PRESS RELEASE
LOW EMISSION HONDA ROADSTER
BREAKS COVER
Two-seat design study unveiled
at British International Motor Show
Honda's low-emission sportscar study model has been revealed at
the British International Motor Show, at ExCeL, London.
The lightweight roadster design study displays one of Honda's
core engineering principles – to design stylish and exciting
cars that are also environmentally responsible.
Named the OSM (for Open Study Model), the two-seater joins the
confirmed-for-production CR-Z sports hybrid and FCX Clarity
hydrogen fuel cell car on the Honda stand at the show.
"We're trying to show that low emission cars can be attractive,"
says Andreas Sittel, Project Leader for OSM. "There is no reason
why a car that's more environmentally friendly can't look great
too – and be sporty and fun to drive."
The concept for the project was 'Clean and Dynamic' – and this
direction was followed for both the exterior and interior
design, ensuring a joined-up, consistent 'language' between the
two. One example of this can be seen at the rear of the car,
where the body actually extends into the cabin between the
seats.
The exterior design is a balance of smooth, rounded curves and
sharp lines to provide definition in key areas. The headlights
are cleverly integrated into the front end, stretching from the
nose to the top of the wheel arches to look more like a part of
the original body.
Inside, this uninterrupted, fluid approach is continued, with
long sweeping curves extending from both door panels to form a
frame for the instrument display. The concept for the dashboard
was to avoid creating the traditional block of 'heavy' colour
and material in front of the driver; in keeping with the clean
and lightweight theme. For that reason, the dash is broken into
sections, with the most important instruments in direct
line-of-sight of the driver.
Key information is displayed in a rounded, enclosed central
binnacle, with levels and figures in bright blue on a black
background. This matches the trim inside the car, with the seats
and door furniture trimmed in a new, gloss-effect blue leather,
accompanied by white leather sections, in line with the exterior
body colour, a one-off paint called Mystic Pearl.
The driver's main controls and functions are distributed in an
intuitive layout, close at hand on a panel that curves downwards
to the right of the driver. A centrally-mounted semi-sequential
gear-shift points towards a fun-to-drive transmission, along
with paddle shifts either side of the steering wheel. Integrated
into the gearshifter itself is a red ignition 'start' button,
which reinforces the sporty direction of the car.
The Honda OSM was designed by Honda's R&D facility in Offenbach,
Germany. It's the latest example of the young talent being
developed within Honda's design studios in Europe – following
the Honda Small Hybrid Sports Concept (Geneva 2007) and the
Accord Tourer Concept (Frankfurt 2007).
At present, the Honda OSM is a design study model, and there are
no plans for it to enter production.
