10 June 2008 - 13:00
His dark materials
When a shape-shifting concept car made of neoprene turns up, you can be near-certain that flame-surfaced BMW design fuhrer Chris Bangle won't be far away.
At least, we think it's neoprene. Some sort of stretchable textile fabric, anyhow. And it's not exactly a concept in the conventional sense, but... hang on, let's start at the beginning.
This is the BMW Gina. Ostensibly a two-seater roadster, it's actually more of a philosophical statement that has informed BMW's current production line-up and will influence future vehicles. Or something.
Built on the short-lived Z8 Roadster platform, the Gina consists of a flexible 'skin' stretched over a metal wire structure enforced with carbon fibre. It allows the driver to change the shape of the car 'on the fly' - the rear spoiler can be raised, for example, while the rocker panels can effectively be bodykitted out.
It's a similar story on the inside, where the steering wheel and instrumentation sit within the centre console and slide into position when the driver pushes the start button.
Bangle says that, in a decade's time or so, such flexibility could reach production vehicles, allowing buyers to create their car around their own requirement. Nice idea, but you really wouldn't want it to get keyed, would you?
However, there's no suggestion that the Gina will lead directly to a production car in the short term. Instead, Bangle says that its principles have influenced the infamous 'flame-surfaced' styling of BMW's current crop... and will continue to do so.
Expect to see unusual-looking Beemers for a few years to come, then.
Watch the BMW Gina video on YouTube:
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Designer in battle against BMW for ?Gina? COVERING SYSTEM CONTESTED: CASE FILED AGAINST THE GERMAN CARMAKERS AT THE ROME PUBLIC PROSECUTOR?S OFFICE. Source: Corriere della Sera 01/03/2009 - Michele Manno Rome It is certainly a strange case that has ended up on the desk of the Public Prosecutor in Rome. You could almost say that the two contestants are the present situation and the future. The present situation is represented by designer Giuseppe Bianco; the future by the well-known BMW car manufacturers. Why future? Because BMW recently won an award in Paris for the most beautiful ?Concept Car of 2008?. The car has an unusual name: ?Gina?. And we know for a fact that, like Gina Lollobrigida and all other women, Gina loves elegant clothes........
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marc commented on this article
17 March 2009
Auto/ Designer accuses BMW: they copied me. The Public Prosecutor?s office in Rome is investigating 28-02-2009 11:52 "The 'Gina' concept car covering was patent protected " Rome, 28 Feb. (Apcom) - The 'Gina' BMW is a prize-winning concept car, but the idea of using a fabric covering for the bodywork is now said to have been copied from an Italian. This is the subject of the lawsuit initiated by fashion designer Giuseppe Bianco, owner of a number of young fashion labels, and filed with the Rome Public Prosecutor a few days ago. Public Prosecutor Marcello Monteleone is believed to be assessing the case presented by lawyer Carlo Cirillo,
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