These similarities likely had to do with maintaining brand identification because those production automobiles were almost entirely from only three carmakers: Volkswagen, Alfa Romeo and Hyundai. However, to some degree his designs were for competitive models, so brand image consistency was a casualty to fashion at times.
These are discussed below. Most images are from the manufacturers.
The Alfasud ("South Alfa") had to do with a government project to stimulate economic growth in Italy's south. Alfa Romeo built a factory in the Naples area to produce the new design. Note the tall passenger greenhouse.
But the dogleg was retained when a two-door Alfasud appeared.
Giugiaro used that shape again when he styled the aft end of the Volkswagen Passat. (The front half of the car was existing styling from an Audi model.)
The Golf marked VW's departure from rear mounted, air-cooled motors. Golfs and later Volkswagens had front-located fluid-cooled motors and front-wheel drive. The Golf's shape is "thicker" than the more airy Passat, but the greenhouse is tall and there's that window dogleg in softened form.
Giugiaro continued his Passat theme of crisp surfaces. As usual, the greenhouse is tall, but the dogleg profile is missing for once.
The sporty Alfetta has a softer lower body, but Giugiaro's greenhouse theme remains.
This car can be considered a "thinner" Golf thanks to its flatter side sculpting.
This sporty Alfasud comes off as a smaller, more angular Alfetta.
A somewhat later design in the mould of Giugiaro's 1970 Posrche-based Tapiro concept, it retains the theme elements discussed above.
1 comment:
Giugiaro was seemingly much like Pininfarina in successfully selling essentially the same design to multiple automakers (e.g.: Peugeot 404, Fiat 1800 and the BMC Farina saloons).
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