AutoDesign Prague 2013: Design from the Heart of Europe

Charismatic designers, inspirational speeches and beautiful cars in an informal and friendly atmosphere was the order of the day at the third edition of the international automotive design conference AutoDesign Prague, which once again highlighted the importance of car culture and tradition's strong roots within the Czech Republic. In recent years, speakers have included prominent figures from the world of automotive design such as the Geely Group's Peter Horbury, Dassault Systèmes' Anne Asensio, Pininfarina's Fabio Filippini and design consultant Peter Stevens. This year's conference was themed ‘Design from the Heart of Europe' and so featured many Czech and Slovakian speakers.

BMW 'Dwelling Lab' project

One of the most interesting pieces of work shown at the recent Milan Design Week was 'The Dwelling Lab', collaboration between BMW, Flos Lighting and Kvadrat fabrics. Artists Patricia Urquiola and Guilio Ridolfo were commissioned to effectively turn a BMW 5 Series GT inside out. The car is 'exploded' - with five giant cone-like structures growing out of the windscreen, door openings etc.

Citroen C3 e-HDi 70 Airdream EGS VTR+ emits just 87g/km CO2

Citroen C3 e-HDi 70 Airdream EGS VTR+ emits just 87g/km You do have to wonder sometimes just how much we actually need expensive technology like hybrid powertrains and EVs when cars with conventional ICE engines can manage ridiculous mpg and emit little Co2- cars like the Citroen C3 e-HDi 70 Airdream EGS VTR+. Citroen has announced that their super-frugal C3 with a ridiculously long name (which fortunately doesn’t seem to be painted on the boot lid) and which was first seen at the Frankfurt Motor Show back in September, is now on sale in the UK. The figures for the C3 e-HDI really are quite remarkable.