#HTE

BMW’s Design Restraint Continues to Go Out the Window

This week BMW unveiled their forthcoming iX, which will roll out next year. This first batch of concept renderings below, of the evocative variety, hinted at a bolder direction:

As the renderings got more specific, we see an increasingly aggressive-looking vehicle with overly complicated surfaces, both inside and out, and right down to the details:

A profile shot of the full-size clay model might’ve made you think they were reining it back in…

…but a look at the front detailing, and rear quarter, reveals that’s not the case:

In the highlight sheets for the car, the car’s design looks even busier than the call-outs:

In the studio shots, it looks to me like every 10 centimeters of the car was designed by a different person:

The on-road shots don’t change that impression:

This may explain why one of the more robust Core77 discussions–which has been running for years–is called “What is BMW Doing?”