Man behind Miata decides there's a Next act in design
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Man behind Miata decides there's a Next act in design
Man behind Miata decides there's a Next act in design
Tom Matano
Mark Rechtin
Automotive News -- November 22, 2010 - 12:01 am ET
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LOS ANGELES -- With a car like the original Mazda Miata in his portfolio, a designer might be content to ride off into a sunset of academia and speaking gigs.
Not Tom Matano. He's giving it one more shot.
Matano, now 62, teamed with Mazda stylist Mark Jordan to create the famous roadster as a design study for Mazda Japan. But they made their case so persuasively that the car was given the go-ahead and became one of the most emphatic design statements of the 1980s.
Not that Matano stopped there. He is more proud of the swoopy 1993 RX-7 sports car. Add that to his contributions to BMW's E36 3 series of the 1990s and the waterfall grille of the 1976 Olds Cutlass, and he walked away with a timeless body of work.
But after eight years as executive director of industrial design at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, Matano is getting his hands dirty again.
He's not through as a teacher. But Matano is splitting his time as vice president of design for fledgling car company Next Autoworks, which plans to launch a small, gasoline-powered car in 2012.
Next, formerly known as V-Vehicle Co., recently got a boost with the hiring of auto industry veteran Kathleen Ligocki as CEO. But Next Autoworks' survival hinges on approval of a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy. A previous application was denied.
Matano is the final styling arbiter of work done by Next designers Bryan Thompson and Anke Mazzei, who were poached from Nissan Design America. Next also hired some freelance specialists in computer-aided design, as well as some clay modelers to round out the team.
At press time, Next would not allow images of its prototype economy car to be published. But a half-hour walk-around showed the vehicle to be a utilitarian five-door hatchback in look and purpose. Imagine a cross between a Nissan Leaf and a Lada Niva, and you get the idea.
Pininfarina's backup
The waterfall grille on the 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass was Matano's work.
So why would Matano come back to the gritty world of industrial design?
For one thing, he wanted to create a car based on a spaceframe. His original idea for the Miata had that in mind, but the idea was scrapped for a more traditional, unibody structure.
So when the V-Vehicle brass approached Matano with the idea of creating a car with slap-on body panels that were not part of a car's structure, he jumped.
Initially, Pininfarina was to design the car, with Matano overseeing the process. But when the Italian coachbuilder backed out, Matano was handed the pen, even though he still was teaching full time.
For Next Autoworks, Matano wanted to create "an advanced concept car that would look like something by Ikea."
As a result, the design is restrained. Stylized bits such as twin-projector headlamps are absent. The interior door-cut panels are identical for the front and rear doors. The taillamp assemblies are the same for the right and left sides. And because the car's body panels are slapped on, the roof can be replaced with a retracting canvas top in less than an hour at a dealership.
In short, Matano had to make a car that is built-to-price look not built-to-price.
"I didn't want to overdesign it," he said. "It's a tough discipline. It requires a careful tuning of the surface so that it's not a cheap box. We wanted to keep repair costs low, insurance down, inventory small, warehouse space small and maintain a simplicity of ownership."
Design cleaner
Matano is famous for the Miata, but he's prouder of the 1993 RX-7
If Matano has an affectation of late, it's walking around with a spray bottle labeled "design cleaner" and misting the air anytime he sees an overstyled piece or a frivolous cue. After all, the Miata is a masterpiece of simplicity -- no line wasted, yet every curve gorgeously rendered.
And Matano is averse to allowing computers to worm their way into the design process. He proudly notes that the Miata -- not to mention decades of classic cars -- were done without design software.
But constrained by the requirements of his teaching job, Matano managed the process by fax and e-mail attachment, making visits to Next's San Diego headquarters once or twice a month. And he's proud of his product.
"These guys are good at interpreting my directions," Matano said. "We went from a sketch to a fiberglass 'pusher' show car in six months. That's unheard of."
Matano's path
Career stops for Tom Matano, who emigrated to the United States from Japan at age 18 and attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Calif.
2008-present: VP of design, Next Autoworks
2002-present: Executive director, School of Industrial Design, Academy of Art University, San Francisco
1999-2002: Executive designer, Mazda Motor Corp., Japan
1983-99: Executive VP, Mazda R&D of North America
Pre-1983: Design positions at BMW, Volvo, GM
Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...#ixzz161CyUrHa
Tom MatanoMark Rechtin
Automotive News -- November 22, 2010 - 12:01 am ET
Print Email Reprints 3 comments
Recommend
Follow Automotive News
LOS ANGELES -- With a car like the original Mazda Miata in his portfolio, a designer might be content to ride off into a sunset of academia and speaking gigs.
Not Tom Matano. He's giving it one more shot.
Matano, now 62, teamed with Mazda stylist Mark Jordan to create the famous roadster as a design study for Mazda Japan. But they made their case so persuasively that the car was given the go-ahead and became one of the most emphatic design statements of the 1980s.
Not that Matano stopped there. He is more proud of the swoopy 1993 RX-7 sports car. Add that to his contributions to BMW's E36 3 series of the 1990s and the waterfall grille of the 1976 Olds Cutlass, and he walked away with a timeless body of work.
But after eight years as executive director of industrial design at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, Matano is getting his hands dirty again.
He's not through as a teacher. But Matano is splitting his time as vice president of design for fledgling car company Next Autoworks, which plans to launch a small, gasoline-powered car in 2012.
Next, formerly known as V-Vehicle Co., recently got a boost with the hiring of auto industry veteran Kathleen Ligocki as CEO. But Next Autoworks' survival hinges on approval of a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy. A previous application was denied.
Matano is the final styling arbiter of work done by Next designers Bryan Thompson and Anke Mazzei, who were poached from Nissan Design America. Next also hired some freelance specialists in computer-aided design, as well as some clay modelers to round out the team.
At press time, Next would not allow images of its prototype economy car to be published. But a half-hour walk-around showed the vehicle to be a utilitarian five-door hatchback in look and purpose. Imagine a cross between a Nissan Leaf and a Lada Niva, and you get the idea.
Pininfarina's backup
The waterfall grille on the 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass was Matano's work.So why would Matano come back to the gritty world of industrial design?
For one thing, he wanted to create a car based on a spaceframe. His original idea for the Miata had that in mind, but the idea was scrapped for a more traditional, unibody structure.
So when the V-Vehicle brass approached Matano with the idea of creating a car with slap-on body panels that were not part of a car's structure, he jumped.
Initially, Pininfarina was to design the car, with Matano overseeing the process. But when the Italian coachbuilder backed out, Matano was handed the pen, even though he still was teaching full time.
For Next Autoworks, Matano wanted to create "an advanced concept car that would look like something by Ikea."
As a result, the design is restrained. Stylized bits such as twin-projector headlamps are absent. The interior door-cut panels are identical for the front and rear doors. The taillamp assemblies are the same for the right and left sides. And because the car's body panels are slapped on, the roof can be replaced with a retracting canvas top in less than an hour at a dealership.
In short, Matano had to make a car that is built-to-price look not built-to-price.
"I didn't want to overdesign it," he said. "It's a tough discipline. It requires a careful tuning of the surface so that it's not a cheap box. We wanted to keep repair costs low, insurance down, inventory small, warehouse space small and maintain a simplicity of ownership."
Design cleaner
Matano is famous for the Miata, but he's prouder of the 1993 RX-7If Matano has an affectation of late, it's walking around with a spray bottle labeled "design cleaner" and misting the air anytime he sees an overstyled piece or a frivolous cue. After all, the Miata is a masterpiece of simplicity -- no line wasted, yet every curve gorgeously rendered.
And Matano is averse to allowing computers to worm their way into the design process. He proudly notes that the Miata -- not to mention decades of classic cars -- were done without design software.
But constrained by the requirements of his teaching job, Matano managed the process by fax and e-mail attachment, making visits to Next's San Diego headquarters once or twice a month. And he's proud of his product.
"These guys are good at interpreting my directions," Matano said. "We went from a sketch to a fiberglass 'pusher' show car in six months. That's unheard of."
Matano's path
Career stops for Tom Matano, who emigrated to the United States from Japan at age 18 and attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Calif.
2008-present: VP of design, Next Autoworks
2002-present: Executive director, School of Industrial Design, Academy of Art University, San Francisco
1999-2002: Executive designer, Mazda Motor Corp., Japan
1983-99: Executive VP, Mazda R&D of North America
Pre-1983: Design positions at BMW, Volvo, GM
Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...#ixzz161CyUrHa
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