Munich, Germany — BMW has unleashed one of the coolest concept cars we've ever seen here at the Motoring Channel.
Basically a metal and carbon-fibre space frame chassis covered with a high tech lycra stocking, the new BMW concept changes the way we interpret cars.
It gives the user the freedom to manipulate the car's exterior to their own personal taste.
Bavarian Motor Works (BMW) chief of design, Chris Bangle, says the philosophy behind GINA concept is "flexibility".
Unlike most cars that have one strict shape based on the vehicle's frame and sheet metal, the BMW GINA features a material coating underneath which resides a complex array of flexible members.
The G.I.N.A acronym stands for "Geometry and Functions In “N” Adaptions" according to BMW, where 'N' refers to infinity.
In essence, the car can change its shape at the touch of a button.
Don't believe us? Play the video to see the vehicle working its magic, and how it 'winks' its headlights.
The fabric that determines the vehicle's exterior design is stretched over a complex mass of wires and electric-hydraulic devices that can change the vehicles appearance and as BMW explains, the GINA Light Visionary concept car is a "visionary look into the future [that] shows the extent to which the BMW Group employs creative potential in its endeavor to respond to the challenges of tomorrow's mobility".
While the idea of an malleable car for mainstream global markets is a bit far fetched at this point - crash protection would probably be a sticking point - the applications for the vehicle in terms of car design itself are potentially massive.
Let's say this new concept car by Chris Bangle and his team of engineers and designers was the precursor to the new Z4 model. It would allow the designers to see, with true light and shadow, how the car looks with different character lines and styling cues.
Thought BMW doesn't go into specifics, the engine stretching through the car's fabric appears to have twin cylinder banks, suggesting it is powered by a V8 engine.
BMW says the new car "promotes innovative thinking by allowing maximum freedom of creativity" and could be the first concept of its type, exhibiting a free-form exterior design.
The German car maker believes that the ideas that gave birth to the new concept car, the GINA Light Visionary Model, are "derived from the needs and demands of customers concerning the aesthetic and functional characteristics of their car and their desire to express individuality and lifestyle".
If car's like this one existed in the far future, the idea of aftermarket cosmetic upgrades - new headlights, body kits, spoilers - could be made redundant.
Not all of the BMW GINA's proportions are movable however.
"Some elements of the substructure are moveable," explains BMW. "The driver can move them by means of electro and electro-hydraulic controls. This will also change the shape of the outer skin, which can thus be adapted to suit the current situation, the driver’s requirements and can also enhance the car’s functional range."
Stretched and pinned down in strategic points, the concept cars cloth skin is flexible enough to allow the movement of the front and rear areas, and even the opening and closing of the doors.
As BMW revealed, "...the GINA Light Visionary Model has dispensed with the usual body elements found on production vehicles such as front apron, bonnet, side panels, doors, wheel arches, roof, trunk lid and rear deck. Instead, a new structure with a minimum amount of components has taken their place."
The BMW GINA Light Visionary Model concept's 'skin' material is itself a "highly durable and extremely expansion-resistant fabric material" that once stretched will reveal no seams or folds.
This fabric is industrially produced and "...made from a stabilizing mesh netting support and an outer layer that is both water-repellent and resistant to high and low temperatures" BMW has revealed.
Also of interest are the turn indicators and the taillights. These crucial driving features function normally no matter the shape of the vehicle, and their position is only revealed upon activation.
The lights shine through the translucent fabric cover, which is permeable to light but not transparent explains BMW.
If the car's ECU detects that the engine or transmission is getting too hot and needs more engine cooling, the trademark BMW kidney grille can be widened to provide more air flow.
Even the BMW GINA Light Visionary Model's interior has moving parts that allow driver and passenger to more easily enter and exit the vehicle.
This new concept car from Germany is so different from anything else before it, and could change the way car designers approach various projects.
In BMW's words, "The GINA Light Visionary Model takes the sculptural design that has already been established by a number of production cars to a new, unparalleled conclusion."
