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Automotive Industry

A Matter of Focus

Automotive Industries, April, 2001

I noticed him walking toward the little Audi A3, open the door and get in. He looked like any industry guy attending an auto show, eyes wide open to all the shiny metal facing him in every aisle. From the look on his face, he seemed to be enjoying the opportunity to check out so many spankin' new cars up close. Particularly since this was Geneva, known for its focus on design. Most of the battles his company fights are in North America.

From my own vantage point in an Audi A2, occupying the show stand right behind him, I could see him go through the Auto Show Vehicle Inspection Drill. Slide the driver's seat through its range of adjustments. Run your hand over the top of the IF and feel the pebble of the plastic trim. Click through a few control switches. Shake the steering wheel. Wiggle the gearshift lever. Note the overall layout, the way the pieces fit. Soak in the various colors and textures. Smell the leather.

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He gives a final look around and the door opens. He's out of the car. I exit the A2 and walk over to hear what he's been thinking.

"I gotta tell you, Lindsay, I get so depressed whenever I visit the Volkswagen and Audi auto-show stands," he admits. "Nobody in this business executes interiors the way they do. Their consistency of quality, from that little AS through the big AS ... well, we should do as good a job."

There's total seriousness in his eyes. This is a guy who heads a major division at a major automaker. The look on his face reminds me of the basketball coach who realizes his team is no match for who they're about to face in the finals.

I agree with him. Nobody beats VW/Audi when it comes to cabins.

We talked about what it would take to beat Audi and deliver the tastiest, most inviting interiors. It takes focus -- from the very top of the company.

In VW AG's case, Ferdinand Piech has made design and interior quality a core competency of his company. He's hired people to focus on delivering the best. And they do, as proven by the upscale feel of the A2 and AS.

The positive effects of a sharp design focus were again clear to me later that day at Geneva I'd just spent time examining this month's cover story, the new Jaguar X-Type. After sitting in the car, doing the old Inspection Drill, I felt disappointed. While the exterior form really speaks "Jaguar!" to me, its interior seems like it could be pulled out of any near-luxury car today. Plenty of the usual leather, wood trim and chrome accents. But no special feeling, no unique Jaguar-ness. The speedo and tach look like the Mondeo items they probably are, with no obvious effort to disguise the gauge faces. Even the real-maple veneer on the center stack is so glossy it appears plastic.

What the new Jag lacks inside, the humble Ford Galaxy provides. The Spanish-built minivan proves how you can transform a product when the right people apply the proper focus. The Galaxy interior was just acceptable, as one Ford Europe source recalls, until Ford design chief J Mays targeted it for upgrading. "Mays made sure it was done well," my source says. "That's why you see brushed aluminum trim, convincing wood grain, buttery leather and rich plastic surfaces. Mays made Galaxy a personal mission of his. And it shows."

It certainly does. I was knocked out by how the Galaxy cabin, like those of the small VW Group cars, exudes quality. Many automakers talk about attention to detail, but few actually deliver it to the degree that it will truly capture the hearts and minds of customers.

The ones that don't have it will always envy their competitors. It's amazing what a few minutes inside a European commuter car can do.

Lindsay Brooke is editor-in-chief of Automotive Industries

Automotive Industry

A Matter of Focus

Automotive Industries, April, 2001

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