Thomas Edison could have been talking about concept cars when he said: “Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.”
In the case of Trevor Creed, sweat literally had a lot to do with the Jeep Dakar.
Creed is the Chrysler design director who orchestrated work on the Dakar, a four-wheel-drive hardtop version of the Jeep Wrangler that has fold-up shovels built into the side panels.
Part of the inspiration for the Dakar came while Creed was in a Zen-like state on his treadmill.
“I have two old posters in my basement from the London Evening News of the 1927 Wolseley,” said the British-born Creed, recalling the funky little British family car. “I look at them when I exercise. And I think they were the inspiration because when you look at the Dakar, you can see the resemblance (to the Wolseley) in the profile.
“When we started to do the Dakar, (Chrysler Vice Chairman) Bob Lutz said we should blow the socks off Land Rover,” Creed adds. “He said, `Let’s do something really wild, so the Camel Trophy guys will start wetting their pants.’ “
He is talking, of course, about the “adventure” race for Land Rover sport-utilities sponsored by Camel cigarettes.
To achieve that socks-off goal with the Dakar concept vehicle, Creed and his team of designers thought “gadgets.”
The practical-minded military Jeeps had a shovel on one side, a pickax on the other and gasoline cans lashed to the rear door. The Dakar concept vehicle has fuel cans, shovels (no pickax–not Yuppie enough) and a kit with night-vision binoculars tucked into the cargo area. Creed said he was very fussy about the type of shovels that were to go on his concept vehicle.
“I said: `Don’t go to the hardware store and buy them. Let’s get them from an upscale catalog,’ ” he said, recalling the instructions he gave his designers.
The tony Hammacher-Schlemmer catalog had almost the right shovel, but Creed said he didn’t like how it was painted (black). It took a couple of tries to get the perfect color. A silvery titanium look was unsatisfactory, but Creed said the color-and-trim team hit it right with a chocolate-brown that ended up on the show vehicle.
Though Chrysler officials say the Dakar may become a regular production vehicle, the shovels are not likely to be showroom options after all that blood, sweat and paint. Ditto for goodies such as the night-vision binoculars.
“It’s a show car, remember?” Creed said. “I don’t think it will have the shovel in the fender if it makes it into production.”
Show cars such as Dakar are part theater, part trial balloon for the automakers.
Almost without exception, concept cars and trucks are hand-built, million-dollar wonders. All are designed as image boosters whether they ever see the light of a showroom.
Korean automaker Hyundai, for example, is showing off a concept Tiburon convertible at the Chicago Auto Show, though preliminary market research has convinced the company that it couldn’t sell the car profitably for less than $25,000. Hyundai has shelved production plans for the convertible, but it doesn’t see the concept vehicle as a waste.
“This is a great image booster,” said James Park, manager of product planning for Hyundai Motor America. “It shows what our brand is all about, it generates a little excitement and it gives people a glimpse of where we’re headed in the future.”
If there is an overriding trend at this year’s auto show, it’s about show cars that point the way to trends, as evidenced by offerings such as the Pontiac Rageous, Mercury MC4, Mercury L’Attitude and Plymouth Pronto.
The Big Three seem to have the most notable concept offerings this year, with Chrysler leading the way. Witness the fiery red-orange Dodge Copperhead roadster–widely referred to as the Dodge Viper’s baby brother, it comes with snakeskin-like leather seats–and the dual-cowl Chrysler Phaeton. The classy Phaeton is reminiscent of a 1940 Chrysler Newport and even has speedometer, odometer and tachometer for rear-seat passengers.
If you’re looking at show cars for hints at what’s likely to come in the next few years, look no farther than the Pontiac Rageous and Mercury MC4. Both are a cross between a sport-ute and a sports car. But where sport-utes took their cues from the truck side of the family, the new incarnations are favoring the car.
The olive-colored Mercury L’Attitude attempts to combine a family wagon with a sport-ute and features a middle roof panel that opens so rear-seat passengers can stand to take pictures or get a better view. The backs of the L’Attitude’s taupe leather rear seats fold forward and the bottoms lift and lock to expose a flat observation platform.
Camera mounts equipped with Nikon cameras are built into the concept car’s roof. The L’Attitude has unusual neon turn signals and three step pads that allow easy access to its roof.
The L’Attitude has a portable Apple Newton global positioning system navigational unit in the front console It also has a map display, directional guidance, a telephone dialing device and mobile office capabilities, along with side air bags.
The MC4 (short for Mercury Coupe four-door) and Pontiac Rageous redefine concept cars and make them more accessible to families. They are as close as an adult will come to the Transformer style robot action figures that could be bent and twisted to take on new personalities and functions–the coupe becomes a sedan becomes a wagon.
The Mercury MC4, which features hot-and-cold cupholders (even a stainless steel cup) and an easy-to-reach integrated child seat, may be the vehicle that rebuilds the hard-to-define Mercury brand.
“The MC4 is the spearhead of where the new Mercury brand will go,” said Mark Adams, chief designer of Mercury’s striking concept vehicle. “This is clearly not a Lincoln and clearly not a Ford. It’s a new personality for the brand. The car dispels the myth of the sports coupe with its practical attributes.”
The inspiration for the sleek Mercury concept coupe came from the phenomenal success of the Ford F150 trucks with their third doors or “access panels.”
“It sounds crazy, but the F150 was the springboard,” Adams said.
The MC4 is about the size of a Thunderbird and looks like a cross between a sports car and a station wagon, with elements of Ford’s crisp New Edge styling. You might even think of it as a six-door design, with two large front doors, two smaller rear doors and twin gull-wing doors for access to the trunk.
Functionality is key with MC4.
Shorter drivers will appreciate the fact that the vehicle’s power pedals, steering wheel and instrument cluster can be adjusted to fit the long- and short-legged. Twin sliding sunroofs are the logical extension of dual climate controls. The center console runs the length of the car and has a television monitor for back-seat passengers.
The concept vehicle is rear-wheel-drive and powered by Ford’s 4.6-liter, V-8 engine though Adams said the vehicle could accept a variety of power plants.
The Pontiac Rageous may be all muscle, with its 5.7-liter, 315-horsepower, Ram Air V-8 engine, massive 22-inch Goodyear Eagle rear tires and zero-to-60 time of 5 1/2 seconds, but it’s partly business, too.
Like the MC4, the Rageous (short for Outrageous) starts with a basic two-door configuration, adds tiny swing-out rear doors–Pontiac calls them access panels–plus a long hatchback and small fold-down tailgate.
Inside are bucket seats for four, each with a cupholder, and lots of storage, including 7 map pockets, 10 net pockets, 3 glove boxes and a lockable bin under the driver’s armrest (suggested by a police officer in a focus group who said he wanted a place to stash his .38).
The rear seats and the front passenger seat fold flat.
“We’ve taken a high-performance coupe and made it functional,” said William Heugh, Pontiac Grand Prix brand manager. “You can get 4×8 plywood into it, soccer balls and scuba gear.”
Rageous also copies the access panel feature of today’s pickup trucks, effectively making it a four-door coupe. It has a hatchback and dozens of hooks for tying down cargo inside.
“This is the right place for Pontiac,” said Roy Roberts, head of the GMC-Pontiac division. “Look at the people who have migrated from passenger cars, the people who want the flexibility of a truck but the amenities of a car. That’s what we’re going after.”
Adds John Schinella, Pontiac executive brand director, when asked how purists will react to the Rageous’ hatchback: “This is not for real purists. The purists will buy a Corvette or Mercedes. This is for other people.”
Plymouth has taken the opposite tack with Pronto, described by Chrysler insiders as the forerunner of a new “tall car” that may be built on the chassis of the next-generation Neon in 1999.
So excited is Chrysler about the vehicle’s possibilities that some executives say they may do a quick 90-day study, similar to the one done on the purple Prowler roadster when it was a concept vehicle, and rush the Pronto into production.
Picture the TV show “Friends,” and you’ll know who the Pronto is aimed at.
From its matte-finish, Prowler-ish nose and bumpers to distinctive five-door shape, the Pronto looks like nothing else on the road. Aimed at entry-level buyers, including new families, the vehicle combines the functionality of a sport-ute, the space of a mini-van and the economy of a subcompact.
The Prowler cues are important because Chrysler executives say they will continue to incorporate them into all Plymouth products.
“We hope the Prowler will do for Plymouth what Viper did for Dodge,” said Neil Walling, a Chrysler design director.
Powered by Neon’s 2-liter, 4, Pronto has two front bucket seats and a split rear bench that folds flat for more cargo space. It uses inexpensive plastic body panels with molded-in color. A nifty feature is a rollback canvas roof that adds to its jaunty character.
“We’re trying to redefine entry-level vehicles,” said Walling, who describes the Pronto concept stand as “theater of the affordable.”
“We kept saying, `Why can’t we redefine the entry-level segment so it reflects what the buyers mostly want?’ “
