It’s very important for an engineer to understand these issues and focus his or her efforts to where the customer sees and feels the car. Therefore the engineer is always looking for logic – even in styling issues.
And of course there is an easy and logical approach on how to disclose an object or a person. There are several steps when you approach anything or anybody from a distance. First you see the outline, then the silhouette and lastly, the proportions. As you get closer, one can see the light-to-dark transitions, the color and with the outline defined, a 3-dimensional picture of the object evolves. You have to be able to paint shadows to create a painting with depth in the third dimension. It is only when you are very close that you see the face and details.
The sportiness of a BMW is therefore based on these proportions:
• Short overhangs, front and rear
• Long wheelbase
• Large hood
• Set-back greeenhouse
• Elegant roof line.