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newly established Mercedes-Benzdesign studio in Irvine. His firstjob at Mercedes Benz was designinga small two-passenger batteryvehicle to meet California emissionsrequirements. (Conceptsfrom that project would findtheir way into the now familiarSmartcar.)After four years, he joined thenearby Samsung Motors studioin Huntington Beach as a seniordesigner, intending to helpSamsung develop a businessDespite some of the PR bells andwhistles at the time, the CarreraGT was always intended for production,so the design of the showcarneeded to anticipate the needsof a production car. There havebeen exceptions, but Jason notesthat, “Porsche generally doesn’t doconcept cars for non-productionreasons.” Others in Weissach, includingGrant Larson, put the finaltouches on the car for production.The story of the Carrera GT iswell known—a supercar designedPORSCHE MACAN CONCEPTJULIEN BILODEAUan optimal solution with a wheelbaseslightly longer than the minimumthat met both objectives.Design and engineering werespeaking a common languagewith a common goal.Jason left Porsche shortly afterthe Carerra GT project to starthis own design studio—Designby 11—and is presently serving asfaculty at Art Center. The Porschedesign studio in HuntingtonBeach was closed in April 2005when the company consolidateddesign work in a studio at Zellam See in Austria.From a different and more recentperspective, Art Center graduateTom Harezlak did an internshipwith Porsche in Weissach in 2013after internships with Fisker andFord. Tom started out studyingengineering at Purdue Universitywith the objective of becominginvolved in car development,before realizing the design aspectand moving to Art Center.Tom always was enamored ofPorsche cars and the company’sphilosophy, and was able toassemble a sketch portfolio andget the attention of the rightpeople to get an internship offer.In Weissach, Tom worked in thePorsche Advanced Design studiowhich has dozens of staff focusingon road cars. English is the commonlanguage, as Porsche drawsexpertise from around the world.Several months into his internship,Tom developed a thesis projectunder the watchful eye of Porschedesign staff, eventually known asthe 903 concept. The concept isreminiscent of the 718 race cars,with a fresh shape and an emphasison simplicity. The concept wasintended to address objectivesof sport and efficiency throughreduced parts count and means tocapture and conserve energy. Theconcept envisioned 3-D printingand the car’s body serving as theengine block, seats, cooling system,and other key components.While the concept has strength ofvision, Tom spent the most timeon the shape and proportions. Itis an interesting demonstrationof current thinking from an ArtCenter student with influence andguidance directly from Weissach.PORSCHE 903 CONCEPTTOM HAREZLAKexporting cars from South Korea.Economic troubles in Asia put anend to those plans and Porschebought out the studio in 1999.Early on, Porsche design chiefHarm Lagaay had requested aproposal for a halo supercar tomake use of the stillborn LMPrace car’s 10 cylinder engine.Jason’s design was the basis forthe Carrera GT. The HuntingtonBeach design team put togetherthe 2000 Paris Carrera GT showcar with about 15 members,including six or seven otherArt Center alumni. The projecttook about two years—one forthe basic design and one to refinethe design into the showcar.around a race-bred engine.The car was intentionally designedto make the most efficient andeffective package to supportthe engine. Jason explains that,“Porsche is an engineering companythat also knows good designand style. Good design is a respectfor good engineering.”As an example, Jason points tothe car’s wheelbase. The engineershad established a wheelbase in thepackaging specifications, but thedesigners sought a longer wheelbase.Getting together, the teamsfigured out that the engineers hadset a minimum but not mandatorydimension. The intersection ofengineering and design determinedPORSCHE CARRERA GTJASON HILL“Good design is a respect for good engineering”.36 VELOCITY AUGUST 2015AUGUST 2015 VELOCITY 37