A SWIFT switch to design

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: comes in the small car luxury segment, was designed entirely in Japan. Rao mentioned that when 800 cc was launched, the body design concept was different.

There are several drivers to the automobile design concept in the maturing Indian car market-including comfort, safety and pricing.

Car as a living space

As people spend more time on the roads, the car is increasingly become a living space and customers have begun to expect the comfort of a home in the car. According to Roberto Piatti, managing director, Stile Bertone, an automotive design company, based in Turin, Italy and one of the keynote speakers at the styling and design conclave at the Auto Expo, ‘‘The car becomes a home, by integrating in its metallic frame those ‘homely’ sensations, which are typically domestic. Soft, uninterrupted surfaces, warm colours, natural materials; controllable concealed lighting, guaranteed communication by radio, television, video, navigation systems; sensations of relaxation and harmony.’’

Auto companies are beginning to test their ideas with concept cars that are highly design-oriented but they still cater only to a niche market, feels Pankaj Jhunja, head, design studio, Dilip Chhabria Design. He says concept cars are ‘‘happening’’ in market research strategy in Europe and the UK to garner feedback.

Global luxury car makers feel India is responding positively to high-end design going by the number of launches at the 8th Auto Expo in the Capital including Audi, Skoda and Honda, among others. Marcel Hamon, head, sales Eastern Europe, Asia and CKD markets, SkodaAuto, said: ‘‘SkodaAuto is a lifestyle choice. The Indian market’s awareness of automobile design can be seen from the fact that the sales of our cars have gone up. We have a very classical, a very clean design.’’

‘‘India today offers great opportunities, great possibilities of combining Italian creativity and design with a strong Indian capability of engineering development, for products made in India which are successfully exportable all over the world,’’ says Piatti.. ‘‘We hope that the solid values which are typical of our Piemontese culture and the desire to be ‘propositive’ to forsee the shapes of the cars to come with new concepts and have the courage to subvert the basic themes and go against the flow if necessary,’’ he added.