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When Mercedes released the SLR, I was overwhelmed by the complex nature of what they were trying to achieve. Mind you, this was all from a poster, and as a result I thought of it as an example that sometimes designers just get it wrong. It was not until I saw it for the first time in real life that I could fully appreciate and understand the idea of the car. What a boldly striking design!

Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren

With hopefully more mature eyes reviewing the design of the SLS, I hope I don’t make the same mistake twice….

The first thing that you cannot miss about the SLS is the distinct return to a style of the past. The retro-futurism tones are strong; the resemblance to the first gull wing is apparent but not literal, which is very important if it wanted to be taken seriously as a stand alone design.

Vents, Grilles, Gull-wing doors and a long bonnet - Supercar stuff

Key features such as the long hood bonnet and small cabin formulate a desirable supercar, with the addition of vents and intakes that reminds us of its potential performance abilities on the road. However, the main attraction and party piece is the return of the gull wing doors that confidently states is heritage – just incase you missed it!

I’ve been irked by the current styling direction of most of the Mercedes range, I don’t know if in sketch form it looked reasonable, but in the production they have been looking awkward and messy. It could be a result, and it wouldn’t be the first instance of an awesome sketch design being placed on older underpinnings of a car that didn’t take it well. Trying to be more positive, I can see the potential of that directional idea, but seeing it in its resultant form I really question the senior designer judgment.

Quite differently enough, there is no evidence of this styling direction that can be seen in the SLS, which contrasts the family portrait of the season when the SLR made its showing.

Sketch - Car comparison - Corners could have been more sharp, giving a more forceful appearance

With its pretty face that draws influence from aerospace design, its long nose resembles one from a jet plane, with its badge fittingly surrounded by a stylized propeller for emphasis. Headlamps placed on the far sides accentuate the width of this car, helping its road hugging appearance.

Along the body side, a simplified fender vent grille can be compared to the outrageous gill like appearance found on the SLR. Part of me was hoping for some this lunacy on the SLS but I think there is enough of that business on the consumer market Mercs. The belt line is not defined by a crease but more of a swooping curve that flows to the rear of the car, which compliments the gesture of the bonnet, and unifies the car with the rear.

Rear and side view

The rear for me is the only part of the car that subtly resembles the SLR with the crease along the deck lid, creating a sloped ducktail and clean minimalist interpretation that resembles the language of the rest of the car. At the same time the rear view of the car has areas that I would have done differently, such as not making a cavity for the name plate (they didn’t do it at the front) and adjusting the rear glass backlight to make it appear more sympathetic to one of the sketched proposed, although this would have been difficult due to mechanical and ergonomic issues.

Ideation sketches for the Mercedes Benz SLS AMG

Seeing all the other sketches of potential SLS’s makes me just wish they could have made them all, especially those that have more sheer surfaces and distinct creases which also would have looked dramatic in real life. The potential to make a similar ‘mistake’ as the consumer Mercedes cars would have been high but could have been worth the risk – at least this way they would all look like they were from the same generation.

I wonder if the design director has realized that there is a beauty among this seasons family portrait of beasts?

Here’s an interesting fact that you may not already know about Saab that I find very interesting. All their production cars carry the number 9 at the beginning of their model numbers that signifies it as a civilian vehicle, since in the past Saab used to produce military transportation, mostly air planes. (Except for the Saab 600, it being a rebadged Lancia Delta)
The Saab exterior and interior styling has always claimed to links to aeroplanes, for the interior the usual mass of buttons can draw comparisons but to what strength the exterior connects can be quite debatable – although did you see the attempt of propeller like wheels? They should have stuck with something more similar to the Aero X concept!

Saab Automotive- Saab Aeronautics

I personally love the Sweedish Saab style. There is always something distinct that separates them from the more popular cars in the same market. Proportionally the new Saab 9-5 is robust, and more so than ever in a widely attainable production car there are strong elements drawing influence from air flight.

Aeronautical themes - Saab 9-5 with a proposal sketch

The glasshouse more strongly represents one surrounding the cockpit of a plane with an almost ‘wrap around’ appearance, mostly helped with the darkened A-pillar. Although sounding quite simple, it takes more than just darkening the A-pillar to create this illusion. Accentuation through the use of chrome further pushes this aeronautical theme to something that stands out as a main feature.

Chrome highlights - Can you see the cockpit of the plane?

Other areas of chrome accentuation belong to the lower fender vent that joins the side rocker that catches a strong line of light. This cleverly creates the illusion of more chrome than there actually is, and I’m guessing in the natural light a spear of light shoots out of the front fender vent all the way through to the lower of the rear fascia. Overall this creates a length across the body side that perhaps even resembles a nosecone from an aeroplane.

Jet fighter afterburner

Around the rear half of the car is a more sculpturally organic shape that doesn’t call attention to its length, and with the heavy set C pillar really emphasis the length of the ‘nosecone’. In other certain contexts a heavy rear can look a bit off, but I think Saab have justified this through this idea. Keeping in line with the aeronautical theme, the rear lighting design reminds me of images of a glowing red hot jet fighter rocket ready to take off! This Saab is indeed ready to go!

From the Aero X concept

Just like a hungry jet fighter sucking in air to feed the burners, the 9-5 does too. In keeping with the corporate face of Saab, the traditional grill layout complements the shape of the front and hood which results in a clean and refined look – reminiscent of the Aero X concept. Even the bonnet creases carry a restrained aggression where they bulge out, yet flow cleanly into the fascia detail work.

Saab 900 and Saab 9-5

It’s good to see car designs that make reference to their signature styles of the past; I see a lot of the influences of say, the Saab 900 in this design. The proportions (more obvious in the C Pillar) although updated to a more current setup, still manage to pay homage to its heritage. I’m pretty keen to see what else Saab has to offer – the aero model will be something to watch out for, especially after the take over with Koenigsegg!