Ford Verve concept. Click image to enlarge |
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Ford Verve concept
Detroit, Michigan - The Ford Verve small car will debut in Europe and Asia later this year, but North Americans won't see it here until 2010 - if the consumer response from "Millennials", people under 28, is favourable, says Ford.
Both four-door sedan and three-door (hatchback) Verve body styles are being unveiled here - the four-door is the basis for the production vehicle that will be sold in North America, while the European three-door is being shown to test market reaction to the bodystyle - as a possible additional small car for the North American market.
"The Verve concept family provides a vision for a new world standard for quality, design and comfort in the small car segment," said Derrick Kuzak, Ford's group vice president, Global Product Development. "These concepts demonstrate how leveraging our global strengths can yield attractive benefits for our customers in markets around the world."
Ford says momentum in small-car sales is outpacing overall industry growth worldwide. In the U.S., sales of small cars likely will grow by 800,000, or 25 percent - to a record 3.4 million units by 2012. In fact, small cars and crossovers are the only vehicles with projected near-term growth in the U.S.
Driving the growth in the U.S. market is a group of young people aged 13 to 28 years - dubbed Millennials. As a group, Millennials embrace eco-friendliness, stay in constant touch using modern technology and demand best-in-class products from around the world. This group will grow from representing 19 per cent of the driving public in 2004 to 28 per cent in 2010.
Ford is hoping Millennials will like the styling of the North American Verve sedan which has been modified slightly from its European and Asian counterparts - most notably in its front fascia.
But exterior styling aside, Ford is promoting the Verve's interior features, such as navigation, a dynamic sound system, and in-car phone controls, to lure young buyers. The unique design of the centre stack design decouples traditional elements of the entertainment system - the screen, control elements and the electronics. Separating these features allowed designers to position controls for optimal ergonomic positioning in a design that resembles the logic of a mobile phone.
The centre console includes a tray for a mobile phone or MP3 player as well as a large bin for a purse near the handbrake. The climate controls, highlighted in a lozenge shape at the midpoint of the centre stack, feature large twist dials that were inspired by the sculpture found in high-quality power showers. The primary gauges - speedometer and tachometer - are uniquely framed by binocular-shaped, short tunnels of brightwork that complement the centre stack and contrast the rich interior colors like a fashion accessory.
"The Ford global design team remembered, not so fondly, the econo-boxes of the 1970s and created the Verve concept as a vision of just how good a small car can be," said J Mays, Ford's group vice president of Design and chief creative officer. "Verve aims to 'right' North American buyers' earlier small-car experiences by offering a product that changes customers' views of small cars from 'cheap' to chic -- and from affordable to desirable."
