20:25:39 +0000 aly http://gamil.com/2008/01/20/3-wheels-more-fun-than-4/ Well since we’re on the subject of vehicles, I have to comment on something most basic: how many wheels are right? 2 wheels can be tippy and require balance, but 4 wheels seems to require special balancing and differentials to keep axles from snapping off. Which brings us to the 3 wheeler. As a budding designer and engineer, I was wowed with the GM Lean Machine- and thought that surely this would be the future: a vehicle that lets you sit back like a car but lean into turns like a motorcycle. Lean Machine

The specs were quite impressive, including 80 MPG. I remember turns that could be handled at more than 1 g of force.

Lean Machine Specs

The idea has had some kind of staying power, since BMW seemed to copy it directly with their low emissions CLEVER car:BMW Clever

The turning mechanism looks identical:

BMW CLEVER mechanism

Then there is the lovely Sparrow by Myers Motors – an all-electric 3 wheeler that might be the non-performance runt of the family, but is the one that made it to production.

Myers Motors Sparrow

They eventually bankrupted, but I see that you can get one at Hammacher Schlemmer now for $25k.

]]> http://www.gamil.com/2008/01/20/3-wheels-more-fun-than-4/feed/ 1