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BMW Gran Lusso Coupe Concept plots 8-series return

This sleek two door coupe concept, unveiled at the 2013 Villa d'Este Concourso d'Eleganza on Italy's Lake Como shores, could provide the stylistic inspiration for a BMW 8-series return. The Pininfarina Gran Lusso Coupe is a contemporary four seater created in cooperation between BMW's in-house design team headed by Karim Habib and famed Italian design house Pininfarina. The car is based on a modified rear-drive BMW 7-series platform and uses the 760i's 6.0-liter, 536-hp turbo V12 for power.

The Future Role of the Vehicle Designer

The vehicle design department at the Royal College of Art hosted the second in a series of five lectures looking at the future of the profession last week. Moving on from the previous week's topic of sustainability, this debate explored the future roles and responsibilities of the vehicle designer. Head of department Dale Harrow began by posing the question "Is it time to rethink – do we still need the car?" Although still relevant, Harrow's ultimate answer to this was that the profession was about to see marked change, with the end to an era where "designers are locked behind closed doors in studios".

Reproducing reality – X-Rite’s Total Appearance Capture

Total Appearance Capture isn't some sinister new form of identity theft but a revolutionary method of digitizing physical models using a new scanning technology, with the ability to capture extraordinary detail and all input and output light. The system, from coatings color measurement experts X-Rite, combines color, texture, gloss and other surface characteristics into a digital material ‘description' that can be imported directly to computer-aided design programs. What sets it apart from previously available methods is its ability to collect information on complex materials such as textiles, leather, basketwork, stone, coatings and plated finishes, in a 3D scene lit by a virtual studio environment.