Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

[Markus Kleis]

I was lucky enough to be invited as a member of the press to tour the usually very tightly guarded Ford design studio in Irvine, Ca today. It was a fantastic time as we got a tour, got to see the designers work on their computers, and even got to see the machine that cuts the concept cars out of clay in action!

I even got to sit inside the car worth millions (concept cars are crazy expensive to build) called the Lincoln Concept C (named after the segment the vehicle would belong in- the C segment).

Here are some pictures of me in the car:










But on a more detailing related note, we were given some literature and some of the information really caught my eye, and I think you all will agree:

"Ford leads the industry with fewer paint chips and scratches and better long-term durability, according to the GQRS."

"The Ford paint team examines competitive vehicles side-by-side against its own products to develop new technologies, pigments and coatings like the new Tuxedo Black coating used on the 2009 Ford F-150 that contains flakes of glass rather than metal" -I found this to be very interesting...wonder if that will help reduce color matching issues for touch-up work that occurs when you sand and expose metal flakes?

There were some other great stats and facts, but I won't bore you with all of them

-Mark

[Andrew C.]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

Wow that is very cool Mark!

What exactly is the point of a concept car, do they intend to build it in the future, or is it just something they build because it looks sick?

Glad to see that Ford does so well on a detailing note.

[Markus Kleis]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

The point of a concept car is very much like the point of the fashion you see in most modern fashion shows (I know, lame analogy, but it made sense when my sister asked earlier tonight).

They will test out and demonstrate advanced concepts, ideas, and technologies that aren't yet affordable or realistic, but stuff they expect to be attainable in the future (depending on the car, 2-5 years out...usually).

So basically it is a way for an automaker to: generate buzz for the brand, demonstrate the technology and design language coming up (albeit often very exaggerated in the concept car), and test out public reaction to new concepts.

Depending on how the public reacts, automakers then make the decision to bring the car to a production level, or let it die. I personally think this car will come to the market in about 4-5 years to some degree.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

Lucky you. Looks like you had a great time. That concept car looks nice. Like those seats.

[memnuts]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

"The Ford paint team examines competitive vehicles side-by-side against its own products to develop new technologies, pigments and coatings like the new Tuxedo Black coating used on the 2009 Ford F-150 that contains flakes of glass rather than metal" -I found this to be very interesting...wonder if that will help reduce color matching issues for touch-up work that occurs when you sand and expose metal flakes?

There were some other great stats and facts, but I won't bore you with all of them

-Mark

I doubt it will help color matching issues. Infact it is probably more along the lines of enviromental issues that they are trying to accomplish with glass instead of metal flake. It most like has to do with enviromental issues the supplier is trying to get away from dealing with.

[Mike Pennington]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

Very very cool

[CieraSL]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

Sweet! Like the inside of that concept car.

[ZoranC]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

But on a more detailing related note, we were given some literature and some of the information really caught my eye, and I think you all will agree:

"Ford leads the industry with fewer paint chips and scratches and better long-term durability, according to the GQRS."

I really wish I could agree but condition of paint my 2002 F-150 Harley Davidson was delivered in makes me very skeptical.

[john m.]

Re: Toured Ford Design Studio in Irvine today- (paint info)

Looks like a blast! I would love the chance to do something similar!

Like the concept car too, seats look really cool. Only thing that bugs me with concepts are the ones that arent even remotely close to what the actual design ends up being