Summer Interlude - Drawing on the Past...Concept Influences

Simply to add further context to the 'Longboat' concept very loosely shown previously and here.

At the time Rover Cars was seeking to convince the public of its technical capabilities, of how traditionalism could be laid over advanced engineering. And so in various terminus railway stations around the UK, and so amongst the normal retail outlets at such stations, created what were showcase technical centres as convincing PR exercises.

The prime example of that technical know-how was the K-series engine; which with its 'long-bolt' architecture, was shown as the company's tour de force, along with other aspects of its new cars.

But far more was required within the brand to convince a German orientated and still somewhat skeptical aspirant buyer.

The hope that R75 would help redefine the marque as alternative yet on par with Audi, Volvo, Saab, and expectations of the R55 project providing a new meaningful product in the B-C segment (see next web-log), it was only natural to begin to think - in a very theorectical manner - about a product above R75 which would itself be a new Flagship for the brand - but would need to arrive from new thinking across the board.

The very generalistic product, manufacturing and overall business strategy was described previously, but what was not explained was the broader notion that the car and Rover could in itself seek to be seen as a metaphorical vehicle that referred to the Best of British Engineering.

Hence, the 'Longboat' concept appeared to have a 'hull' visually sat inside a 'shell', to both provide a distinctive form and aid aerodynamics.

The Viking longboats of yore (the brand's logo) had sailed up what is now the Humber Estuary and the River Hull to and past Hull, itself long established by the Vikings as Vik or Wic (meaning inlet) well before its notional Christian beginnings.

Thus a serendiptious wordplay of the term 'Hull'.

The city of Hull and the Humber (itself a vehicle marque of yesteryear) is renowned for the Humber Bridge, which was when finally actually built (54 years after originally planned) was the longest Suspension Bridge in the world for 16 years. It was a feat of British engineering.

Thus, although the 95/105 Rover concept 'sat' on an adapted Range Rover P38A chassis for cost and ride quality, with the cabin itself part 'suspended' from a superstructure frame - from the Cant Rails (in engineer's lingo) - which itself mated to the turrets of the suspension towers; so mimicking the structural arch of the Hull and Barnsley Rail Bridge, and so correlating Cant Rails and Railway.

Thus the concept deliberately sought to cross-referance and utilise a very alternative idea of a 'Vehicle Suspension Bridge', which itself had direct correlation to a specific part of the country - and once thriving industrial city, itself born from Viking settlement.

The visual 'hull' of the car containing bonnet, cabin and boot, visually 'sat' inside the 'shell'. Although that term is used for a full monocoque BIW (body in white) the term here was used to present three distinct ideas:

1. All enveloping outer-body protection
2. So protecting the innately valuable contents (occupants in cabin - 'the pearl in the shell').
3. Aero/Fluid dynamic research's use of 'Shell Balance' when determining aero surfaces

Hence again the use of a term which had immediate story resonnance to the potential buyer, but also had far deeper technical meaning, so cognitively substantiating and reinforcing the very notion of a shell, yet also providing powerful new understanding of the aero philosophy behind the car per its 'Technical Marketing'.

The air flow so managed by the side surfaces of the bonnet to both drive passing air into a charge cooler via 'Ram Effect' Vanes at high speeds to raise its density and so provide more powerful combustion and so engine power and torque. With also part of that flow used to extract hot engine bay air to provide a theorectical 'Meredith Effect' at high speeds from underneath the car and through internal ducting via the sides. ( This not to be confused with typical underfloor zero treatments).

The structural frame would have been conventional tubular steel for innate strength and predictable impact engineering, but filled with vibration absorbing foam to help further dampen any remaining road-wheel vibrational intrusion from the already much dampened separate chassis riding on  air-suspension.

The frame wrapped in steel and aluminium inner structural panels and aluminium outer skin panels for the cabin and bonnet, and - as previously mentioned - composite front wings, quarter panels and front and rear valances created
from low cost rotational molding techniques. That long since used to create water butts (as mentioned), and vitally well respected robust watercraft, from canoes to dive-boats to speedboats.

And vitally would offer a separate visual cue - of whatever character - compared to the traditional perfect A-surface finishes of the central cabin, so creating a deliberate contrast. And so the ability to create a broad range of visual contrasts using texture, embossing, colourways etc. (The most obvious being that of robust protection, but could extend in whichever design direction imagined).

Ultimately the car was to itself be a metaphorical, visual and technical showcase for the best of past, present and future British Engineering; and would have included a presentation pack that described the idioms of the car; the cultural references and the stories of those people.

From the Viking ships and their cross-continental trading routes, to the airflow routing theories of FW Meredith. Those who helped make Britain over the centuries.

A panopoly of cultural and engineering references to reinforce the name of Rover and have it act as the formal vessel for promoting itself as the epicentre of the best of British Engineering.

That was the Product and Brand Vision ultimately extinguished with BMW's (rationally correct) disposal of the firm.

It was Bernd Pishetsrieder had sought such a vision when Rover Group was bought....but it was Wolfgang Reitzle who recognised the immensity of such a task, when it was divested.

Summer Interlude - Drawing on the Past....Once Again.

Continuation of the previous message regards the importance of old fashioned Drawing and Sketching in our modern world.

With provision of very basic sketch and contextual explanation.

Today, everyday experiences are overtly digital, with 'augmented reality' and 'virtual reality' not so far away given immensely available computing power. But it is the tactility and inter-connectedness between self and the creative medium that allows the human spirit to thrive.

And whilst CAD software such as CATIA has developed to such a degree that highly complex products - from cars to aeroplanes - can be created with an astounding degree of sophistication (delineating different systems, packaging efficiency etc) is essential to industry, the software that that is Microsoft 'Paint' to the drawing tools of an iPad, whilst fun, are in comparison to traditional methods, still artificial in feel, more cumbersome and so less rewarding results.

More than ever people need to draw, to feel more connected the world, and not just subsumed into cyberspace. So as to observe and think in a far more considered way.  Thereby raising consciousness and molding more thoughtful behaviour that could be utilised elsewhere in their lives; from basic social interaction to creation of something that is their very own in 2D or eventually 3D.

The importance of drawing in automotive history very well exemplified by the very setting and exhibits at the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed.

The vast majority of those vehicles were first imagined upon paper as formative sketches, then high quality (client or boardroom) renderings, and then at the beginning of engineering development as General Arrangement layouts in 1st or 3rd Projection, as sectional cut-aways and areas of specific detail.

Goodwood provided a cornucopia of automotive wonderment across virtually every vehicle segment, from a current Kamaz Dakar Race truck persistently 'drifting', to a stationary Voisin C30 Scooter-mobile sat as a yesteryear oddity amongst the 'Style et Lux' showcase.

In that rarefied realm of tactile design and use, though the Abarth 205 coupe won the event amongst the parade of Bugattis, Bentleys, Abarths etc, for its sheer aesthetic beauty, it was the breadth and uniqueness of Gabriele Voisin's efforts continue to inspire to this day.

Idiosyncratic vision that sought to infuse his vehicles with alternative zeitgeist influences from other arenas, specifically from Modernist architecture and the Art Deco interiors and details of his era. A juxtapostion of the stark and raw against the sumptuous and vibrant. From piano hinges to simply constructed radiator ornament, so as to deliberately contrast against the conventional sculpt and cast method. His work was Futurism made manifest for people to admire, and the avante-garde set to purchase.

But what of the future?...

As regards the disguised Land Rover Defender shown at Goodwood, it vaguely appears that Head of Design Gerry McGovern has chosen to infuse the new vehicle with much of his mid 1990s efforts for Freelander 1.

Using that vehicle as the apparent new baseline/benchmark for the new aesthetic of what is intended as a new icon.

Round headlights sunken into black or transparent rectangular bezels were the mid 1990s 'go to' cue for L-R Design, seeking to morph old style sealed-beam units with modern halogen and now LED clusters. Similarly, the softening of previously heavily rectilinear body forms, providing more rounded shoulders and edges that could create a visual unity through similar and proportionate radii, And at the rear, the same treatment as front: with previously separate round tail lamps still present but absorbed into unified surround..

McGovern's Freelander did much to align L-R with mainstream vehicle aesthetics, so as to open the brand to the then burgeoning middle-classes, their 'lifestyle' being far closer to Safari Parks and Salsa Classes, rather than rural utility or leisure off-roading. But it together with consumer credit is what allowed L-R to substantially grow its volumes and profitability.

And Freelander 1 is now over two decades old, and may now itself be internally viewed - and by younger focus groups - as representing an 'original' L-R look in the modern era.

All will be seen when finally revealed, but seemingly a major departure from old Defender so as to catch-up with the plethora of modern leisure-utility vehicles, from Hi-Lux's to L200s to  Rangers to Navarras to Amaroks and now the X-class.

[NB there's always been heavy VM reliance on JVs in this sector, as seen with GM-Isuzu in the 1970s, Mazda-Ford in the 1980s, Toyota-VW in the 2010s and now Nissan-Mercedes on verge of 2020s.].

If, as seems likely, Defender becomes uni-body construction; the historic body-on-frame methods will be left to the likes of TATA Motors (JLR's parent), Mahindra, Bajaj and the crop of other EM manufacturers across Asia, South America etc who've adopted and adappted or created their own utiliarian workhorses.

And of course - top of the league - Toyota's 70 (ie 79) series and '200' LandCruiser, the globally dominant heavy-duty utility 4x4 for nearly 4 decades

Replacing Defender was always going to be problematic given its expansive personality stretching from a basic Hi-Lux  to accessory laden G-Wagen, with recognition that Defender did not have the low cost-base of Hi-Lux (or Thailand built Ranger) nor engineering integrity of 'Troopie' LandCruiser or G-Wagen.

So what could Land-Rover do? Either:
A. Follow the popular crowd with a brand-enhanced 'me-too' offering to capture a slice of the large global volume from the Japanese and others?
B. Perhaps re-position between mid (ie Ranger) and full-size (ie F-150) to stand-alone, stay unique?
C. Provide 'me-too' softened styling? (a la Freelander)
D. Or again, stand-alone as the individualistic icon and retain it hard edged visual character?

E. Or perhaps even consideration of an IP exercise for the nameplate, by which Land Rover designs and develops Defender 2, who's production rights are then sold to a multitude of mid-level EM countries seeking their own economic development path forward. With the advantage of technical inter-changability across borders so as to foster trade relations, and simultaneously build bridges with Britain.

Without the raft of research required, natural instinct would suggest B-D-E, to restrengthen its lost attributes and taking an intelligent differentiated approach (not Mass per Toyota, not Niche per G-Wagen) that could be latterly built upon, with the diverse customer base.

Let us hope that Land Rover's Business and Product Strategists put as much critical thinking into Defender 2 as was feasibly possible.

[NB in my time there, my boss's 16 year old daughter came for work-experience. On the walls of her cubicle she pinned the written lyrics of various songs of the time: "Design for Life" by The Manic Street Preachers was very apt for the overall design ideology for Defender 2, and since it was classless -  from the Queen to the NGO worker, and could operate as a unifying emblem to overcome the divisive social stirrings of the period].


Beyond Goodwood, we see how vintage meets digital....

The recent showcasing of Bentley's EXP 100GT concept for 2035. Depicted within its own light-show staged behind a slate grey exterior facade, to provide a deliberately hyper-real impression of the marque in the today.

That's what concept cars are all about...building brand imagery.

The AI based vehicle (itself depicting  Autonomous or Driven modes) invariably succeeds in conveying the essence of Bentley in Grande Tourer guise. Expanded with digital overlay that rhetorically can create an alternative universe for the occupants using polarized glass to screen-off the outside world when required and create a seperate existence internally.

Hence, as with other manufacturers, the technological macro-trends have been infused into physically expanded Bentley design cues representing a Retro-Futurism where bespoke 1930s coach-built proportions and belt-lines meets a 2030s interpretation of the Digital.


An Echo of Another Time....

The event's slate grey exterior prompted a memory about an old sketch with similar philosophical overtones back in 1996 for what was expected to be a re-emerging  Rover Cars, striking its own new future-forward path.

And that sketch still exists because it was not digital, could not be accidentally over-written or deliberately erased by a nefarious other.

That hard-copy proves its existence, unlike our present age in which true fact can be lost when over-written with new 'manufactured facts' created simply by digital reproduction.

The 'cyberisation' of mankind through mass digital reproduction, aligned group think and sensationalist trending news stories that create social feed-back loops, has made individuals ostensibly passive yet emotionally reactive, psychologically attuned and thus far more passive-aggressive; with obvious subtexts to what used to be normal everyday conversations.

Drawing / sketching is the very opposite...it is the personal and 'secular' that rewards ones soul and possibly that of others. It is proactive and merges the logical with the emotional, as becomes seen by the very content of the drawn piece, and the manner in which the lines have been applied to the surface.

David Hockney did wonders to have some older folk become new artists through simplistic use of their iPads and its drawing software - outlines, fill-ins etc - but nothing compares to the tactile use of real materials.

And whilst adult 'colouring-in' books became a fad, and a sad one at that having adults mimic children, that did at least engage people, some of whom will have taken a step further towards becoming true artists.

The following describes that 1996 automotive sketch example set in context...the industrial context.

This from an originally small 5-minute 'thumbnail sketch' , regards what then appeared a much brighter future for Rover Cars under BMW stewardship.    

Itself prompted by various confluences of the time.

That small doodle, enlarged on a photocopier, and initially considered as a background template for overlay efforts when considering possible detail changes; if it ever became necessary - which ultimately it did not.

The influences behind that scribble being:

1. The Design Studio work done by Richard Woolley (and others) on the then new R75

2. The need for a new automotive recipe given zeitgeist counter-trend against the then socially distained set of 'flash and crass' BMW drivers. That brilliantly depicted by Audi UK in its 1995 television advert

3. The similar social commentary by Blur in their record 'Charmless Man'

Hence, the possibility of satiating that emergent 'anti-trend' - that was feeding Audi sales - with larger R95 or R105 models for the 21st century, to provide an alternative flip-side British-values character that may be needed by BMW Group, to off-set potentially lost sales if the counter-trend took hold.


The Design Studio -

Geoff Upex had taken over the Studio with David Arbuckle as his left hand man, George Thompson heading Land-Rover, and Richard Woolley heading Rover Cars working on updates of the small Rover cars and the portions of the new 75 (then codenamed R40), and the initial work on new 'R55' model to replace the Rover 45.

By late 1996 a beautiful two-tone dynoc'd 'clay' of the Rover 75 sat in the Studio, light metallic green upper set over Old English White lower, that nod to yesteryear cosmetics emphasised by the full length chrome strip.

That model set amongst a tailor's dummy wearing Harris Tweed jacket and other similar  'mood board' material. It promised  new era beginnings for a brand that had lost its way to foreign competition, shifted social expectations and consumer values]

Richard's efforts were nigh on perfect, as seen by numerous awards.

The body eminating a curvaceous gracefulness (set against Chris Bangle's angular flame surfacing at BMW) that had presence and subtle grandeur. Whilst the front had a slightly menacing look, the top of the quad lights cut to produce a slight frown and the lower indicator / auxillary lamps, parallel to the lower air intake, with downward curvature that replicated the edges of a predatory 'mouth'.

Whilst being indisputably Rover, the overall 'grace' and the perceived 'pace' (if not the 'space' in saloon guise) also had Jaguar-esque overtones, which actually outshone the contemporary Jaguars designed in period.

[NB Both S and X Types terribly formulaic re-interpretations. Partly because of the hard-point limitations of shared Ford and Lincoln platforms, but mostly because of parent Ford's Senior Managements - through J Mays and New Beetle (now ending production) - had overtly focus on legendary brands becoming 'Retro-ised'. Commercially right for BMW's Mini, but poor aesthetic direction for the crop of potential new owners Jaguar sought given relevant competition and their own psychographics.

Things later put right under Ian Callum, himself now 'ending production' at JLR, and starting afresh for himself].

Had BMW's talks about financial incentives with the British government been successful, likely a different ultimate outcome for Rover Cars with support and so future potential.Something Jon Moulton at Alchemy Partners could also well see, when he made his bid, no doubt to sell Rover Cars on to another (likely foreign) Volume Manufacturer

That BMW-UK Gov discussion was about assistance so as to combat the high strength of the Pound that was affecting EU sales for Rover Group. The sought for help was to help bolster export production into Europe and have the flexibility to set the right pricing levels for what was effectively a perceived upscale niche brand there.

But with the opportunity for hindsight, whilst a struggling underfunded commercial entity in itself, because the company then consisted of Land Rover, Mini, Rover and MG, it was a very rare and stimulating place to be.

After the effects of 1970s British Leyland conglomeration, the Honda JV and BAe ownership, that remaining stable of 4 very different marques allowed designers and engineers to effectively play in their very own sand-box.

The Board - itself arguably initially short-sighted, and later hamstrung by the BMW Board - having the onerous task of allocating limited funding for far too many potential opportunities.


Elsewhere in the Studio....

......Gerry McGovern had completed a very good effort on new Freelander, with a curvaceousness that would go down well with all new brand buyers and specifically the subtle cue of the belt-line echoed in the alloy wheels. An element obvious to a designer's eye, but subliminal to a lay-person who would instead subconsciously view it a unified vehicle aesthetic.

......Dave Woodhouse played up his (playful) 'enfant terrible' characater, with radical renditions of various high and low concept stuff, from a radical Defender to the idea of an MGF Speedster. That part of a trophy-cup race series and limited homologation run of high margin MGF's, all with with aero-screens, aero- bodywork, hard-tonneau cover, stripped-out interior and old-style 1960s sidelights....as depicted in the Pop Art comic book style of Roy Lichtenstein.

.....Oliver Le Grice had created the utterly lovely Spirtual and Spirtual Too concepts as 'design-values' driven re-interpretation of a modern Mini, which used a monobox egg-style body and flat-mounted 3-pot engine under the rear seats. In effect a more expansive and prosaic amalgamation of the then marketed Renault Twingo and soon available Daimler Smart; with an iconography of its own.

.....and much else besides with - if properly remembered - the likes of Marek and Tony variously on various concept and current projects.

The female designers, with specific backgrounds, dealt with Interior Design and Social Trend Plotting - disciplines of their own preference and choosing - so hardly a man's world even 25 years ago.

[NB It was their work on the interiors of R100 and R25 that helped Rover enormously in its new European competitive edge...as later described]


The 1995 Audi UK Advert -

Since the mid 1960s the ex ivy League "East-Coasters" - in their own bid to be socially seperate to the rest of the USA and eulogise their European roots - had been driving various Euro marques, from Alfa Romeo to BMW. But it had been German engineering that won out over Italian, and so increasingly 1600s, 2002s had given way to 3 and 5 series. Those cars seen by others in New York and on Wall Street who aspired to be like their social superiors, likewise bought BMW as the badge of their success.

After the City's 'Big Bang' here in London in 1986, the same trends came across the Atlantic, in an effort to replicate the Wall Street vibe, and so BMW and Porsche became the icons of aspiration....which would soon be followed by the rest of the UK with an increasingly bouyant national 1990s economy.

However, those who lead trends and are socially sensitive to whats happening in society at large, and to their once beloved brand (herein BMW) did not want to be seen as part of the new mainstream. And so they sought Audi as the close substitute, as good technically and in the real world even better in Quattro-drivetrain guise, even if a front-forward transverse five-pot was not as agile as a longitudinal low set straight-six or four.

They had had their Porsche and BMW affairs and were growing-up with a family, a dog and the mandatory house in the country, or driving-in from the Stock-broker belt..so a 4WD estate was the perfect solution that was also more understated and so less gauche.

The initial trend-setters had moved on elsewhere, leaving the wannabee red-braces brigade who believed themselves to be Gordon Gheko, to BMWs and Porches.

Although recognised here in London by 1990 or so, by 1995 that rejection of the obvious and increasingly berated codified vehicles had become slowly recognised by others around the UK.

And so Audi UK sought to make the most of this.

But instead of creating an obvious advert, that subtly stated such things, its Advertising Agency brilliantly used reverse psychology and last second re-affirmation for  the current and  potential Audi buyer.

It opens with a breed of 'City Boy' (then colloqually known as a 'Barrow-Boy' to the old guard) extolling his overtly aspirant personality and lifestyle...yet oddly driving an Audi A4 20-valve (four valves per cylinder).

That's the first cognitive trick played by the Ad Agency, now known as cognitive dissonance.

Audi's target audience, that of the socially informed viewer, knows that the man and the car are not 'sympatico', and so the knowing viewer becomes shocked that Audi has become drawn into such a world, and now seems the new symbol of the wannabee.

After intersected images of the City-Boy in the car and amongst his lifestyle friends, the cognitive dissonance grows yet further.

Toward the end, we see he is on a test-drive and returns to the showroom. Greeted by the Audi salesman - taller, classically better looking, far more demure, the salesman asks how the drive went?
"Nah...not my style...you know what I mean!"

The knowing viewer and audience breath a deep sigh of relief, Audi has not (yet)  been tainted with the money of the crass aspirant; Audi's brand persona left in tact. And so able to draw in those who considered themselves simply well to do, decent, nice and old middle-class... the very opposite o so called 'flash trash'.

It was the best advert of the 1990s; and it succeeded in drawing more and more people away from BMWs and into Audis.

[NB Thankyou to Inchcape Audi for uploading the video on youtube....a slice of socio-economic history].


Blur's 'Charmless Man' -

In April 1996 the song 'Charmless Man' was released by Blur as part of a pperiod that was simultaneously known (and so culturally manufactured) 'Brit-Pop' (revival).

(Blur, Oasis, Pulp, Suede, The Verve etc the musical creators of Brit-Pop, whilst in the Art World, the "YBA's" (Young British Artists consisted of people such as: Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, Banksy, Bridget Riley et al. Both artforms deployed a mix of  intellectualised social observation with prime ingredients of either urban 'grunge' or juxtapositions, with an amuse-bouche of both grafitti art and psychedelic graphics that inevitably became de rigeur for the corporate lobby).  

"The story of a Charmless Man" expanded the same social observations made by Audi's Ad Agency; as had become apparent to anyone in London and beyond with any sense of social observation.

[NB Here itself recognised that good literal 'commercial art' was philosophically on par if not infact ahead of  the Art World itself; the City-Boy himself depicted attending new artist Gallery evenings].

The song and video centre on an unpleasant, wealthy and socially ambitious character who epitomised a certain type of go-getting yet wholly toxic 20/30-something City-Boy.

One of a large crowd who see life simply as an extension of the private education matra of 'play the game...play the game'. Himself essentially an English version of the 1980s Patrick Bateman character (violent but presumably without the homocidal tendencies). And his vehicle of choice? The then 'must have' "Whale-Tail" Porsche 911 Targa....of course.

Ultimately his character flaw is that of immense ego predicated upon the need for others' attention. As the lyrics state...."You put it altogether its the model of a charmless man"

The end of the video has reflections of the end of the film 400 Blows by Truffaut as he himself 'breaks-down', runs away from his Porsche (given its manifestation of his Ego which masks his true inner-angst), and opens a door to the band itself and Damien staring straight at him as if staring into his soul.

[NB And also at you the viewer, as if to say 'check yourself' in modern parlance].

The reference to the 400 Blows done to deliberately cross-referance a contemporary band called 'The 400 Blows'; just as Blur's songs cross-referanced other elements of Brit-Pop culture like nemesis Oasis.

Hence, with Blur effectively castigating the worst aspects of ultimately hollow money-worship and social climbing,  this song and video - as with 'Country House' - effectively helped to soften Britain, and create a middle-ground between the still very prevelent Yuppie mentality, by then countrywide (as often typically portrayed by the infamous Estate Agent), and the remnants of the Hippy culture which had previously morphed into Acid House and the early days of the Ibiza scene and aspects of a Drop-Out culture.

'Charmless Man' was much needed commentary that could help an increasingly aspirant nd selfish Britain rediscover its yesteryear values. So as to help tame the zeitgeist, seen with  the awfully predictable dinner party chatter of 20/30-somethings, who were inevitably looking to either test-drive the latest BMW 3-series or seeking one as part of their company renumeration package.

Britain's new middle-class had become the very antithesis of the old middle-class, with  its the liberal-conservative social values, led by typically older upper middle class  people who did not shout about what they did, they just took on the mantle of responsibilities and did it.

And since the demise of Rover (their parents' car of choice) effectively by the late 1970s, they had shifted typically into Volvos, Saabs and Audis.

Hence, after R75, the potential for R95 / R105 was to satiate and grow the still evident and hopefully growing 'Humanist' counter-trend

It had obviously long been recognised that consumer's desire for Premium had become effectively mainstream, as seen with the success of the quality German marques and their then new moves into the lower segments, Audi A2, Merc A-Class, planned BMW 1-series  But it was also recognised that they sold on status badges imbued with not only good quality but much 'technical marketing'....BMW's "Drivers Car", Audi's "Vorsprung durch Technik" etc.

But with the tainting of BMW and argueably likewise Mercedes, there would always be an aspirant  customer base that did not the Germanic, and wanted to escape the mainstream Fords, Vauxhall-Opels, Peugeots.

[NB Renault had actually self-created its own major UK popularity based on the marketing french flair so appealing to the growing female market, but even with great concept cars such as Vel Satis and production cars such as Avantime could not create French Luxury outside of France, since trapped by being too oddball].

And that ultimately meant there was space somewhere between Volkswagen in high-end mainstream and the German premium brands; both in Britain and especially so in Europe as effectively a new alternative entrant, building on success of Rover's small city cars in France, Germany and Italy, themselves seen as upscale given good (female designed) interiors.

Saab and Volvo were enduring a tough time, Saab resorting to a re-engineered but believed simply badge-engineered 9000 from JV platform sharing with FIAT-Lancia, and Volvo extending its aged large car platform with periodic reskins before being absorbed into Ford's PAG division.

So they were increasingly looking tenuous as 'Near Premium' players, which left potential untapped demand and so capacity for any new convincing entrant.

But critically, BMW had been widely successful, growing enormously since the early 1970s, and besides the purchase of Rover Group for its diverse brand portfolio - especially Mini - and access to mainstream B and C segments without diluting its own brand, it was belived that Munich sought to create a strategic fall-back, using an upwardly expanded Rover Cars in case 3,5,7 and new X5 sales flattened-off or even declined in specific markets.

Rover Cars seniors believed that it could access the Audi territory with an increasing portion of the British middle classes seeking an alternative to teutonic German cars with something far 'warmer', distinctly British yet still capable. For people who rejected the stereotypical crassness that BMWs had in the people started to embody.

The creation of a more tasteful 'affordable luxury' option of seperate character eventually in larger car sizes and slowly remove the name Rover from A and B segments, unless they too could be suitably re-invented.

Hence whilst Richard Woolley et al were putting the finishing touches to R75, the (literally) very sketchy R95 and R105 product strategy considerations for a decade plus down the road were being very generally considered in a skunk-works manner.

This outside of the Rover Cars marketing team, who themselves would become eventually involved only years later, after any success  that R75 might enjoy.


The (Very Sketchy) Sketch -

This was one of a few very basically considered body forms created to add far greater gravitas into the brand; drawing on the once illustrious Rover badge ornament.

'Longboat' Body - per Rover's Viking Ship emblem (as then still current)
'Helmet Face' - per previous 'Eric the Viking' bonnet ornament (ceased by the 1940s)

Prow, cabin and stern visually encased within an outer shell; so as to purvey the romantic 1930s long tapered bonnet (with longitudinal BMW IL6 or Rover V8). The 'V' aesthetic to enhance visual dynamic and provide boat-like overtones (akin to classic Launches such as Riva et al).

This reduced frontal area and provided for improved management of overall airflow, to reduce fuel consumption and critically assist NVH (both per wind-noise and tyre noise - itself contained in the wheel envelopes. Ducted and channeled aero to provide that vital element of quietened luxury.

Automated side vents (as vanes and literal coolant veins) enable hot air exit from engine-bay as necessary and provide interesting visual dynamic, bring the car to life and act as just one of the technical story talking-points.

The encompassing 'Shell' with corner Castleations/Turrets - as adopted from orginal Range- Rover for corner visibility (when off-road) but herein when parking and fast apex cornering. So as to create notion of modern-day (1950s) 'Road-Rover', and to convey the cues and perceived strength of the British castle.; accompanied by - if possible - with cabin 'Buttresses' echoing Gothic Cathedrals and Bridges.


The Engineering Strategy -

The basic platform to be theoretically used was an adapted frame and standard component sets from the then P38A Range-Rover. To reduced costs in engineering design, development complexity and make god use of previously cost-ammortised supplier tooling. The reduced weight of the vehicle thus allowing for greater durability of those component sets, obviously especially regards 'chassis' items (steering, suspension, braking etc)

Given the large footprint of the '105' badged model, an extension of the frame in X and Y coordinates for wheelbase and track, and with lower overall loading, the possibility of reduced guage (thickness) of the steel of the ladder chassis onto which the body would placed.

[NB the '105' does not relate to wheelbase length in inches, as the naming system on Land Rover did. Simply repeat of the old Rover model heirachy].

Compared to the P38A, obvious lowering of occupant H-Points (hip points), with extensive use of Rover disguised 5 or 7 series interior hardware, HVAC and electrical systems. Critically use of carry-over air-bag suspension for general ride comfort and the ability to raise and lower ride height for 'town' vs 'highway' driving. (Although 'on air' and not hydraulics, the intention was to mimic  the "magic-carpet" virtues of previous era Citroens (DS/CX/XM) without such complexity and cost.

[NB The softer ride also dampening shock effects on new construction methods and materials].

The repackaged powertrain required that a new single ratio transfer case be set forward compared to Range Rover to avoid cabin intrusion and enable low ground clearance.

As per aesthetic, besides an obvious encased Longboat appearance, the most radical possibility - though highly improbable - was the idea of a' buttress' A pillar which if feasible allowed for the front screen and side windows to become an uninterrupted 180 degree surround entity.

(NB The sketch showing that unlikely possibility to the off-side only, as would be seen on a centre-split 1:5 scale clay model).

The concept was that both narrow and widening 'Prow Front' would provide far better  front impact protection by deflecting the other vehicle away from the cabin, and the forward A-Pillar 'Butress' would operate likewise as deflector elements to also protect the cabin.

The vehicle produced using a mix of traditional and alternative methods. Besides the invisible carry-over elements from Range Rover, the body panels were potentially produced as set of mixed materials. Steel chassis with in-house built steel 'Superleggera/Bird-cage' body frame, upon which steel, aluminium and composite inner-panels and skin panels could be affixed.

The front wings and quarter panels (them-selves impact absorbing and sacrificial in a crash) created from low-cost vacuum-forming  and/or rotational molding methods used by suppliers to the refuse collection industry.

So the best practices taken from other industrial sectors, from the exacting precision of IT hardware outer-cases, to the voluminous, hollow character of rubbish bins and water butts). And with such processes the freedom to create subtle A-surface details, both raised and/or indented for textures, logotype etc.

[NB ironically although basically knowledgeable about refuse vessel production being cheap for the huge quantities made, it was the band Garbage that had prompted that thought earlier in that year].


The Production Strategy -

Given the avoidance of major capital spending on conventional plant tooling etc, and deliberately more labour-intensive practices on interior and exterior (under strict labour agreements) the approach was obviously the merged idiologies of the best of mass-scale manufacture (cost, quality, standardisation) and best of niche manufacture (technical idiosyncracy and hand-built).

A Two Centre Production scheme envisaged to maximise current plant capacity at Solihull and reduce new CapEx needs at Longbridge. The rolling chassis assembled at Solihull along the P38A line, then transported overnight in lower-cost long road-trains to Longbridge.

[NB Herein again the idea prompted by the name Shirley, both the name of a suburb close to Solihull and the motorway, and the name of the lead singer of Garbage].

There a new Rover Cars 'Prestige-Build' Centre (effectively an SVO) itself built by Longbridge employees (under Architect and Civil Engineering oversight) would help fill the excess capacity at Longbridge. So assisting what had been historically fractious Management and Staff industrial relations, and illustrating self-investment into the site.

The production staff (then called 'Associates' per the previous Honda JV influence) would be re-attired in likewise more self-respectful clothing: shirts, ties protected by brown and white technicians coats that were standard issue in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Just as white-collar Britain was 'dressing down' so the Rover
Prestige division would have blue-collar men and women 'dress-up' to reflect a mentality of utmost professionalism.

To avoid typically expensive production-line' costs (involving cradles to support whole cars including engine 'stuff-up'),the new Longbridge line to consist of cantelevered arms supporting under-slung units which held the side 'cant-rails' (or roof rails) of the vehicle frame. Itself built-up until near complete when married-up to the pre-built chassis.

Hence akin to the first mass production schema by Ford and utilised by Austin at Longbridge in the 1920s.


The General Philosophy -

Effectively the re-birth of a luxury saloon with very different avante garde "marine meets archetectural" aesthetics and 'soft-roader' character that was very different from the Teutonic, Germanic competitor set; whilst utilsing the principles of the previously prototyped 1950s Road-Rover, which itself sought product extension of original Land Rover. Itself part of the Marketing Story.

And critically the availability of 2 or AWD capabilities to make the car safe in all conditions (per "Rover Safety bicycle") match Audi's quattro system, and qualify the 'safety' aspect relative to Volvo, by improving front crash dynamics through deflection as much as managing the crumple zone.

And using the best of volume-scale and 'time and motion' streamlined coachbuilding systems. The Prestige Centre itself a showcase from which new customers would personally collect their new cars; so saving on dealer-transfer transportation costs.

Estimated at only 15,000 per year over 5 years (625 cars per day on a 5 day week for 48 weeks of the year); with what ordinarily would be low numbers indicating high unit costs, off-set through reduced with intelligent use of cost-conscious technology transfers from other sectors and creative design, product engineering and manufacturing engineering.

Ultimately the simple scribble was pure theorising and conjecture seeking to create the automotive antidote for the very atttuned buyers who sought to distinguish themselves as seperate to the increasing mainstream premium, which had started to reflect an increasingly egotistical and materialistic society, enraptured with brand-centricism instead of specifically descernable qualities.

And to create a business model that would breath new life into the brand with strong per unit profitability.

With the continuation of BMW engineering excellence as the technical underpinnings the R95/R105 it was to be 'a cut above'. With the then possible opportinity for such brand revision that Rover could move upscale into new 'white space', even moving into Jaguar's effectively defunct Daimler-Sovereign territory.


The Reality of Business -

However, although notionally before its time, and dependent on strong revenues and re-investment from R75, BMW for very good strategic business reasons ultimately went on to divest the Rover Group portfolio to Ford and via a quick but questionable Pheonix Consortium management buyout, so as to cut losses and concentrate on Mini.

Rover Cars and MG would have ideally gone to Alchemy Partners to ensure its mid-term contunuation.

But behind the scenes, the British government was obviously keen to ultimately evolve improved relationships with China, and so via Pheonix Consortium as effectively a stop-gap owner with the temporay creation of MG-Rover.

[NB Itself really only ever a Boys Club for MG Motorsports via X-Power and the commercially irrational decision to revamp the Italian Qvale as an MG X-Power halo car; only adding to cash-burn woes, and so demise].

And so the historic name of Rover - from Victorian Safety bicycle origins and from 1904 with Cars and its 1950s and 1960s domestic, colonial and technical heydays - eventually transmuted to become China's Roewe.

To recite the title of a song by The Verve, that would arrive in 1997, soon after that optomistic sketch in 1996....a 'Bitter Sweet Symphony' of what could have been.
As is so much of Auto industry history; especially when seeking to negotiate the hazards and pitfalls of what was effectively continuation of a brand revival, amongst a plethora of micro-level and macro-level issues and tensions.

Rover was sold to China, and that act, though seen as blasphemous at the time by those in The Midlands, helped UK-China relations at a critical point in global trade history.

It would have been better however to have seen a substantive and well funded Anglo-Sino company formed to rise properly from the ashes as a true Pheonix - so much more than politically useful name.

Alchemy Partners, together with another European VM as partner, could have succeeded in doing just that, with what could have been a British-European-Chinese that bolstered respective businesses across the globe.

Something that would have allowed the UK's Design, Engineering and now AI Services sector to become more heavily entrenched into the Chinese auto-sector, its diverse domestic market and latterday global export market opportunities.

That happened to a degree with Ricardo plc's '2000' plan assisting the set-up of the Rover-Roewe plant in China for SAIC and Nanjing, and qualifying the first batch of vehicles off the line.

But little happened for UK export enterprise between that 'lift and shift' operation and latterday exercises such as Ricardo's recent services to Geely etc.

Perhaps Brexit, if achieved, will provide for that, business leaders both there and here seeking greater integration now that China's own large VMs have made leaps in their own product quality; but still have further to go to become globally competitive on quality.

Ultimately it has been a Slow (Viking) Boat to China, but the possibilities of mixing each country's core engineering competances should allow Britain's Engineering Services sector to once again apply its creative and diverse engineering talents.

And to restate yet again....

.....Behind all of that is the critical ability to draw, so as to communicate to one-self when thinking, and to others when explaining, whether technically, diagramatically or as simple visual aid.

Learn to draw....it will, for many reasons, invariably improve the quality of your life.

Summer Interlude - Drawing on the Past

Summer is here in the UK, during the day people smile more easily, toddlers laugh more, gardens are glorious and the evenings are beautifully balmy.

Relaxation is on many minds, for many the chance to escape through a foreign holiday, for others of more limited means perhaps a day out further afield or just having the opportunity to go to the local park.

Mental relaxation also necessitates avoiding digital screens to reduce stimuli, distraction and reactiveness. It means doing things from the 'centredness' of one's own being - mentally and physically - so as to feel at one with yourself; whether that be taking a walk, gardening, a sport or any other meaningful leisure activity.

Unfortunately, in today's world it seems that old fashioned drawing has become a lost art. Something that was a substantive past-time for yesteryear's 'middle-class', and much appreciated by portions of the self-improving 'working class' (such as the quintessentially naive efforts of 1930s Miners), has for the greater part been forgotten by many.

So although the 1960s brought us Comprehensive education and the possibility of Further Education for the masses - including the 'Art School' for much from Fine Art to Advertising - even that today appears lost to many of the most recent generation.

In what was possibly the last true liberal era, the 1995 song 'Common People' by Pulp provides a wonderful insight via reference to St Martin's College: the iconic destination that represented the hopes and dreams of thousands of aesthetically orientated teenagers looking for entry into a intellectually absorbing life.

It conveys the then still very obvious wealth gap between new cohorts of foreign students compared to the rafts of highly intelligent yet necessarily state assisted British students in a prestigious place of learning. That story repeated in extremis again today but across many British Universities,

(With it seems deplorable mismanagement of student accommodation schemes that have created over-capacity and hollow promises of high yield returns...both students and investors finding themselves let down by the worst of private sector operators; from 'jerry built' accommodation blocks to over-estimated returns).

Critically, whilst the Humanities subjects became extended and overtly exaggerated with uber-Liberal agendas, we have also seen the decline of simple Drawing skills, which has likely been detrimental to the self development of hundreds of thousands.

Since the very act of drawing requires observation and/or imagination...the best melding the two...such as seen by the semi-psychedelic Automotive rendering and Advertising art forms of the 1960s that helped depict the zeitgeist.

Although The Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy reflects the remnants of that increasingly lost mid 20th century social perspective - of which often only a few items demonstrate truly great technical, interpretative or imaginary skills - it alone cannot recast the mentality and imagination of the nation. And whilst the likes of David Hockney and Grayson Perry offer different sides of artistic popularism, neither capture the best formative use of art for the layperson in their own life.

At the very beginning drawing should be play - as children do - to simply 'get a feel' for whichever medium used; whether pencil, cheap ball-point 'biro', or expensive draughting pen.

The very act inter-connects the the mental, the spiritual and the physical.

And whereas at the beginning the process is about replicating on paper an object in 'still life' - long before combined objects, people, animals or landscapes.....later that initial concentration on objects plus imagination leads to self-creation and with learning of the material world and technical improvement, the ability to increasingly self-create...to effectively design, and the more done design effectively.

The day Maurice and Spencer Wilks considered recasting the American Willys Jeep in a British mold, it was mythologically done by drawing a layout in the sand on an Anglesey beach.

The initial prototype built had central-steering, which although highly functional, ultimately (in the real world) was thought too unorthodox, given its novelty. This and all the rest now well documented in Land-Rover and British history.

In 1997, 50 Years on from 'Anglesey' Land-Rover was again - as a lower priority project - considering re-making the (only ever periodically and slowly updated) Defender in the modern idiom; for improved quality, reduced cost, manufacturing ease, etc, but was still beholden to its Meccano-like simplicity for maintenance, repair, adaptability and re-configurability.

And so new exploration at Gaydon Technical Centre began, from repeated Centre-Steer and new 4 wheel steer ideas in the Concept Studio (inspired by the radical Judge Dredd City Cab film vehicle and extreme 4WD competition buggies), to Advanced Engineering's Composite-Bodied proof of concept Mule, to the quick 10-minute sketch shown here by myself.

Created one weekend when in Business and Technical (ie Product) Strategy, exploring core principles and possible innovations; to strengthen the brand and grow new business streams.

This sketch with accompanying others of the time focused on the necessity of 'Intelligent Modularity' with easy-swap and plug-and-play parts for the plethora of customer types Defender sold to. And was as concerned for the 4th owner's ability to re-configure with Land Rover approved items, as the 1st owner's. So as to re-strengthen the heart and soul of the brand; as it was becoming somewhat diluted by more lifestyle orientated Discovery and Freelander.

Thus obviously contemporary considerations such as improved fuel efficiency through reduced CdA drag, reduced mass via mixed materials (steel, aluminium, composites), increasing cabin / shoulder width at B post (so full width body and no wheel arch 'eyebrows'),  better all round visibility (per original Range Rover and Discovery 1), the future-proof packaging for potential 48V for Hybrid drive and 'ETO' - Electrical Take Off) etc. And

And critically, the potential creation of a new aesthetic that had much design purity pertaining to form-follows-function 'Modernism' that was so vital to the original .
Rather than simply applying the Retro look that was simultaneously (and for target buyers and so profits rightly) being created by BMW for MINI;  and as would be later seen with Toyota's fashion led reborn  FJ.

Land Rover had had a Design Template that had been evolved to cover the marque, but Defender was a special case in its own right, from the honesty of construction seen in its rivets to the line and proportion ratios that defined its presence).

It was to finally be the vehicle it should have naturally evolved into, had Land Rover's  profits not been diverted into propping-up British Leyland in the 1970s, Austin-Rover in the 1980s and Rover Cars in the 1990s.

Any new Defender had to be of itself, something utterly honest and utterly practical  for true task orientated Defender owners (farmers to utility companies to Defence forces to Overland campers, Boat owners and even surfers) who needed and appreciated rationalist purity.

From a NAS90 successor at the leisure end (is true SUV - sports utility vehicle, not just a trendy acronym as seen elsewhere) to a capable mobile platform at the bespoke fitment 130 end (from MoD 'Pulse ' Ambulance to Cherry Picker to drop side workshop). An Everyman vehicle as at home on a snowbound Scottish hillfarm as an inland lake on Fraser Island, Australia.

(NB Though of course for some status-conscious 'Town-Trendies' Defender has latterly become the very pastiche and so cliche of the wholly style driven 'urban warrior', and so ironically in it's last gasps of production the very opposite of its original essence and archetype)

This sketch was one of three roughly considered for the '90' (shown here), the '110' and '130', notionally given the names Huey, Louie and Dewey. The names obviously drawn from the first production run 'HUE 166' mated to the brilliantly assistive robotic work-mate drones of the 1971 film 'Silent Running'; itself about Eco concerns, which the new vehicle also obviously had to satisfy.

The intent was to make the new vehicle as sympathetic as possible to nature, as the original had been to agriculture as the farmer's friend.

But as with so much in the Automotive world, it effectively stayed upon the 3M Post-It note upon which it was initially conceived.

To do the project justice would have absorbed a level of cost that was unfeasible , since company self funding and BMW's parental funding was being stretched across so many other more important immediate replacement and new pipeline programmes that had greater synergies and promised greater cash generation.

[NB Though 20 years later the idea of that 'Intelligent Modularity' with the 'MMM' nomenclature did underpin the general philosophical concept described in a previous extended web-log: for much needed creative public-investment thinking regards long-life-span Emergency Service Vehicles. Utilising alternative architectures and power-trains for a 'deconstruct / reconstruct' approach. So as to reduce and even-out the long-term annual expenditures from the public purse over a 50+ year timespan].

Those singular and combined efforts at Land Rover in 1997 are - in corporate terms - long forgotten; almost as much as David Bache's efforts in the 1970s that saw radical simplification of the then Series 2A with plastic 'Mehari' type styled outer skin.

But, as they say, "the past is another country".

But so much consideration and exploration into New Defender has gone on in so many sporadic bursts over the decades, that even from inside the Auto-Industry, let alone outside by Defender and 4x4 enthusiasts, an enormous amount of anticipation awaits the final reveal of New Defender.

And whilst its origins are not quite that of those simplistically drawn lines in the sand in Anglesey; it must like the original vehicle take its cue from its spiritual predecessor.

[NB There is a humorous irony here, in that New Defender is set to arrive 22 years on since those quick Post-It Note sketch drawings in which I used a euphemistic sign-off name-tag deploying the number 22.

Hence, I sincerely hope it takes its cues from the 'Intelligent Modularity' approach and the Huey, Lewey and Dewey metaphors and robotic 'personifications'].

However, ultimately the central point to be made here is that it is the very process of sketching and drawing - when done in the right relaxed mindset - that provides a type of spiritual flow for a person.

One that in turn allows that person to ultimately incorporate so many other forms of knowledge; from materials science to facets of sociology.

Thus, in a very over-simplified manner, we should see ourselves as apprenticeship devotees of Leonardo da Vinci. So gradually but powerfully enhancing one's own cognitive ability.

Its a basic but wonderfully 'complete' activity of morphed mind and hand.

Hence over the Summer, Britain could well do with more people picking up sticks and drawing creative lines in the sand.

All good and well to spend time and money in Marks and Spencers, since the high street, the broad retail sector and country's economy needs it.

But also be like Maurice and Spencer Wilks, who even as adults played in the sand, and dreamt of bigger things.

So if you do and have inspired thoughts, later that same day get those thoughts down on paper, in whatever rough and ready form, from a Post-It note to a napkin.

In 1947 the Wilks Brothers did more than create a vehicle, they were a component part of manufacturing a major contribution to British culture, that has been with us ever since. Itself reinterpreted to be re-manufactured as a modern icon today.

Drawing from the past is useful, especially when not done slavishly, but from original philosophical intent....

...But the ability to draw and create so as to exercise the mind for logical. deductive critical thought....is far more useful as a skill.

Pick-up a pencil or pen and start without worry or concern of social embarrassment...since the very process will solidify thoughts and put you eventually directly into the ethereal flow of self-creation.

For 50 weeks of the year the hard heads of investment need to be concerned with Corporate Revenues, EBITDAs, DCF, Growth Rates, Balance Sheets, P/E ratios, Enterprise Values, ROI,  etc since it certainly does not pay to follow the path of the starving artist.

But for the remaining 2 weeks find the heart and soul of the artist, craftsperson, designer and ultimately 'imagineer'.

Yes we live in the digital era, but Britain needs a combination mindsets to substantiate its Industrial and Services Strategy; and the more people who can encompass and unify the left-brain, right-brain mix - as 'Renaissance People' - the more secure the future of Britain.

So when on holiday...scribble away....it will bring a joyousness that little else can provide, as your thoughts materialise in front of you.