III Concept, the futuristic urban car presented at the 2010 Sao Paolo Motor Show and developed with an Open Source approach by Fiat Brazil in collaboration with its online community.
The Fiat Concept Car III (FCC III), called “Mio”, is the third concept car entirely developed at the Giovanni Agnelli Development Center (Betim, MG).
The FCC III was unveiled at the Sao Paolo Motor Show on last October, following the FCC I and FCC II, presented at the 2006 and 2008 editions of the show – the largest in Latin America.
The design process
An open collaboration project
The Fiat Mio FCC III concept car was created with the involvement of Internet users, who gave their feedback on the theme, the design concept, the choice of materials, and many features of the vehicle, inspired by discussions on the future of the car and the car of the future.
From August 2009 to October 2010, the official website was visited by more than two million people from 160 countries. More than 10,000 ideas were posted by 17,000 registered members of the community.
The design was developed adopting an open platform that uses Creative Commons licenses, thus making it more flexible with regards to copyright.
This approach required a deep change in the design and engineering processes within the company, with the establishment of both a virtual and a physical collaborative process among the online community and the different departments: from the styling center to the engineering, marketing, communication, training, human resources and product. “It was a totally new experience, to re-learn how to make a car.”
According to Fiat, the web portal www.fiatmio.cc will continue the open collaboration and will accept new ideas and solutions for the future of the automobile.
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| The Mio FCC III at the Sao Paolo Motor Show. On the left (from left to right): interior designer Mauricio Cavalheiro, Fiat Latin America Head of Design Peter Fassbender, exterior designer Fabio Bastos, interior designer Alexandre Scartezini | |
“Consumers, opinion leaders, experts, academics, anyone anywhere in the world can contribute.”
The Concept
The starting concept of an “ideal car” as defined by the online community was a compact and economical 2-seater urban vehicle with eco-friendly powertrain and materials.
It should also feature an advanced infotainment system with a touch screen control and head-up display (HUD), mobile connectivity, media player, GPS.
The diversity of ideas submitted has forced Fiat designers to work on two parallel projects, calledPrecision and Sense, in order to give a direction and to portray the duality of the suggestions.
The Precision theme was more oriented towards accurate lines, enhancing the futuristic character of the car. On the other side, the Sense theme had more design freedom, with organic, nature-inspired lines.
Once both the concepts were analyzed, the online community has decided to further develop the Precision line, incorporating some of solutions presented on the Sense.
Exterior Design
The dimensions of the Fiat Mio are: 1,560 mm in width, 1,530 mm in height and length of 2,500 mm.
The exterior design is characterized by clean, functional, almost minimalist lines, with an emphasis on the large glass area which offers excellent visibility and at the same time incorporates intelligent windows that control the incidence of light.
The dynamic look and the slightly sloped waistline contribute to visually lengthen the profile, while accentuating the sense of robustness.
At the front, the fenders and the headlights form a single piece enhances the solid look.
The exterior is also modular to allow further customization of the car.
Other distinctive design elements are the covered wheels, that improve the aerodynamic efficiency.
The turn lights and other lighting units were positioned so as to simplify their shapes.
Interior Design
The interior offers an innovative user experience. It is inspired by a lounge, with the seats designed as sofas.
The cabin is characterized by a sense of lightness, thanks to the white tones of the surfaces and the large transparent areas.
The interfaces and gadgets are ergonomically arranged and easily accessible.
The original steering wheel is retractable, allowing for auto-pilot mode when traveling on automated highways.
“Everything was designed for a world where the driver can simply be a passenger and have the vehicle guided by intelligent roads.”
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