Chevrolet Corvette Concept Car
The fifth global design hub
GM has opened the UK Design Centre as its first global design base in Europe to develop designs that are in line with European market trends.
General Motors (GM) has opened a new design studio, the UK Design Centre, in Royal Leamington Spa, about 20 miles from Birmingham, UK. The establishment of this new advanced design base, the UK Design Centre, is a sign of GM’s ever-increasing involvement in the European market, not just the UK. Going forward, GM will expand sales of Cadillac’s fully electric models in the UK and Europe. Furthermore, there are plans to introduce the new Corvette in Europe.
The UK Design Centre will serve as GM’s key global design hub, providing valuable feedback on European customer and cultural trends. GM also has design studios in Detroit and Los Angeles in the US, Shanghai in China, and Seoul in South Korea.
In addition to the first public unveiling of the Chevrolet Corvette Concept Car, the UK Design Centre opening ceremony also featured a GMC concept car built by the GMC design team in Detroit and scheduled for unveiling in late 2025.
The UK Design Centre will be headed by Julian Thomson, an experienced automotive designer with experience working for Lotus and Jaguar. The studio in Royal Leamington Spa, which boasts a vast 24,584 square feet of space, is home to more than 30 designers and creative team members, and is capable of both digital design and clay modelling.
Michael Simcoe, GM’s vice president of Global Design, added the following about the opening of the UK Design Centre:
“Our Advanced Design team’s work extends beyond production vehicle development. By collaborating on production and concept vehicle programs within our global design network, they are tasked with imagining what mobility will look like five, 10 and even 20 years from now and driving innovation at GM.”
A future Corvette conceived by a British team
GM commissioned each of its global design studios to create a Corvette design concept for 2025. The British design team took inspiration from Corvette history and aviation to complete the design concept.
GM has a history of using the Corvette nameplate for design concepts and prototypes. The Corvette Concept Car created to coincide with the opening of the UK Design Center is no exception. While there are no plans for it to be put on the market, the British design team approached it as an exercise in rethinking what a Corvette should be, starting from a completely blank slate.
“As part of the Corvette Creative Design Study, we asked each design studio to create a ‘hypercar concept,'” said Simcow. “Every studio is paying homage to the Corvette’s historic DNA while bringing their own unique creative interpretation. That’s exactly how we intend to build a network of cutting-edge design studios.”
The British design team subtly incorporated Corvette’s iconic design heritage into a futuristic aesthetic, centered around clean, muscular forms, which also drew inspiration from modern aviation for both design and function.
The upper and lower halves of the vehicle feature distinct characteristics, with the upper half showcasing classic Corvette design elements in a futuristic way, while the lower half focuses on functional technical design, incorporating EV battery technology into the structure and aerodynamics designed for efficient airflow without the need for wings or spoilers.
“This time, we came up with a concept called ‘Apex Vision,’ which borrows from the ‘split window’ of the iconic 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray,” said Julian Thomson, head of the UK Design Centre.
