REVOLUTIONARY, NOT EVOLUTIONARY

WITH NO INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE AND FUEL TANK TO WORK AROUND, AUTOMAKERS ARE FREE TO GET CREATIVE WITH EV DESIGN

- DAMIEN MARTIN

Automobile design has evolved over the decades. One look at an old Ford Pinto will make that painfully clear. But there have always been some limitations, given the nature of internal combustion engines and gas tanks. They pretty much have to be in the same places on the body of the car, which constrains design creativity. But as batteries steadily replace internal combustion, the new era in automobiles lends EV design a lot more flexibility. To be sure, you still have to find somewhere to put a 1,000-pound battery, and there are safety standards to meet, but automakers are getting more creative.

LUXURY & ELEGANCE

The most famous - and polarizing - EV design might be Tesla's Cybertruck, but there are other automakers aiming for something more sleek. Italian luxury startup AEHRA endeavors to combine the "elegance of Italian design" with "American customer service" to create a car that is "as beautiful as it is functional." Its SUV, which is slated to go on sale for model year 2025, aims to set standards for modern design and rewrite the rulebook.

Chief design officer Filippo Perini's vision includes curvaceous flowing lines that are aerodynamic and elegantly futuristic, with short front and rear overhangs, mirrors inspired by racing motorbikes, and "elytra-like doors." AEHRA says the SUV will also be large enough to accommodate four full-size NBA players, though we're not sure whether that extends to Boban Marjanović.

"With the AEHRA SUV, we have shunned the conservative constraints that have encumbered all other car manufacturers in their approach to designing EV vehicles to date. Instead, we have taken a highly courageous approach. And at AEHRA, this mindset drives not just the design of our vehicles, but every aspect, including engineering, the layout of the interior, the state-of-the-art sustainable materials we use and how we are redefining the entire customer journey," Perini said.