Hello everyone, I am the president of the Electric Vehicle Commune.
Some time ago, under the fierce attack of the "new forces" frantically launching new models, the three "old forces" of the BBA also quickly blew the horn of counterattack, pulled out the technology at the bottom of the pressure box, and launched three new cars.
Mercedes-Benz is a flagship EQS SUV; BMW has launched flagship sedans built on the same platform, BMW 7 Series and BMW i7. But Audi, who has not been welcomed by BB, has taken it out with a clear idea...
A concept car? Or an MPV-looking SUV?
The wind criticism of these three cars also seems to be surprisingly consistent: it is a word, ugly.
At first, when the president first saw the BMW i7 poster, he thought it seemed acceptable.
After all, like Weilai and Xiaopeng are this "squinting" style, nothing more than BMW's ancestral double kidney intake grille is a little bigger ▔▔▔▔▔ .
But when the BMW i7 revealed its true face, it was really a bit "shocking". So much so that a senior BMW fan around the president thinks that "BMW is dead, something is burning paper", and it is completely unsaved.
So why did BMW adopt this "strange design" on its most expensive model?
Today, the president will have a good chat with you about car design.
01. Dancing in shackles
First of all, the conclusion is that BMW is not to be innovative this time, but as Li xiang said, it is to meet the latest pedestrian protection regulations in advance, and then it was "forced" to make such a design.
However, even if, as Li wants to say, with the expensive pop-out cover, there is no way to get a high score.
For example, BMW's just launched iX, in the European E-NCAP crash test, the pedestrian protection score can only get 24.2 points out of 36, which can only be said to be a pass.
Therefore, the split headlights, which can be completely covered above the headlights and have a sufficient buffer zone between the cover and the headlights, have become a new design trend for car companies by taking the opportunity to protect pedestrians.
However, in detail, the regulations control the design of headlights, but it has a very long history. BMW has been persecuted by laws since decades ago, and it is a pure and pure breed.
The ins and outs of this matter have to start from 80 years ago
As early as 1940, the United States required that all new cars should only be equipped with 2 7-inch sealed round lights.
So at that time, it didn't matter whether it was Ford, GM or Porsche, everyone's "eyes" looked the same. And they are all well-behaved, and there can only be two of them.
(Who would have thought that regulations would even influence the design style of the porsche 911 later?)
Such strict regulations not only affected the later design of automobiles, but also stifled the enthusiasm of car companies to launch new cars. After all, no one wants their car to look like everyone else and have a reputation for plagiarism.
What is even more outrageous is that the square lamps that have become popular in Europe on the other side of the ocean are illegally designed in the United States.
Even Mercedes-Benz, the bearer of the European automobile industry, wants to sell cars in the United States, and can only helplessly replace the rectangular headlights with round lights. BMW, no exception.
(Don't doubt it, this really is a BMW!) ）
In 1957, Cadillac, Chrysler and other local car companies could not bear to prepare for protests, and the regulations were loosened. In addition to the original double round light shape, the car company is also allowed to use four 5.75-inch round lights to provide illumination.
Just when everyone thinks that the regulations will be gradually liberalized, and the car design will bloom, reality has given car companies an extremely heavy blow:
With the exception of the double and quad round lights, no decorations are allowed in front of the headlights!
The popular streamlined lampshade used to reduce wind resistance in Europe is not allowed; the headlights and wipers that were standard in luxury cars in previous years cannot be; if you want to tie a bow on the headlights, you can't either.
(The Jaguar E-type, once the most beautiful model, was forced to abandon the lampshade design that was originally integrated with the body shape))
Moreover, the regulations seem to have intensified during this period.
After a lapse of 17 years, although the restrictions on popular square lights in Europe have been relaxed, the size is still two fixed groups; and the ground clearance of the headlights must exceed 24 inches, that is, 61 centimeters.
As soon as the regulations came out, the sports car designer first fried the pot: if the front of the car is higher than the Rolls-Royce, where is the sports car!
So, the designers of chicken thieves came up with the idea of "rubbing the edge ball", hidden headlights.
After this jumping light is turned over, the shape can perfectly meet the requirements of the regulations, and when lighting is not needed during the day, it can be hidden in the body. Not only is the wind resistance low, but the posture of the body is much better than the round lights.
Of course, many people's favorite is the moment when the jumping lights are lit, as if injecting the soul into the car.
Eventually, it wasn't until 1992 that U.S. regulations really allowed halogen bulbs to be used on headlights, and restrictions on headlight size were relaxed.
At this time, streamlined headlights began to become popular all over the world, and the body designs of various car companies gradually began to bloom. However, the jumping lights have been submerged in the long river of history because they do not comply with pedestrian safety regulations.
Bmw, on the other hand, can really be said to be "scared" by the regulations and has become the biggest "victim" of the design of the regulations.
Even after the 1995 regulations were repealed, the BMW 5 Series continued to use the 5.75-inch four-round light design, even though the old regulations had been in place for nearly 40 years.
Although later this round headlight was affectionately called "angel eye" by Bimmer because it resembled the halo on the head of an angel. The angel eye has also become bmw's iconic design.
But no one can deny that if it weren't for the fact that regulatory constraints had delayed for four decades, BMW's design would probably have been even more advanced than it is now.
So here's the problem: in order to comply with the regulations, everyone can understand.
But the shape of the BMW i7, why does everyone feel ugly?
02. Ugly, just because of the split headlights? No！
Regarding the problem of split headlights, there is basically no solution. Far from it, wei Xiaoli and many Korean cars that want to enter Europe in recent years can only use the design of split headlights.
Like the ideal ONE that was not on sale in Europe before, it did not use split headlights, and the evaluation given by everyone was generally atmospheric and good-looking; but for the shape of the ideal L9, the friends gave a negative evaluation.
From a design point of view, it is actually because this split headlight has a fatal drawback:
In the era of fuel vehicles, designers often hope that the vehicle can be like a human face, the headlights are the eyes, the intake grille is the nostrils, and the secondary intake grille is the mouth, so that it has some anthropomorphic features, so as to better become the visual focus and be remembered.
However, the shape of the split headlights is difficult for people to find the visual focus immediately, and it is impossible to treat the front of the car as a whole, and it is impossible to distinguish the face shape of a car!
Therefore, split design is often preconceived by everyone as "ugly". This was true when Lynk & Co's design was first introduced, so was the BMW i7, and to some extent the ideal L9 was also like this.
(Because the edges and corners are too clear, it makes people lose visual focus)
But then again, this pot, split headlights can not be backed.
If you don't believe it, you look at Weilai and Xiaopeng next door: Is it not the first feeling of "sense of technology" and "sense of futurism", rather than the prominent ugliness?
This is because although Weilai and Xiaopeng also adopt the design of split headlights, they cleverly hide the headlights in the position of the previous fog light frame, and the daytime running lights have become the new "squinting eyes" as people's visual focus.
Even for the Xiaopeng G9, even lidar can be thrown into the fog light frame:
And this narrow and long daytime running lights can also leave people with the impression that "such a small gadget can actually emit such a dazzling light, and the scientific and technological content must be very high".
Coupled with the closed shape without air intake grille, it is just in line with the future model positioning of Weilai Xiaopeng Technology.
After talking about the positive typical, let's revisit the shape design of the BMW i7 ▔▔▔▔.
The split headlight design will have distracted the visual focus, and the oversized grille that the electrification has not been able to prevent is somewhat noisy, so that everyone can only pay attention to this "pig nose" for the first time.
So if you forcibly anthropomorphize, it will inevitably make people feel like this:
And BMW's nostrils are getting bigger and bigger, and bmw designers can't be blamed only. Pedestrian protection regulations are getting stricter.
We know that the height of the front of the car is often less than half a meter, and the bumper is the outermost part of the front.
Therefore, the first "intimate contact" between pedestrians and cars must be the calf and front bumper, the second "intimate contact" will be the thigh and the lid, and the last time is the head and windshield.
The sharp front of the car, which was commonly used in car design in the past, due to the small collision area, will produce great pressure in the accident, and even lead to a crushing fracture of the pedestrian's calf!
The larger, more vertical grille can provide more support area for the legs of the collision, thereby dispersing the force, and can also reduce the damage to the legs of pedestrians during the collision.
Designers have always danced in shackles, and BMW is no exception.
03. BMW's weakness
The president deliberately went to look over the sales of D-class cars in the past few decades and found that the most popular in the world is the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and lexus LS is close behind, bmw has not been the most prominent one.
The positioning of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is luxury, and the positioning of the Lexus LS is more luxurious than mercedes-Benz. What about the positioning of the BMW 7 Series? drive?
Can you still do Jaguar XJ and Porsche Palmera?
Therefore, this time, BMW took the lead in designing, hoping to lead a new round of design trends through the "too strong" shape.
For example, the BMW i7 only offers a long wheelbase version, and the length of the body is close to 5.4 meters, even 10 centimeters longer than the Mercedes-Benz S-Class;
The side is also under the influence of the chassis battery, and the design of the high window line is adopted by hand. The taller front is also more like a small Rolls-Royce, especially at this angle;
As for the entire interior, it also adopts the style of the crystal palace, from the center console to the gear lever to the seat adjustment switch are all made of crystal. The rear row is even more exaggerated to add a large overhead screen, and also uses a touch screen on a door handle to replace the switch;
In this regard, BMW's designers also said this:
"Some car owners prefer to go off the beaten path, and they tend to opt for those polarized designs.
Therefore, in the future, BMW's design language will be divided into two kinds, BMW i4, BMW i7 this special design, will be dedicated to these car owners. This design style also helps BMW build a more distinctive brand image. ”
Although the design of the BMW i7 has been revolutionized, the level of technology is also high enough. However, bmw is still doing the same thing internally as a traditional brand, trying to maintain the rigid model system of the fuel vehicle era.
On entry-level models, it's impossible to enjoy the technology of a flagship model unless you work hard, earn money, and change to a new, better and more expensive car.
BMW, on the other hand, only needs to lie on the shoulders of its predecessors and count the money, just like the old era when it harvested the dividends of the newcomers.
So to this day, even if the Tesla and Wei Xiaoli next door have almost all the functions as standard, the various configurations of the BMW i3 still have to be selected.
This is also the biggest weakness of traditional car companies: if you can't abandon the previous system, you can't bring about comprehensive innovation.
So ten years ago, bmw launched i3 (I01) and i8 will use pure electric platform to build, and even use the carbon fiber body that will be used in the year's supercar, just to reduce the weight of the vehicle;
But ten years later, BMW's i7 is still sharing the CLAR platform and chassis with the 7 Series, although this has allowed the curb weight to exceed 2.6 tons, so heavy that it does not resemble a BMW at all, and it cannot save space at all.
Perhaps it is really as the senior BMW fan at the beginning said: the BMW spirit, after the real i-series discontinuation, has died.
04. Write at the end
In fact, since entering the era of electrification, the advantages of BBA are gradually being eroded.
In the past, BBA can make so many nostalgic classic designs, in addition to the designer's imagination, the main reason is that the top stamping technology is only available in BBA, which can outline complex and elegant body lines.
For example, many people think that the BMW i7 pays tribute to its predecessor, the third generation of the BMW 7 Series (E38):
But now, even the 100,000 yuan level of domestic cars also has a considerable level of technology. Making all kinds of strange sheet metal pieces is no longer a difficult task.
The core of the car, the powertrain, has also been erased by the arrival of electrification, which has erased the technological gap of almost all people. Even in terms of battery and clean power technology, we have a big advantage.
Perhaps the only two core competitiveness of traditional car companies is to save only the chassis tuning left by the immersion in the field of century-old racing, and the classic design left by thousands of models.
The mystery is also being discovered by our large number of engineering and design talents and began to apply.
Maybe in the near future, we will see our car company again to become the next Toyota Volkswagen, or even the next Mercedes-Benz BMW.
The era of electrification, which is full of Chinese cars, makes people look forward to it.