GTP Members Who Can Design/ Engineer/ Mechanise Cars?

[JBanton]

University of Coventry you say? I shall be researching that seeing I'm heading for upper-sixth in the next academic year

This was 2010, but here's what I meant by engineered, I think is a lot of room for improvement though...

 

[exigeracer]

Technology? I'm pretty alright with, when it comes to CAD, I do know my way around that sketchup, although I really wish I could get my hands on some more advanced software that doesn't cost a fortune.

Don't worry about jumping into CAD packages for a while. You still need to establish the fundamentals of sketching before considering any kind of modelling and rendering. Head over to www.cardesignnews.com or www.carbodydesign.com and try out some (all) of their 2D tutorials.

Hint: you never ever stop sketching, no matter what position you carry in a design firm, studio or design school. You will always be sketching - banging out a perfect drawing in 7 gestures should be as subconscious as breathing before you even apply to design school.

If you really want a modelling package for cheaper, look into Modo601. It isn't at all used in the auto industry, but it will give you a good introduction to the spatiality of the top-end packages. It has a gentle learning curve and is very push-and-pull which is great for beginners. http://www.luxology.com/modo/ With an education license, it's under 200$ IIRC.

Also note: you won't really ever have to buy any of these expensive programs out of your own pocket. Your school/studio/firm will provide them for you.

Best of luck.

 

[JBanton]

Don't worry about jumping into CAD packages for a while. You still need to establish the fundamentals of sketching before considering any kind of modelling and rendering. Head over to www.cardesignnews.com or www.carbodydesign.com and try out some (all) of their 2D tutorials.

Hint: you never ever stop sketching, no matter what position you carry in a design firm, studio or design school. You will always be sketching - banging out a perfect drawing in 7 gestures should be as subconscious as breathing before you even apply to design school.

If you really want a modelling package for cheaper, look into Modo601. It isn't at all used in the auto industry, but it will give you a good introduction to the spatiality of the top-end packages. It has a gentle learning curve and is very push-and-pull which is great for beginners. http://www.luxology.com/modo/ With an education license, it's under 200$ IIRC.

Also note: you won't really ever have to buy any of these expensive programs out of your own pocket. Your school/studio/firm will provide them for you.

Best of luck.

Thank you for the heads-up sir, I shall get to researching then...

 

[aadil717]

University of Coventry you say? I shall be researching that seeing I'm heading for upper-sixth in the next academic year

There's an Open Day on June 16th at Coventry, so you can look around and check it out for yourself. I'm going again on that day to get my accommodation sorted; even though I drove down last weekend I didn't get a chance to see it all (had family with me).

As you've noted yourself it's an incredibly difficult career to get into, but it's one that's possible with the right qualifications. Royal College of Art in London, and the University of Coventry are both good places to look into. Coventry is particularly good for car-related stuff - many of my peers got their automotive journalism degrees there.

RCA only does Post-Grad Automotive Design so Coventry is your best bet if you live in the UK.

 

[homeforsummer]

RCA only does Post-Grad Automotive Design so Coventry is your best bet if you live in the UK.

Thanks for the correction 👍 I just knew it was one of the significant ones.

 

[Solo]

I used to design F1 cars whilst I was in high school. For the F1 in schools competition.

Spoiler

Ok, ok, you've got me, they were made out of balsa wood and ~250mm in length but they were still branded as F1 cars

 

[gorsad]

I used to design F1 cars whilst I was in high school. For the F1 in schools competition.

Spoiler

Ok, ok, you've got me, they were made out of balsa wood and ~250mm in length but they were still branded as F1 cars

Did the same, it was fun, the only problem was that none of my team members showed up on the presentation day.

 

[JBanton]

There's an Open Day on June 16th at Coventry, so you can look around and check it out for yourself. I'm going again on that day to get my accommodation sorted; even though I drove down last weekend I didn't get a chance to see it all (had family with me).



RCA only does Post-Grad Automotive Design so Coventry is your best bet if you live in the UK.

Derp, the university isn't far from a number of major UK based automotive companies, how could I forget

 

[coop500]

Me and most other people on here who compete in Formula Student.

I'm working on a separate project just now using skills I've gained being at Uni and in the team.

 

[Prince.M5]

Did the same, it was fun, the only problem was that none of my team members showed up on the presentation day.

I was in the F1 In School competition 2 years ago. I was the team leader and car designer. I have to admit, it felt like I was working for a real F1 Team!

The car has been designed and all but unfortunately we didn't find the sponsors in time which halted our process to build the car. Just a week later, our teacher knocked on our door saying we have to put all of our project to a standstill for good. I was sad

I do design cars for fun though. I've done a couple of them...

 

[JBanton]

Have you thought of posting them in this thread?

I visited that thread, but they talk nothing but art I was hoping to talk more about cars than beautiful looking pictures.

so...



This concept came to me today, I know there are no brake discs on it, because I'm still not sure as to what class of vehicle this would be, I'm thinking something like the Subaru Impreza hatchback but I still don't know yet, what do you guys think would suit this bodystyle?

My proposal was; 2.0l engine
AWD drivetrain
Independent wheel suspension (McPherson struts & wishbones)

 

[aadil717]

I visited that thread, but they talk nothing but art I was hoping to talk more about cars than beautiful looking pictures.

That is just Car Drawings so you are kinda correct, as they're not actual car designs. However they do display many GTP'ers car designs and concepts.

It's a very good thread and is in some ways related to this. If you're talking about the engineering side of design; that thread has no relation what so ever.

If you're gonna make something, make sure it's beautiful - or at least try to - it's the best way to make it sell.

If you're talking about exterior design, then it has everything to do with that thread. Cars aren't simple geometric shapes anymore - there's always art in there somewhere.

And I think that this thread is talking about real life designing not concepts (which belong in the car drawing thread).

 

[Katiegan]

When I was younger I used to design some cars... I still remember the company name I came up with - Jackal. I used to read books on how cars worked so I could design them better. But my mind never stayed focused and I soon lost interest.

 

[JBanton]

That is just Car Drawings so you are kinda correct, as they're not actual car designs. However they do display many GTP'ers car designs and concepts.

It's a very good thread and is in some ways related to this. If you're talking about the engineering side of design; that thread has no relation what so ever.

If you're gonna make something, make sure it's beautiful - or at least try to - it's the best way to make it sell.

If you're talking about exterior design, then it has everything to do with that thread. Cars aren't simple geometric shapes anymore - there's always art in there somewhere.

And I think that this thread is talking about real life designing not concepts (which belong in the car drawing thread).

You didn't quote the second part of the post , did you even look at it? Quoted from earlier in the thread;



We aren't looking to talk about art and design, so I have changed the thread name.

 

[aadil717]

You didn't quote the second part of the post , did you even look at it? Quoted from earlier in the thread;

http://postimage.org/image/a7y0op09r/full/

We aren't looking to talk about art and design, so I have changed the thread name.

I know I didn't quote, because it looks like all you designed was a Subaru Impreza. I know you probably used it as inspiration - but it's not designing anything - it's just a concept.

Edit: And I presumed if you're looking for a degree in Automotive Design you'd want to focus on art and design - but now I think if you want the mechanical side, so you'd want to be studying Automotive Engineering. 👍

 

[JBanton]

I know I didn't quote, because it looks like all you designed was a Subaru Impreza. I know you probably used it as inspiration - but it's not designing anything - it's just a concept.

Edit: And I presumed if you're looking for a degree in Automotive Design you'd want to focus on art and design - but now I think if you want the mechanical side, so you'd want to be studying Automotive Engineering. 👍

1st point; really does it actually look like an Impreza? It's similar but will be nothing alike when complete.

2nd point; Thanks, I'll look into that

New point; I guess I created this thread to find people who are like-minded to me, who love to design/ engineer vehicles, the home of Dubstep (Croydon) doesn't seem to have anyone that likes doing either so I'm kind of on my 1's so far as designing/ mechanising goes

 

[aadil717]

1st point; really does it actually look like an Impreza? It's similar but will be nothing alike when complete.

2nd point; Thanks, I'll look into that

New point; I guess I created this thread to find people who are like-minded to me, who love to design/ engineer vehicles, the home of Dubstep (Croydon) doesn't seem to have anyone that likes doing either so I'm kind of on my 1's so far as designing/ mechanising goes

Yeah you can definitely see inspiration of the Impreza on your car.

Engineering courses are available at most universities so you should be okay, hope you're an expert in maths and physics!

 

[JBanton]

So I guess I'm in this boat on my own then , then again I guess the GTP members who design and/ or engineer are far too busy to come and post in here.

 

[JBanton]

Yeah you can definitely see inspiration of the Impreza on your car.

Engineering courses are available at most universities so you should be okay, hope you're an expert in maths and physics!

Deciding to update an old design which bears no relevance to anything ;




Joking aside, can anybody tell me if this design looks "British" enough? ;

 

[aadil717]

Haha yeah I saw that in the other thread! It's great!

The other one looks like a widebodied Prius... I don't know how at all that could be British? Maybe stick the Union Jack on the roof.

 

[E28]

I personally don't think it looks British. When I think of British cars, I think of big powerful coupes with a long bonnet yet sleek profile, along the lines of the E-Type or DB9. It's a good design though. :yup:

 

[aadil717]

I personally don't think it looks British. When I think of British cars, I think of big powerful coupes with a long bonnet yet sleek profile, along the lines of the E-Type or DB9. It's a good design though. :yup:

When I think of British I either think Jaguar, British Leyland, or convertible sports cars driving in typical rain.

 

[Jet Badger]

I like to sketch buggies. If it counts

And my P50-inspired personal transportation vehicle

 

[homeforsummer]

Those renders look great, though I reckon the person is a bit big to fit in some of them!

JBanton - while it's awfully tempting to try and go right for the end product when drawing cars, I think you really need to spend more time sketching and getting proportions right rather than trying to imagine an entire vehicle as it is. There's some talent in there somewhere, but I don't think your current drawings are bringing it out as much as they can.

Have another look at the link someone posted a few pages back to the Car Design News drawing basics thing and try a few different designs based on their drawing process to get a sense of drawing in proportion and in correct perspective - yours are very geometric at the moment, which looks unnatural.

I'd also suggest a bit of practice in simply doodling cars with a few pen-strokes. Again, I know it's tempting to think of a full product and try and head for that when you're drawing, but cars are as much pieces of art as they are pieces of engineering, and there's a lack of art in your drawings.

Please consider this constructive criticism, but the drawings above aren't much removed from stuff I was doing when I was six or seven years younger than you are now. I always wanted to be a car designer when I was a kid, but abandoned the idea when I was in my mid teens when I realised quite how difficult it actually is to get into as a career.

The worst thing you can do is to over-state your ability, so I think you'll really, really need to put some solid work in on the artistic front to make an impression in an industry of incredibly talented artists. And be pretty handy at mathematics (I'm not at all, which is another reason I'd have been no good as a designer/engineer) so you don't find yourself hugely out of depth when you do an automotive design course.

My final tip would be to attempt to speak to an actual automotive designer. Your best bet is Matt Humphries, head of design at Morgan. He designed the Morgan Aeromax on a university placement at Morgan, and they gave him a job, and built the car. He wasn't even allowed to reveal it was his work to his university lecturers, until the car had been launched at a motor show one year...

He's a bit more accessible than most other designers and Morgan does factory tours fairly regularly. If he's there during one of the tours, you may actually be able to speak to him in person about the best way of becoming a car designer. At the very least, you can email Morgan and ask him for some quick words of advice.

 

[JBanton]

Snip

*begins research*

 

[Vegard]

I used to draw cars when I was little.

As a teenager I started designing my own cars. Anything from hatchbacks, convertibles, MPVs, saloons, to supercars and even rocket cars.

In high school I turned more to technical drawings. Engines especially.

Now I'm studying to become a mechanical engineer.

I dream about working in the automotive industry, but sadly there is no automotive industry in Norway

I'll probably end up in the petroleum sector.

 

[el fayce]

I used to draw cars when I was little.

As a teenager I started designing my own cars. Anything from hatchbacks, convertibles, MPVs, saloons, to supercars and even rocket cars.
In high school I turned more to technical drawings. Engines especially.
Now I'm studying to become a mechanical engineer.
I dream about working in the automotive industry, but sadly there is no automotive industry in Norway
I'll probably end up in the petroleum sector.

same thing but i am still a teenager, so as we in Bahrain, we dont have any thing do with cars expect for F1, there was and still the Bahrain RUF factory but it was closed few years ago
my brother recommended me to go and study mechanical engineering at college
BTW, the Bahrain's king's son own 50% of Mclaren Automobiles
hope i take a part in this thread soon

 

[JBanton]

I used to draw cars when I was little.

As a teenager I started designing my own cars. Anything from hatchbacks, convertibles, MPVs, saloons, to supercars and even rocket cars.

In high school I turned more to technical drawings. Engines especially.

Now I'm studying to become a mechanical engineer.

I dream about working in the automotive industry, but sadly there is no automotive industry in Norway

I'll probably end up in the petroleum sector.

Good to hear you have the interest too
No I haven't seen much from Norway although I'm sure I recently heard a Norwegian supercar being produced, but I can't remember details.

same thing but i am still a teenager, so as we in Bahrain, we dont have any thing do with cars expect for F1, there was and still the Bahrain RUF factory but it was closed few years ago
my brother recommended me to go and study mechanical engineering at college
BTW, the Bahrain's king's son own 50% of Mclaren Automobiles
hope i take a part in this thread soon

We will all be here waiting , as for the recent comment on the geometricity of my designs, they mostly appear that way so that they can expand into more detailed diagrams similar to this; (this one is far from complete )

 

[homeforsummer]

As before: I don't intend to rain on your parade, but I'd be tempted to separate the mechanical stuff from the artistic stuff for the time being. Sketch cars, but keep them as sketches.

If you'd really like to concentrate on the technical/mechanical side, why not do something truly technical/mechanical as a project? Maybe buy an old go-kart to play about with, or even a moped. Faff about, learn to weld, modify something, and pick up some skills. Apart from anything, it'd be a bit of fun!

 

[Jet Badger]

homeforsummer, in theory, a 185cm person(me) *should* fit in the small ones, not much headroom though

anyway, I handled a handy plugin for making nice tubing. Results:

a human-sized single seater buggy

two seater V2 - still too low

V3 - human sized