[scopriobharath]

For a long time i have been thinking why many models share the same part even if they are from different manufacturers. Smaller parts like wipers, switches, brake lining etc are for sure shared but what about the larger bits that are evident.

The design seems to be an iteration / variant of the thier competitor.

attaching a few pics for comparison.

A Star Dash vs Chevy Sail (AC console)


Datsun vs Chevy steering


Accent vs Duster


Vento/Polo VS Brio/Amaze/Mobilio Steering


Vista/Grande VS Punto/Linea Steering


Mobilio vs Ertiga vs Enjoy rear AC Vents



Should not the manufacturers offer different designs to make thier car stand out of the competition? I know it might save costs but cost at the expense of looks?

Thoughts and discussion please

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Indian Car Scene. Thanks for sharing!

[TheLizardKing]

Um while I appreciate the point you are trying to make, there are only so many ways in which you can redesign a car dashboard and steering wheel. I mean, the wheel has to be round with 2 or 3 spokes right? I don't see the scope for too many radical designs... It is a bit like laptop design. They all look the same from a distance...

Slightly an example of "design adventure" would be the Nissan Sunny's dashboard. What is with the huge circular panel below the music system???

[sarthakmehrotra]

IMO there is only so much one can do with designing the interiors or the basic controls. The HVAC Controls or even steering wheels for that matter have a Function over Form Design which is what is best. A recent breakaway can be seen in the 2014 Honda City with its Feather-Touch HVAC Controls (Correct me if im wrong) and Im not a fan of those.

How much more can they redesign vents or in this case Rear Vents. Maybe i'm shortsighted on this as I'm not a designer (Lawyer here) but i prefer my buttons to be clicky and my steering wheel to be round(can be flat bottomed though) and the Vents to have slats.

I think this can be compared to the whole Touchscreen Smartphone Debacle, there is only so much so one can do to change the design (Rounded Corners, No Physical Buttons) but essentially its a screen with an enclosed cover.

SM

[sudeep.pandya]

I believe a manufacturer has other things to focus on. A different looking steering wheel or interiror is a hit or miss, example Toyota Liva and Indica Vista, a brave attempt by both the manufacturers. Making a unique steering wheel or interior layout will attract extreme opinions which is not a good thing in mass markets.

No matter how you design, at the end of the day, the steering has to be a wheel. (Until we get the Joystics) A steering has to be attached to something at the centre, so there has to be a line among the diameter. Making it two spoke. And two spoke looks ugly, so people try to make 3 and 4 spoke.

4 spoke becomes expensive (Skoda's) so, manufacturers refrain to 3 spoke. So in 3 spoke the options are limited. And you have shown all of them.

Design is same, but if you look carefully, each and every steering is different, so it has been remade. I would appreciate it. rather than those who pick parts from earlier models. I do not see anything wrong in this.

Same is the story with Dashboard. Same will be the story with seats and with many other parts.

Coming to the conclusion. The trousers worn by my Grand pa and the jeans i am wearing are similar. He had 2 pockets at sides, so as mine. So are they same?

The designs are made for humans, we sit on butts, If the god could change our designs to sit on stomach or on heads, then the car designs will change, if not, you will see some relevance here and there. There will be a dash board, one gear lever, one glove box, two bucket seats at front, etc.

As a responsible Bhpian, we should concentrate on Quality, Reliability and Maintainability. And these three should matter.

[ecosport rules]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

For a long time i have been thinking why many models share the same part even if they are from different manufacturers.

Should not the manufacturers offer different designs to make thier car stand out of the competition? I know it might save costs but cost at the expense of looks?

Here the design's and pictures that you have mentioned are more of similar than same which I don't think is a problem to any as the design cue isn't copied.

Reading the thread title I was thinking it was going to be on the common dashboard designs on cars from the same company like:

1) Maruti Suzuki:

Swift interiors being shared by Dzire + Ertiga.

2) Ford

Fiesta (current generation) shared by EcoSport

3) Honda

Brio's dash being shared by Amaze + Mobilio

and so on.

Manufacturer's will be concentrating on better attributes than interiors design that is secondary for many buyers. Basic is the same but refinement and newer design cue's will be developed depending on the market response.

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by TheLizardKing

Um while I appreciate the point you are trying to make, there are only so many ways in which you can redesign a car dashboard and steering wheel. I mean, the wheel has to be round with 2 or 3 spokes right? I don't see the scope for too many radical designs... It is a bit like laptop design. They all look the same from a distance...

Slightly an example of "design adventure" would be the Nissan Sunny's dashboard. What is with the huge circular panel below the music system???

People can launch 4 spoke designs. Other than Tata and Toyota, none of then seem to offer 4-spoke steerings

Originally Posted by sarthakmehrotra

IMO there is only so much one can do with designing the interiors or the basic controls. The HVAC Controls or even steering wheels for that matter have a Function over Form Design which is what is best. A recent breakaway can be seen in the 2014 Honda City with its Feather-Touch HVAC Controls (Correct me if im wrong) and Im not a fan of those.

How much more can they redesign vents or in this case Rear Vents. Maybe i'm shortsighted on this as I'm not a designer (Lawyer here) but i prefer my buttons to be clicky and my steering wheel to be round(can be flat bottomed though) and the Vents to have slats.

I think this can be compared to the whole Touchscreen Smartphone Debacle, there is only so much so one can do to change the design (Rounded Corners, No Physical Buttons) but essentially its a screen with an enclosed cover.

SM

Right - AC Vents can be different. Even though let us say we go with the round theme (Horn pad area) the steering need to be exactly round. I am sure the steering design team could throw more design elements there too.

Originally Posted by sudeep.pandya

I believe a manufacturer has other things to focus on. A different looking steering wheel or interiror is a hit or miss, example Toyota Liva and Indica Vista, a brave attempt by both the manufacturers. Making a unique steering wheel or interior layout will attract extreme opinions which is not a good thing in mass markets.

I would say if the steering is designed better, people would prefer it, as steering is always used when the vehicle is running. I dont think designing an attractive steering is challenging.

Originally Posted by gemi_kk

No matter how you design, at the end of the day, the steering has to be a wheel. (Until we get the Joystics) A steering has to be attached to something at the centre, so there has to be a line among the diameter. Making it two spoke. And two spoke looks ugly, so people try to make 3 and 4 spoke.

4 spoke becomes expensive (Skoda's) so, manufacturers refrain to 3 spoke. So in 3 spoke the options are limited. And you have shown all of them.

Design is same, but if you look carefully, each and every steering is different, so it has been remade. I would appreciate it. rather than those who pick parts from earlier models. I do not see anything wrong in this.

Same is the story with Dashboard. Same will be the story with seats and with many other parts.

Well, i am not asking for a square steering wheel. I am mentioning that steering designs can be better around the horn pad area. Example, the Zest seems to have a better steering design (look wise). When i buy a vento, i should be offered a unique steering wheel and not one that is shared by Brio.

Originally Posted by ecosport rules

Here the design's and pictures that you have mentioned are more of similar than same which I don't think is a problem to any as the design cue isn't copied.

Reading the thread title I was thinking it was going to be on the common dashboard designs on cars from the same company like:

1) Maruti Suzuki:

Swift interiors being shared by Dzire + Ertiga.

2) Ford

Fiesta (current generation) shared by EcoSport

3) Honda

Brio's dash being shared by Amaze + Mobilio

and so on.

Manufacturer's will be concentrating on better attributes than interiors design that is secondary for many buyers. Basic is the same but refinement and newer design cue's will be developed depending on the market response.

I am not referring to models within the same manufacturer. I am referring to competitors like say Honda Amaze and VW Vento.

[tanstaafl]

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

People can launch 4 spoke designs. Other than Tata and Toyota, none of then seem to offer 4-spoke steerings

Right - AC Vents can be different. Even though let us say we go with the round theme (Horn pad area) the steering need to be exactly round. I am sure the steering design team could throw more design elements there too.


I would say if the steering is designed better, people would prefer it, as steering is always used when the vehicle is running. I dont think designing an attractive steering is challenging.



Well, i am not asking for a square steering wheel. I am mentioning that steering designs can be better around the horn pad area. Example, the Zest seems to have a better steering design (look wise). When i buy a vento, i should be offered a unique steering wheel and not one that is shared by Brio.



I am not referring to models within the same manufacturer. I am referring to competitors like say Honda Amaze and VW Vento.

In the lower segment vehicles, the OEMs (VW, Ford, GM, etc) don't design a steering wheel or A/C vent from scratch. The design engineers might, but that gets pushed towards the back when the pricing comes into the picture.

In many cases, they just ask the part supplier what they can supply for a particular price point under a very broad list of specifications. e.g., They might tell the supplier - "We want a three spoke steering wheel" or a "2 by 4 rectangular a/c vent grille". Now, because the suppliers have to compete hard on price, they are not going to design a steering wheel from scratch. They will have a base design in a model year and offer slight variations to different OEMs. This provides a cost benefit in both the design and production stages.

[scopriobharath]

Originally Posted by tanstaafl

In the lower segment vehicles, the OEMs (VW, Ford, GM, etc) don't design a steering wheel or A/C vent from scratch. The design engineers might, but that gets pushed towards the back when the pricing comes into the picture.

In many cases, they just ask the part supplier what they can supply for a particular price point under a very broad list of specifications. e.g., They might tell the supplier - "We want a three spoke steering wheel" or a "2 by 4 rectangular a/c vent grille". Now, because the suppliers have to compete hard on price, they are not going to design a steering wheel from scratch. They will have a base design in a model year and offer slight variations to different OEMs. This provides a cost benefit in both the design and production stages.

Mahindra used a new a design theme steering for XUV (probably modified old xylo's steering) and is still able to price the XUV competitively. I am sure Hondas or VWs could make a new design of thier steering wheel and probably use it on their respective line-ups. I dont think a new steering-hornpad design is going to add substantial cost.

Originally Posted by scopriobharath

Well, i am not asking for a square steering wheel. I am mentioning that steering designs can be better around the horn pad area. Example, the Zest seems to have a better steering design (look wise). When i buy a vento, i should be offered a unique steering wheel and not one that is shared by Brio.

Bud! Believe me, VW started giving that steering starting from the year 2000 or earlier. The Brio, you mentioned was introduced in 2011, which is a whopping 11 years after and still they made a steering which is similar to VW's. (Check Google images for reference)

The Zest's steering might look good from distance, but I don't think Tata's can meet VW's product quality & feel not even in the next decade. Adding too many spokes to differentiate is not a solution. How are you going to hold the steering if there are 5/6 spokes?

[Marauder]

Mod Note : Your pictures have been re-uploaded via the Team-BHP Attachment System. Please upload images ONLY via the Team-BHP Attachment System.

To know how to, click here.

I also think that manufacturers use similar designs for their interiors.
Although they may not be completely identical, they follow the same design theme.

For example, the interiors of the Honda City and Toyota corolla have similar design theme of sharp angular ac vents and a dashboard which is angled towards the driver.

Toyota Corolla


Honda City


Also, there is recent fad among the Germans of a huge screen atop the dash.

Merc A-class


BMW 1-series


Sorry for the high-res pictures

[fine69]

As someone already said, there are only so many ways in which one could design the interiors. Whenever a manufacturer would come up with the best possible placement of any element in the car, ergonomically, the other manufacturers would have no choice but to follow its lead.

I believe that manufacturers would instead be struggling these days to keep their interiors different from the other hundred of cars on the road by making small changes aesthetically.

[rohanjf]

Two reasons for all manufacturers to follow similar designs:
- Physical ergonomics
- Standard practices
- Manufacturing costs (to a small extent)

Physical ergonomics: a human should be able to interact with an inanimate object in the easiest way possible. For this, the interaction interface offered by the inanimate object should be simple (uncluttered). For example, you as a software user would expect to perform any task on your software with least clicks. Also, you should be able to perform some functions (such as, changing to a different gun in your computer game, or switching on the AC in your car) without getting your eyes/mind off your primary task (looking for villains in the game or looking for idiots on Indian roads).

- Standard practices: established by early automobile manufacturers. Would you buy a laptop with a keypad design other than QWERTY? Would you buy a car where ABC pedals have different positions?

- Cost: an example is AC vent. It needs to have a vertical control, a horizontal control and an option to close the vent. Simplest design sells the best here. We have heard enough of old generation Linea's AC vents!

[stormerider]

One answer - Same designers!

The point you are trying to make is true and has its roots dug deep in the system. The reason is that there are very less indigenous design studios for cars around the world. When they design something, in this case a car & its interiors, they sell it to many companies with little cosmetic changes and the obvious logo changes! After this, the companies engage their own in-house designers to give it a different look within the confines and present a new vehicle, and start shouting "Eureka, Eureka".
End of the day it is all due to Badge engineering and increasing profit margins!

OT: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...neering-3.html
Something similar I had pointed out in the external designs of many vehicles in post 32. Wherein the vehicles are of totally different companies.