Contests Archive: CDN-Opel/Vauxhall Interactive Design Competition 2010-2011

The Car Design News - Opel/Vauxhall competition was open to design students across Europe. This was a unique new design competition that used social media as a tool to develop the designs for future cars.

As an interactive competition, anyone [in Europe] could comment on the entries, propose changes, follow their favourite contestants, and discuss the entries on this site.

The judges also made comments throughout the competition, both generally and in specific cases. So this was an excellent chance for the students to get feedback from design professionals.

The competition ran in 2 phases (outlined below) and culminated in a display of the finalists' work and announcement of the two winners at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2011.

The two winners (one per competition phase) were awarded a paid internship at Opel/Vauxhall's European Design Studio in Russelsheim, Germany. They worked alongside the company's talented design team and gained valuable experience as they embarked on their careers as car designers.

Phase 1: 'A Lounge in Motion'
In the first interiors stage, student designers in Europe were challenged to develop a car interior that was 'a lounge in motion'. They were asked to accentuate both the emotional and rational aspect of the Opel/Vauxhall brand and its design language which the company describes as, 'sculptural artistry meets German precision'.

When the competition closed on 10 December 2010, the judges gathered to create a shortlist of the top 10 entries. From this shortlist, three finalists were chosen by the judges.

Phase 2: 'The Lounge Exterior'
Following on from the first phase, we launched the exterior phase of the competition, entitled 'The Lounge Exterior', with this phase closing on Friday 11th February 2011.

Once again open to students studying on any design course in Europe, the brief asked students to choose one of the top three chosen interior entries and develop an exterior for it, while continuing the theme of a ‘Lounge in Motion'.

Below were the finalists from which the students were to choose:

Giacomo Pierin: 'Interior Revolution' 
The entry envisioned a compact interior which featured organic forms and a floor-based rail system allowing the driver and passenger seats to be moved and swiveled, depending on how the car is used. Judges had nothing but praise for the naturally inspired forms of the final design and the elegant developmental sketching.

Victor Uribe: 'Opel City Lounge'
Victor was the very first student to upload an entry to the competition website. He separated the passenger compartment from the mechanical elements of the vehicle, allowing a completely different type of car interior with 'maglev surfaces' permitting massive re-configurability of the space. Judges thought it was not only cool, but also a simply brilliant project. They were particularly impressed by the way he had clearly laid out his concept, and how three key words - comfortable, flexible, simple - perfectly described the project.

Chiayuan Lu: 'A Lounge to be Together with your Child' 
This entry reflected the fact that the designer himself had recently become a father, and saw Opel/Vauxhall as the perfect brand for which to place children and their needs at the heart of a vehicle's design.

His concept featured a pushchair designed to seamlessly dock with the car, forming the child's seat and an integral part of the interior. Judges said that it was clear to see his passion for the subject and thought his entry was ahead of the game.

These three students then went forward to develop their designs further, and compete against each other to be the winner of this interior phase.

By CDN Team