Motive Industries Kestrel concept – Click above for high-res gallery
kes·trel [kes-truhl] –noun
1. a common small falcon, Falco tinnunculus, of northern parts of the Eastern Hemisphere, notable for hovering in the air with its head to the wind.
2. an uncommon electric car concept, auto luscious electricus, of the Canadian province of Alberta, notable for its small environmental footprint and sweet design.
Motive Industries has chosen the occasion of the EV 2010 VÉ Conference and Trade Show in Vancouver, Canada to unveil the complete exterior design of its hemp-infused biocomposite-bodied electric car concept, the Kestrel. While we were under the impression there would be a complete vehicle in attendance, there was, in fact, only a door. A very cool looking door, but we wished it had been attached to a rolling chassis nonetheless. For now, we'll have to satisfy our curiosity with computer-generated renderings.
The images show what seems to be a successful approach to city car packaging, managing a four-seat configuration within a minimal amount of space. An extreme cab forward design has the door comprising part of the front wheel well, but the "box" approach is avoided. Instead, the eyes are treated to a nice upward sweep of movement along the sides that, hopefully, distracts from a somewhat less uninspiring nose.
Hit the jump for the official press release. Additionally, we have an excellent video of the aforementioned EV 2010 VÉ Conference and Trade Show, featuring appearances by lots of plug-in vehicles and a good look at a certain door.
[Source: Motive]
PRESS RELEASE
Motive Unveils Kestrel Design
Calgary, AB – September 14, 2010 – Following the unveiling of the Kestrel design at the Vancouver EV 2010 VÉ Conference and Trade Show, Motive releases Kestrel design images.
"We have received numerous requests for images of the Kestrel car, and now that the design has been officially released, we are more than happy to satisfy that request", said Meagan McKeage, VP Operations at Motive.
The Kestrel is a 4 passenger electric car designed to appeal to the city driver, who for the most part is traveling alone or with one other passenger. Part of the design criteria was to make a compact city vehicle while not compromising interior space. A unique feature on the car is the location of the front wheels making it a very cab forward design. The engineering team made this possible by having the doors forward shut line open right up into the wheel well, creating ingress/egress without compromise. The very cab forward profile and compact front end make it easy to maneuver in tight traffic.
VP Design, Darren McKeage states "To design a vehicle with presence I often look to how nature visually communicates a purpose in its purist form. For the Kestrel I wanted to create an image of athleticism and robustness to stand out against a sea of large sedans and SUV's. I was influenced by animals like grey hounds and sharks that have these barrel chests and narrow waists that communicate strength. I've captured that in the design through the wheel arches and upswept form in the rocker area. These features also accentuate the wheels helping create a planted stance."
The Motive designed Kestrel is slated to be one of the cars in the Project Eve line up. Further details on the intention of Project Eve were released in a press release this morning put out by the consortium. Project Eve will be a consortium of Canadian companies who have come together to help advance the progress of bringing electric mobility to Canada. By working together, the companies intend to improve their respective technologies for the benefit of the Canadian marketplace. "As a co-founder of Project Eve, we are very excited to see this initiative coming together and gaining ground. We believe this is an important step for Canada and are extremely happy to be a part of such an innovative group of companies", said Nathan Armstrong President of Motive.
About Motive
Motive is an elite transportation design firm specializing in advanced design and advanced material manufacturing application. Over the past 15 years the Motive team has worked on more than 120 vehicle programs including 10 full electric vehicle programs. The company's unique blend of design capabilities and industry experience has allowed Motive to create processes which accelerate project cycles, reduce cost and decrease time to market. Motive works with existing car companies and manufacturing partners worldwide to architect advanced vehicles from concept through production. www.motiveind.com
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