After reports emerged last May stating that Chrysler had axed its Airflow EV in favor of something more exciting, company design boss Ralph Gilles took to Instagram to "clear up" some "misunderstandings" about the project. It turns out that Chrysler never fully killed off the Airflow, with Gilles explaining that the end product will evolve into something less "verbatim" than the original concept.
"The Airflow was just the beginning of the story," Gilles said in a recent Instagram post, where he went on to describe the original concept as a "North Star" that embodies "a myriad of concepts" for the future. The next iteration of the Airflow concept, which will "forge a refreshing new direction" for Chrysler, is expected to be shown sometime next year. Its revised design will likely translate into the final production model that launches in 2025, which is said to ride on the company's STLA platform with a large focus on technology.
The reports from earlier this year suggested that Chrysler designers were encouraged by CEO Christine Feuell to scrap the Airflow entirely, and instead make "something even better." While this is partly true, as the Airflow's initial styling will indeed evolve into a design that has drawn more enthusiasum from those inside the brand, it will still carry a lot of influence from the original in terms of tech, sustainability, and aerodynamics.
Do you think Chrysler can save itself?
Image Credits: Chrysler
Report
Jul 28, 2023
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Chrysler Design Boss Says The Demise Of The Airflow EV Was "Misunderstood"
The concept will evolve rather than going away completely.
After reports emerged last May stating that Chrysler had axed its Airflow EV in favor of something more exciting, company design boss Ralph Gilles took to Instagram to "clear up" some "misunderstandings" about the project. It turns out that Chrysler never fully killed off the Airflow, with Gilles explaining that the end product will evolve into something less "verbatim" than the original concept.
"The Airflow was just the beginning of the story," Gilles said in a recent Instagram post, where he went on to describe the original concept as a "North Star" that embodies "a myriad of concepts" for the future. The next iteration of the Airflow concept, which will "forge a refreshing new direction" for Chrysler, is expected to be shown sometime next year. Its revised design will likely translate into the final production model that launches in 2025, which is said to ride on the company's STLA platform with a large focus on technology.
The reports from earlier this year suggested that Chrysler designers were encouraged by CEO Christine Feuell to scrap the Airflow entirely, and instead make "something even better." While this is partly true, as the Airflow's initial styling will indeed evolve into a design that has drawn more enthusiasum from those inside the brand, it will still carry a lot of influence from the original in terms of tech, sustainability, and aerodynamics.
Do you think Chrysler can save itself?