Ever wonder how the Auto world’s logos changed over the years?  We do, and so does Funzu.com as they’ve posted a great article showcasing the evolution of some of our favorite OEM logos.

Visit the link here and tell us about your favorites.

My personal fave is the VW gear logo… almost steampunk in a Web 2.0 world.

When GM product czar Bob Lutz speaks, we tend to listen.  When he gives his take on the negative comments about the Volt’s styling, we sit up in bed, panting and sweating.  Well, not really.  We do find it rather interesting that he felt he had to reply, though.

In a recent article on his FastLane blog, Lutz speaks about the recent wave of “that ain’t the Volt we saw at teh auto showz” and “boy, that sure do look like a Prius” comments floating around.  Specifically, Lutz mentions:

The vehicle’s design has come under some criticism, most of it, to me, unwarranted. The challenge to the designers wasn’t to design the most beautiful car imaginable and accept the compromises you have to make to do so. It was, make no compromise to fuel efficiency and electric range, and then do the most beautiful design possible, around those aerodynamic dictates.

In other words, “form follows function”, something that we Designers know all too well.  The Volt we saw almost two years was the vision vehicle.  It was the aesthetic direction that GM wanted to take in the production version.  It, like all concept vehicles out there, is not gospel.  Very rarely do we see a production vehicle look identical the concept it was birthed from.  In fact, GM’s OTHER milestone vehicle (the Camaro) captures the concept fairly well.  The reason?  Well, it’s because the concepts are based on production specs and are almost ready to hit the road, minus a few things here and there.  The Volt, on the other hand, was an idealized concept.  A vision for a technology that was still four years away.

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I have watched a lot of automotive interviews and this has to be one of the funni=iest.  Grand Master (GM) Lutz is always owning the show when he speaks to the press but he is finaaly outdone by Mr. Colbert.  It is great seeing Lutz humbled and speachless.

Some info on the upcoming Volt, this was not said verbatim by Lutz but he made it pretty clear.  The Volt will not lay a sweet patch, or get you laid, but it may win you a lady with a big patch.  And if you can’t afford to drive your Hummer, then you can use it to charge your Volt.

Check out this video, it is worth it.  Thanks to Autoblog for posting it.

(Source: Colbert Nation)

Let me be the first to say, “It’s about time!”

As iconic as Chrysler’s early 2K styling was with the sexy Chrysler 300C, the brutish Dodge Magnum, and the not-very-attractive (as in, ugly) Jeep Compass, newly-anointed Chrysler Design Chief Ralph Gilles spoke about the the coming change in the Chrysler aesthetic.

His words (via Autoblog): “It’s definitely time for a new aesthetic at Chrysler. … We’re done with the ‘edge’ look.”

The new Chrysler design language is said to be more “organic” and sexy, which will be a welcome change from the 1984-ish styling of the last 8 years.  Switching to a new aesthetic brings with it both challenges and rewards, as it may be difficult to succeed a popular vehicle like the 300C with a more swoopy brother, yet it may open the door to further bring to market some new vehicles and leave behind the baggage of the past decade, something that Chrysler desperately needs.

It’s no surprise that Motorola’s mobile phone division is hitting rock-bottom.  You can see that happening when you are offered 38 free RAZRs with every new account with Big Corporate Wireless Company.  But, how did it go from super-cool phone to has-been mobile company in such a relatively short time?  Gizmodo found out.

The lack of proper Design support, and the emphasis on engineering and marketing, killed the brand ever so softly.  It’s the realization of the Old Wives’ Tale of how Design is subjected to adding gemstones and color combinations instead of being injected as a part of the product development process.

It’s no wonder that LG, HTC, and now Apple have run past Moto at a blazing speed.

Full (great) article here:

Motorola Inside Blame Game: Engineers Shoved Designers Aside

DUDE! Did ya hear? Ralph is the new Veep! In a move that wasn’t necessarily shocking (although we didn’t know WHEN it would happen) Ralph Gilles will be taking over the post of Chrysler VP of Design on Sept 1st. Trevor Creed, current VP, announced his plans to retire on August 31st.

This could be just the shot in the arm that Chrysler needs: youth, energy, and a change of pace at the top.

Congrats to Ralph, and thanks to Trevor for all of the great years at the helm.

Now, about that Design Shuffle we’ve been talking about…

James Dyson, everyone’s favorite Rebel Millionaire designer (unless you consider Richard Branson an innovator as well, which labels himself as “Everyone’s Favorite Rebel Billionaire”) has plans for a too cool school of innovation in Bath.

Well he DID have plans, anwyays.  That is until the local gov decided that the land was prone to flooding and is doing what they can to prevent Dyson from building a great design school.  Truth be told, the flooding is probably just a cover for the fact that the location requires the demolishing of some “ye olde building” and the local folks are flipping out over it claiming that the new building will be an environmental mess.

Our hopes are still high that something can be worked out.  Otherwise, you’d have seen the last of that snazzy pun I used in the header image, and DEAR GOD no one wants that!

Frank Stephenson, former Design Chief at Centro Stile Alfa Romeo (that’s fancy talk for “Alfa Romeo’s design studio”), has been gobbled up by McLaren and will head up the design efforts there.  American-born Stephenson becomes the latest Design head to fall victim to the recent Design Shuffle, as OEMs look to shore up their studios with talent and leadership for the upcoming electric car-pocalypse.

The dashing, Bond-villain-esque Stephenson is best known for having a hand in all your favorite small cars, including the MINI, Fiat 500, and MiTo.

So, who’s next?  Chris Bangle?

Get the Design Shuffle pool started.

Car companies + internet. Seems like it would be a natural marketing and sales tool, right?  Well, up until recently, OEMs were terrified of the intrawebz as buying a car online from a corporation is still nearly impossible to do.  In fact, finding the correct information for a vehicle and its options on a company’s website is still not very easy.

So how do corporations solve the issue of failed informational websites?  Well, they jump headfirst into crazy marketing schemes and go all web-two-point-oh on us!  From games, to wannabe Facebooks, to Legos, auto companies are doing anything they can to get their viral marketing campaigns moving along.

Take a look at a few of our faves, and add yours into our comments.

Example:

Dodge Quest

www.Dodge-Quest.com

A direct rip-off of classic 8-bit video gaming (in this case the Dragon Quest/Dragon Warrior NES games) Dodge fabricated an online Flash game worthy of our time.  With the 80s and 8-bit gaming beck in style, Dodge manages to make a successfl attempt at capturing our attention for an entire afternoon. You play the role of a weird, toad-headed character trying to win the heart of his “fair maiden” by buying her a Dodge.  Yep, nothing says romantic like a Dodge.

Complete with a stats system, fights with townspeople, and a full town to walk around in and harass other characters, Dodge Quest puts any Grand Theft Auto game to shame.

More sites after the jump.

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Baseball, apple pie and Chevrolet are all things you associate with the great U.S.  Another big one is our military.  When you think of weapons, tools for the military, what comes to mind…….Hummer.  In my opinion Hummer is one of the great American Icons and is a great way to tie our troops and their contributions to our everyday life.  You can not help but think of them whenever climbing in and out or looking out those squatty windows of a Hummer.

Just like we support our troops, why can’t we support our brands.  This whole talk of selling off Hummer really pisses me off.  I know this is now a global economy, but an American brand owned by a company from India…c’mon.  I guess we should get used to this kind of thing.  I just heard that Budweiser was sold and is now owned by a Belgium Company.  Sure the Belgiums make a better beer, but Bud, the King of Beers is as American as mullets.

Back to Hummer, GM has a gold mine waiting to happen.  Yes, I know about the whole gas thing but hear me out.  Read more