Lexus, adidas, Carbon, and Calty Design Research join forces to unveil the Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” inspired RX 500h F Sport. To help celebrate the recent launch of adidas’ “Wakanda Forever Collection,” the team at adidas sought to bring their “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”-inspired designs into the automotive space.
Created for the best athletes in the world, this performance sportswear embodies what it means to be Wakandan and explores the question, “What if Wakanda had a national athletic team?” The vehicle wrap builds on the custom identity of the fictional African nation as envisioned by adidas, creating an automotive identity that matches the fashion collection.
The re-imagined exterior of the RX features the Wakandan-inspired print and purple colourway used throughout the adidas sportswear collection. A diamond pattern inlay on the hood is inspired by the Black Panther’s claw necklace, while the gold details on the exterior are taken from the new Black Panther suit. The word “Vibe-Branium,” also spelt in the Wakandan alphabet, is added to the rear badging as part of its unique name: the Lexus RX 500h Vibe-Branium AWD DIRECT4.
The students at adidas S.E.E.D (School for Experiential Education in Design) embraced the challenge to reimagine the all-new Lexus RX interior by using the much-anticipated sequel as its source of inspiration. To help guide the students through the design process, Calty Design Research led the students through a series of workshops exploring automotive design, Lexus design, creative processes, colour and materials and the power of collaboration.
The custom build will feature an interior re-imagined with future-focused designs, textures and materials. Using the modern luxury of the latest RX as a canvas, adidas’ custom Wakanda-inspired tribal gold print covers sections of the seating surfaces and is featured prominently on the seat bolsters in particular. The same pattern is applied to the door panel inserts and the steering wheel.
Areas such as the steering wheel pad and front and rear headrests are made in the Carbon 3D printed energy-returning athletic shoe midsole material used in the adidas 4D-FWD. The front headrests include Lexus’s emblem and the rear centre headrest houses adidas’ logo. Meanwhile, surfaces around the shifter get laser-cut wood and gold trim that accents the interior to help create a Wakandan-inspired in-car environment.
