Re*Move

J Mays: Ford's Global Design Chief on why 'the computer is today's hotrod'

Roland Barthes suggested that cars were the modern day equivalent of Gothic Cathedrals, “the Supreme creation of an era. Conceived with passion by unknown artists”. That's still true to this day. While fashion designers and architects have become household names and outright superstars, car designers are little known, often lost in the cloak of their brand’s identity. Of all the names that the average non-car nerd may have heard of, three are most likely to stand out: Patrick le Quement, Chris Bangle, and J Mays. So with le Quement retiring after 22 years as head of Renault design, and Bangle recently leaving BMW under unclear circumstances, this leaves Mays as arguably the most publicly recognisable car designer in the world right now.

Calm and unassuming in person, you’d never know that Mays was responsible for the design direction of (and for the hundreds of designers behind) Ford’s various brands and nameplates. Up until recently of course, this not only included Ford, Lincoln and Mercury - but Volvo, Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin too. This led Mays to describe his job as being “about a mile wide and an inch deep.” But with PAG disbanded, and Volvo about to follow Jag, LR and Aston out of the Ford stable door, Mays seems pleased that his job is becoming “an inch wide and a mile deep.”

Clearly, he’s got more time to focus on making Ford’s core products stellar once again (recent cars such as the Flex and Taurus suggest this is already happening), along with giving under-nourished Lincoln and Mercury some love too. It’s the Lincoln C concept – unveiled at Detroit’s NAIAS in January 2009 - that we were primarily in town to talk to him about. Yet while that car is well worth a closer look, it’s the bigger issues facing the car industry and the world of car design that we really wanted his views on.

The Lincoln C Concept in Ford's product development studio

So here, Mays - the man behind VW's famous Concept One and Audi's influential Avus – who now also acts as Ford’s Chief Creative Officer, gives his views on a whole host of design subjects. From why the computer is today’s hotrod, to how he believes Ford is leading the way in user research, and why the skill-set of tomorrow’s car designer might need to be quite different to that of today’s.

As Ford moves forwards with its ‘One Ford’ strategy, it’s likely that many of the things you see from the brand will have been touched by the hand of Mays. So watch the video at the top of the article, to get an insight into how the future of the blue oval might look…

Full transcript follows, link to full unedited interview at bottom of the transcript>>

Ford and Sustainability - the view from the top

On Thursday, Joe and I spent an hour talking with Ford's Sue Cischke. She's basically Ford's chief sustainability officer - right up at the top of the company's uber 60s World Headquarters building in Dearborn, Michigan.

We filmed the whole thing, and you can see it below.

I'm asking our network to share their views on the content - those we've met over the years who stand out as visionary thinkers on the changes going on in the economics and nature of how we move. The first of these is Dan Sturges, and you can see what he has to say shortly.

But we meet new thinkers every day and I'd love to hear from you - and share your comments - if you've got something to add. Feel free to feature this on your own sites and embed our interview (click the 2 prong button in the blip control bar). Email me if you want access to the video file. It's Creative Commons ShareAlike 3.0.

If you want to join in, comment below, or get in touch via Twitter @charmermark or @joesimpson.

Mark Charmer is founder of The Movement Design Bureau.

Disclosure: Ford's sponsoring The Movement Design Bureau's research in 2009. But our brief is to be critical and independent. We take that seriously. If you think we're not, I want to know.

Updated with extra video: All hail the Lincoln C

One of the most interesting concept cars at NIAIS 2009, the Detroit Auto Show, is the Lincoln C. Here, Joe and I discuss the concept, its influences and what it means.

A response to the American mood of the time, it puts massive interior space into a near-Focus-sized car. The general consensus was that it looked gorgeous.

Robb Hunter, aka @potatowedge talks at NAIAS 2009 in Detroit with Greg Hutting, project manager for Ford’s Irvine strategic concepts group, which designed the car, and we examine the interior and exterior.

Mark Charmer spoke with Joseph Simpson in Bermondsey, London on 19 January 2009. This material is Creative Commons Sharealike.

Updated 22nd Jan 2008 - Added additional videos of the car's project manager - Greg Hutting, talking about the car, its background, and the design. Also added photo set of the Lincoln C.

Lincoln C Photoset:

All photos and video were taken by Robb Hunter, at the NAIAS 2009 in Detroit.

Disclosure: Ford is sponsoring The Movement Design Bureau's research throughout 2009, but we've got an independent mind so tell us if you ever think we sound otherwise.

NAIAS '09: What do you want the interior of your next car to look like?

Volvo S60 concept centre console (above)... and Lincoln C concept HMI screen (below)

We'll have more on the conceptual version of Ford's Sync interface - showcased inside the Lincoln C (above), shortly. Its been interesting to see this car take some by surprise, and stand out as a show star in Detroit this week... For now, we're just content to ogle that beautiful, crystal centre console in the S60.

Posted by Joseph Simpson on 13th January

Photos by potatowedge on Flickr

Disclousre: Ford is sponsoring The Movement Design Bureau's design research work through 2009.