Packard - Concept Vision of Fully Autonomous EV Luxury Saloon
Concept Vision of Fully Autonomous Packard EV Luxury Saloon, inspired by the original 1947 Packard Clipper. The brand, which once defined automotive luxury and prestige on American roads, is reimagined and modernized for the year 2030.
The saloon has a very distinctive style created by well-balanced proportions. The premium quality of exterior design is represented by simple and modern surfaces joined together by a few elegant lines slightly resembling the iconic ‘47 Packard Clipper.
As the concept design is based on the next-generation EV platform of the Tesla Model S, the traditional front grill has been replaced by minimalistic surfaces with a few elegant creases reminiscent of the original Packard front grills, creating a signature and unique look of the car front.
The use of the best EV platform and the most advanced AI-supported Full Self-driving technology combined with subtle and elegant exterior design language define a new way of perceiving premium quality.
With a price point between $200-250K, the future Packard could be a serious contender to the traditional luxury car brands.
Although the idea for the modern-day Packard in the form of a Fully Autonomous EV High-End Luxury Saloon was fairly new, the original idea of reimagining Packard's car as a future luxury car started way back in 2006 in San Francisco, California.
The Industrial Design School of the Academy of Art University in San Francisco together with Northern California Packards agreed to fund the scholarship for prospective automotive design students. Tom Matano, Executive Director of the School of Industrial Design, suggested that Nor-Cal Region commission an and-of-the-term assignment, wherein the Academy automotive design students would prepare their vision for what a new Packard might look like for the year 2015.
Participating students were able to get inspiration from the Academy's Packard cars collection at the former Chrysler showroom on the corner of Van Ness and Washington Avenues in San Francisco. After a few months of intensive study of the Packard cars, and sketching the ideas, the final designs were presented in December 2006.
Zbigniew Dubiel's proposal was chosen among the other four for the final round, which took place in the restored Packard showroom in Burlingame, California. During the elegant, catered awards luncheon the the award-winning designs were presented. Zbigniew Dubiel's final design was chosen by the Nor-Cal Packards Board Members who hosted the event as a winning Packard design proposal.
"The design by Zbigniew Dubiel shows a sumptuous touring sedan in a variety of views with great attention to detail. His skills as an artist are evident in the sculpted body panels and powerful presence of the car, as shown in the centerspread (image below). His concept for the 2015 Packard is one of a massive car on a 140-inch wheelbase with an overall length of 224 inches, riding on 24-inch wheels. This car would lend itself to a platform driven by a multi-cylinder engine with great horsepower.
The greatest influence on his thinking for the design itself was the "dynamic shape of the Packard Clipper" while at the same time retaining an elegant and distinguished feeling. He found the grille to be one of the most challenging areas, wanting to come up with an innovative design while retaining the traditional features. His wheels, front grille and deck lid carry the Packard family coat of arms, the familiar Packard script is prominent to anyone following this car, and the Goddess of Speed hood ornament is on the front. The doors open on the center pillar for easy access, with windows that lower to give a four-door hardtop effect."
Source text: The Packard Cormorant, Summer 2007, Number 127
The project was featured in the Summer 2007 issue of The Packard Cormorant,
and in the 56packardman Blog "Gear Head Tuesday -Attempts at a Packard Revival Over the Years
