2010 Mazda Shinari Concept

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The Japanese word Shinari describes the powerful yet supple appearance of great resilient force when objects of high tensile strength, such as steel or bamboo, are twisted or bent. It also refers to the appearance of a person or animal as it flexibly transforms its body to generate a fast movement. Within this movement, Mazda designers discovered the potential to realize 'Kodo - Soul of Motion'.

One glance at Shinari stirs the emotions. Its form expresses the powerful movement of a lean body with highly developed muscles, supple but at the same time filled with tension. Mazda's desire is to reach car lovers' hearts and go beyond the notion of rational logic. This form purely embodies that desire.

Designer's Challenge

Yasushi Nakamuta, the chief designer who led the design of the third generation Mazda MX-5, was the first to begin the ideation of the Shinari concept: "The challenge for us was to create an innovative new expression for energetic and powerful movement; something that we had never attempted before. We began by developing the design around the image of a predator, as it strikes at its prey, or the stabbing movement in kendo, Japanese fencing, to express the instant where accumulated force is released.

Translating this initial moment of 'instantaneous movement' being pursued by Mazda design into the Shinari concept car presented various challenges to both the designers and the modelers working on the project. The process involved a series of activities that saw the team draw inspiration from a variety of places. This included each team member creating sketches and freely sculpting models from clay to represent their own perceptions of 'Kodo - Soul of Motion'. It then continued with the exploration of the functional beauty seen in traditional Japanese crafts and the motion witnessed in Japan's ancient martial arts.

As the team continued this exploratory process, Nakamuta focused on a force so powerful that it can bend a strong section of steel plate. The Mazda Shinari design adds subtle twists and tension to create forms that express agile and powerful movement, resulting in the expression of 'Kodo - Soul of Motion'.

Mazda Shinari Concept: Review (2/2)