Volvo wins Best Brand Design Language Award
Volvo Cars, Aston Martin and Mazda have each one the 2016 Car Design Award. The Award is the Oscar of world automotive design instituted in 1984 on
By Rahul Kapoor
The Car Design Award was assigned for fourteen consecutive editions up to 1997. This year the award has been revived in a completely renewed incarnation, faithful, however, to the spirit that has always characterised it: to reward the authors of projects that have made a significant contribution to the evolution of car design. As before, the winners were decided by a jury of experts representing the most prestigious world car magazines, thus ensuring an objective judgment on the world car design scene.
The Car design Award is divided into three categories:- “Brand Design Language”, “Concept cars” and “Production Cars”.
Best Brand Design Language Award
The jury was impressed by the brand design language of Volvo Cars the most. The key facts being the cleaner, more elegant, and updated take on the organic simplicity of the Peter Horbury era is what caught the eyes of the panel. While each Volvo has its own personality, Thomas Ingenlath incorporated a unique trademark front grille while maintaining the trademark styles and the gorgeous ‘Thor’s Hammer” headlamps in the S90, V90 and the XC90. Soon the same features will be available on the V40 and other cars from Volvo’s line up.
Best Concept Car Design Award
The best Concept Car award was presented to Mazda for the rotary engine Maza RX-Concept car. The RX-Vision designers have been able to embody beauty by simply clothing the mechanicals, without adding unnecessary frills. The RX-Vision has a low, stretched bonnet housing the latest generation rotary engine, a reminder of Mazda's sporty tradition. Maxda’s RX-Vision concept follows the "Kodo - Soul of Motion" design philosophy that has made all Mazda’s products unmistakable the world over.
Best Production Car Design Award
The best Production Car award was claimed by the Aston Martin DB11. The project led my Aston Martin’s design director, Marek Reichman and his team have created many beautiful cars in the past, and now the team dropped the heart stopping gorgeous DB11 sports car to the world. The jury was motivated by the team’s ability to blend elegance and power once again. The DB11 accentuates the iconic Aston Martin design features with the long engine hood, thin greenhouse and muscular rear fenders – in an even more rakish interpretation. The polished aluminium element that connects the A and C pillars adds a new flavour of modernity to the DB11.
Organised by Auto&Design magazine, the Car design Award is assigned by an international jury consisting of ten automotive magazines from around the world: Silvia Baruffaldi (Auto&Design), Bernd Wieland (AutoBild/ AutoBild Klassik), Todd Lassa (Automobile Magazine), Christophe Bonnaud (Automobiles Classiques), Luca Ciferri (Automotive News Europe), Juan Carlos Payo Calderon (Autopista), Dhruv Behl (AutoX), Tetsuya Kato (Car Graphic), Doo-Hyun Cho (Motor Trend Korea), Zeca Chaves (Quatro Rodas) and Charlie Turner (Top Gear).
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