People talking about “car design”, most probably think of exteriors – the sleek form of a coupe or an angular, rugged SUV. Toyota designers, with a burning passion for car interiors, insist that right now it’s all about interior design.
“In a car interior, changing things by a mere millimeter can throw everything off. It’s a delicate, complex world,” says Hiromi Yagi, Assistant Manager at the Lexus Design Division. He also worked in exterior design before shifting to interiors.
For interior designers, the “mere millimeter” is by far an exaggeration. By using fake fingernails for example, when evaluating their design, they can easily understand how the change by a millimetre might affect the operation of an in-car dial.
Sometimes, designers walk around with a weighted brace on their knee. These braces add weight or immobilize the joints, allowing them to make sure that even the elderly and physically challenged can get in and out of the car smoothly.
They also have special glasses to check if the red hazard switches are easily visible for those with difficulties seeing red hues. All user needs are considered, seeking to balance stylish looks with usability for many different customers.
Embracing global diversity and considering the needs of many different people, embodies the “human-centred” approach to car-making at Toyota and Lexus.
For the interior of the RZ, Lexus' first BEV-only model, the designers decided that simple is best. Since BEVs are not equipped with an engine, the interior has more room from front to back.
Conventional interior design treats the driver-side instrument panel as the main feature. However, for the new RZ, designers aimed for a new spatial configuration focusing on the doors.
From the sketch stage, the aim was to accentuate the elongated interior space. The resulting interior is open and uncluttered. Meticulously crafted elements such as the steering wheel and gauges offer a sense of detailed, refined monozukuri (manufacturing).
Another interesting finding is that results optimized by the most advanced digital tools come to resemble the skeletons of animals that have inhabited the earth since time immemorial.
“Depending on the tools you use, different ideas emerge,” adds Omori.
A core principle of the Toyota Production System is “continuous improvement,” and the company’s designers strive for ever-better designs by constantly adopting the latest tools.
Our designers also use virtual reality headsets to see what a car interior would look like from the driver’s seat. This technology allows to explore the design in great detail from an early stage.
Advances in digital technology eliminate inefficiencies during development. This virtual reality testing is a good example of how new digital technologies can make the work for designers easier.
Interiors have progressed remarkably over the past five years. To create an interior design is to create a living space. It is a quest for human comfort. The shift from cars to mobility expands these possibilities still further.
