Man is a visual animal.
Whether you value space or configuration or performance, a new car always needs to go through the first review of the eyes.
Therefore, styling design has become a key factor affecting the actual sales performance of a new car in the market.
There is always the most discussion about whether a new car looks good or not.
Recently, there has been a lot of debate about the styling of new cars.
One of the most exciting is the design master Frank Stephenson's all-round spit on the BMW XM concept car in his design review video column.
In the eyes of the design master who has designed classic models such as the original BMW X5, the first generation OF THE BMW era MINI, the Maserati top supercar MC12, and the McLaren P1, one of the three major divine cars, BMW's latest XM is almost useless in the design level.
The video is very detailed, but in fact, the content of the complaint is not complicated: BMW XM is a failed work with unclear design significance and excessive force.
From this screenshot taken from the video program, it can be seen that Frank Stephenson used lines to mark the various lines that appeared on the front face of the BMW XM, and it turned out that these lines were unrelated to each other, even conflicted with each other, and looked very messy.
Frank Stephenson's assessment of the model's design was: I don't know what BMW wants to do.
On the side of the body, the multi-layer overlapping lines of the wheel arches are very abrupt, and the black lines used to hide the door handles are a very clever design, but they are meaningless in the XM's vehicle shape.
The two BMW logos on the upper edge of the rear window, although they have the meaning of paying tribute to the M1 sports car, are very deliberate in such an SUV model; the curved taillights look very cool on a single look, but they look out of place on a body with stiff design lines.
Of course, these are the ideas of former BMW designers, the professor is not a design major, can only say that I don't know...
However, the designer agreed with XM's interior design in the show, but this may just be a little thin noodles for his old owner...
Many people therefore believe that XM will be spurned by consumers, and even if it is finally mass-produced and launched into the market, its market sales performance may not be very satisfactory.
But the professor seems not to have to worry, after all, the concept car designer can be imaginative, but when mass production must consider the mood of the engineer, you can meet XM mass production can not be so radical.
In addition to the XM, there are some other models in BMW's market today that are questioned at the styling design level.
Take BMW, for example, the most controversial styling design in recent years is of course the pair of nostrils that are getting bigger and bigger.
From flagship models such as the X7 and 7 Series to sports models such as the 4 Series, M3 and M4, BMW will cause a round of controversy every time it launches a new car.
Among them, the large nostrils of the M3 and M4, two high-performance cars, are the most controversial.
Fans think that the size of this new grille is too large and a bit overwhelming.
But what the professor wants to say is that subverting the design of the past style is bound to raise questions, but it is not a bad thing from a market point of view. To know how much attention BMW has received with this "big nostril" design, the 4 series is in short supply or even a situation of buying at a higher price, you know the effect.
In addition, as the first of the three BBA giants, Known as the luxury benchmark of Mercedes-Benz, their latest generation of S-Class has also caused controversy due to styling design.
As the brand's flagship luxury sedan, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is most ridiculed for its front and rear headlights and the huge central control touch screen in the car.
Fans believe that the new headlights and taillight design of the new S-class are not as atmospheric as the old ones, and even have a large E-class feeling.
The touchscreen in the interior reclining on the center console like a tablet has also completely changed the luxurious atmosphere created by the elegant lines of the previous generation of S-Class with classical palaces, which a group of Mercedes-Benz fans could not accept for a while.
But to be fair, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class interior, which embraces the sense of technology, creates a texture that still makes people shout: big guy or big guy.
Ferrari, a high-ranking Ferrari in the field of sports cars, the entry-level sports car they launched, has even suffered from fans.
The reason for the complaint was because the fans felt that Roma did not look like "Ferrari".
The simple body shape and classical elegant curves make fans think of British brands like Aston Martin that focus on creating high-performance GT sports cars.
The Toyota Highlander, which has been in the home SUV market for many years, has also been questioned by many people after the earlier launch of the replacement model.
The TNGA architecture not only brings an upgrade to the chassis texture and handling experience, but also gives the originally boxy highlander a new, young, and powerful look.
But perhaps accustomed to the past Highlander's solid and thick image, some of highlander's main consumer groups can not immediately adapt to the huge changes in highlander design, always feel that the more exaggerated front face and the more muscular body shape, have made the new generation of Highlander less calm.
As for the compact sedan we are most likely to come into contact with, the all-new Honda Civic, it is also controversial due to the overhaul of style.
This compact sedan has been sought after by many fans for its strong power performance and huge potential for late upgrades and modifications, and is regarded as a grounded and powerful civilian sports car.
But the new generation of Civic's peaceful design style and more refined interiors have made Civic fans feel a little less aggressive.
But after the experience, you will find that the new generation of Civic power performance has improved, the strength of the frame has also been enhanced, and the NVH of the previous generation of models with average performance has been greatly strengthened in this generation, and then it will be full of true fragrance.
It is reasonable to say that according to the view that humans are visual creatures, these models should not have much good market performance in theory because of the controversial design of the shape.
But is that really the case?
The BMW M4/4 series, which was widely complained about by car fans, quickly became a fragrant feast in the eyes of performance car players after being listed in China, and people with strength immediately went to queue up to book a car, and even had to increase the price to buy a car.
Such a million-level high-performance sports car, which should have been affected by the shape of the grille and "no one cared", but in fact, it can sell sixty or seventy units per month, which can be said to be quite outstanding.
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class was questioned at the beginning of the release of the new car, and everyone was doubting whether its big man position could be secured again.
But the reality is that Mercedes-Benz sold more than 87,000 units of the new generation of S-Class in 2021, with a sales growth rate of 40%, of which more than 35% of sales came from the Chinese market.
It can be seen that in the midst of doubts, the S-class still easily retained the throne of "limousine brother".
The Ferrari Roma, which was complained by fans as "not like Ferrari", sold 203 units in the domestic market in 2021 alone, and is now the sales responsibility of the Ferrari brand.
The "king" highlander of the home SUV, under the influence of various factors such as styling design, pricing increases and dealer price increases, has also maintained a monthly sales volume of more than 10,000, and has been in an upward stage in recent months.
The new generation of Civic, which Honda fans feel is less "sports soul", has also seen sales climb after it was officially launched in September last year.
According to the latest sales data, the monthly sales of the new generation Civic have reached 24,000 units, ranking fifth in the compact car sales list, second only to the home shopping star models such as Xuanyi, Langyi, Toyota Corolla and Leiling.
So why do these new cars, which are controversial in terms of design, achieve such excellent market performance?
After a multi-angle analysis, the professor felt that the reason was this...
First of all, the car shape is composed of many, many independent parts, headlights, taillights, hood, fenders, waistline, wheels...
Car design is an integrated process of a large number of detailed styling designs, and a new car is not the responsibility of a single designer, but in the form of a team.
You design the headlights, he designs the wheels, she's in charge of the steering wheel...
The manuscripts handed over by a group of designers were integrated and adjusted by the chief designer into a complete set of new car design schemes.
As a result, a good design team is able to build an interconnection between a large number of details of different parts, making it a consistent overall image.
Although sometimes some of the details on the new body are not very good, as long as the details are well integrated, it is still a good design.
For example, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, although its front and rear headlights do not look atmospheric enough, but the size and shape of the front grille are still domineering, and the body shape is still very slender and stretched; it forms a clear distinction with other low-level models, and the overall look and feel is still in place.
Then there is Ferrari's Roma, which is a radical design style that changed the previous Ferrari supercar's teeth and claws, but the grille and clean and smooth body side shape that imitates the classic Ferrari GT sports car can also bring a cultural connotation that pays tribute to the classic.
Besides, it is one of the most "affordable" Ferraris at the current price, and its appeal to sports car enthusiasts is naturally very strong.
Or the BMW M4, even if its large nostrils have caused a lot of controversy, but its styling design coordination in other parts of the body is still quite excellent, and the styling in the same level can be called one of the most popular.
At least in addition to the grille, everyone has not heard that anyone will complain about the M4's body proportions and waistline, taillights and other shapes, right?
Counting its outstanding performance, a pair of nostrils is not enough to ruin the reputation of BMW's M series.
The other is the product force itself.
If luxury car buyers will also increase the weight of the influence of styling design on car selection and car purchase, then those who just need to buy a car will still pay more attention to whether the car itself is doing well or not.
Like the Highlander, although its appearance is more youthful and sporty, some middle-aged consumers may not be accustomed to this change; but inside it is still a mature family model with spacious space and reliable quality.
After using the new generation of THS fuel-electric hybrid system based on a 2.5L high-fuel efficiency engine, Highlander's fuel consumption has been greatly reduced, and it is even more attractive to consumers who just need it.
Although Honda Civic has been regarded as a civilian sports car before, the sport performance is only the surface image displayed by The Civic, and the user group that really "plays civic" accounts for a relatively small proportion of the entire user group of the Civic.
As a compact joint venture sedan, the Civic has changed from rugged movement to boutique home style, in fact, to meet the needs of the majority of ordinary consumers.
Although the new generation of Civic does not look as radical as the previous generation, it has upgraded the materials used for workmanship, comfortable configuration, chassis texture, cabin tranquility and other content that affects the daily commuting experience, which is exactly what ordinary consumers want.
Seeing this, I don't know if someone will say: Since this is the case, then the BMW XM that has been spat on by the design master in all directions actually has a chance, right?
This is not easy to say, because it is still in the concept car stage, and its point of controversy seems to be not just mercedes-Benz headlights, M4 large nostrils as simple as simple, but systematic, holistic controversy.
But in any case, if the controversy is not a detail, but the whole, then the designer really has to consider whether to continue the style of the concept car when mass production.