Looking Out - The Podcast

Jony Ive and Marc Newson have made their mark with the interior of the new Ferrari Luce. The response has been predictably immediate and intense. Some see a revolutionary rethinking of how electric cars should feel.  Others see a perfectly resolved collection of beautiful objects that nonetheless miss what a Ferrari should be all about What does this interior say about how we design cars, and the...

There's been a lot said about how the Jaguar's rebrand and the Type 00 look. But what do they mean? And what do they say about the culture of the company that created them? Joe and Drew dive in to the most talked about launch in a long time. Links: Rory Sutherland on the rebrand Why Jaguar Had To Blow Up Its Brand In Order To Save It Why Does The New Jaguar Type 00 Look Like A Concrete S...

Joe and Drew aren't short of opinions. While the boys might be sometimes (often?) wrong, at the very least, an opinion gives us something to discuss, something to weigh the merits of. In this episode of Looking Out, they sincerely wish the automotive industry would have some stronger opinions of its own. Topics covered include the relaunch of Scout by Volkswagen, the Paris Motorshow, Renault&...

What the hell happened at Tesla's We, Robot event!? Joe and Drew dive in to the design disappointments of that fateful day and reflect on an industry in short supply of inspiration. That's it for this episode! Thanks for listening. If you like what you hear, please leave a review for us on your favourite podcasting platform. It helps other folk like you find us! And you can sign up for L...

Hoo boy, it's been a beat! But: Joe and Drew are back with a dissection of everything that's wrong with the Bugatti Tourbillon's windshield wiper, and the massively missed opportunity that is Apple's second-generation CarPlay. That's it for this episode! Thanks for listening. If you like what you hear, please leave a review for us on your favourite podcasting platform. It...

This episode gets personal!  Join Joe and Drew as they explore the sensory and emotional components of car design through the lens of their beloveds: the Mercedes W140 S-Class and the Porsche 911.  In this episode, they delve into their stories with these cars and how they came to be so meaningful to them. They also discuss the importance of strong convictions around what character means to a bran...

In this episode, we dive in to software-defined vehicles (SDVs) and what they mean for the customer experience.  We cover why car makers are developing them, including their need to diversify revenue streams in saturated markets, and the ability to deliver over-the-air updates.  We also talk about some of the pitfalls, like accelerated obsolescence and good ol' enshitification.  And we talk a...

Joe and Drew take a look at the most significant exhibits and announcements coming out of Milan Design Week, and the Beijing Auto Show. And they touch on Tesla. How couldn't they? 📨 Subscribe to Looking Out - The Newsletter, the partner newsletter to this podcast. https://automobility.substack.com 🤝 Connect with us on LinkedIn Drew - https://www.linkedin.com/in/drewpasmith/ Joe -  https://w...

Five months ago, we recorded our most incendiary episode yet. In The EV Inferno, we wondered whether EV sales were about to fall off a cliff, or whether we’d just hit a bump in the road. With the benefit of time, the picture’s becoming a little clearer, if no cleaner. In this episode, we look at how the EV market might be fracturing between the EU, the US, and China, and what that means for legacy...

Sibilio. Bravo. Stratos. Magnum. And Shamal. Joe and Drew celebrate Gandini’s life and his greatest hits. We also cover the BMW Vision Neue Klasse X, Euro NCAP’s physical button mandate, and a conversation about great gas station meals leads to us pondering the future of the road stop. 📨 Subscribe to Looking Out - The Newsletter, the partner to the podcast. https://automobility.substack.com 🤝 Co...

The death of the desirable hatchback has been exaggerated. In the space of two weeks, we've been gifted the new Renault R5 and the Rivian R3 and R3X. We discuss their design, and what they mean for their respective manufacturers. Meanwhile, the death of the Apple Car is now (almost definitely) certain and we explore why Apple finally caved. And we also discuss what's happening to design...

Tesla Autopilot. Hyundai Highway Driving Assist 2. GM SuperCruise. Oh, and a Waymo robotaxi. This episode has it all.  Joe and Drew talk about their experiences of each and ask the crucial question: what's it all for? 📨 Subscribe to Looking Out - The Newsletter, the partner newsletter to this podcast. https://automobility.substack.com ⬇️ Download Drew's free trend report from CES 2024:...

For over a decade now, the Consumer Electronics Show has also been one of the most significant automotive shows in the world. In January 2024, after the year in which generative AI changed everything, Drew’s hopes were high for a few radical new takes on what the car might become when fused with artificial intelligence. What he found was lipstick on a pig. Join Joe and Drew as they take a look at...

Back in 2019, Drew and Joe disagreed on what the Tesla Cybertruck represented. Has anything changed in the past four years? In this episode, Drew and Joe take a look at what the most polarising car in living memory means as a piece of technology, as a piece of design, and as a cultural artefact. That's it for this episode! Thanks for listening. If you like what you hear, please leave a review...

For two decades, China has been the goose that laid the golden egg for Western automakers. Now, it might just be the market that screws the pooch. Joe heads to Shanghai after a few years away to see just how far the Chinese manufacturers have come.  We explore how automotive culture is developing, and paint a picture of the challenges ahead for both Chinese and Western automotive manufacturers in...

The Tokyo Motor Show, now known as the Japan Mobility Show, has always been one of the most surprising on the circuit. Historically the launchpad for some of the wilder concepts the industry has seen, Tokyo has also represented something of a forbidden garden, full of of pocket-sized delights that preview new Kei car models that are soon to hit the streets. Once upon a time, we’d look at those car...

There’s been a flood of news these past weeks about the slowdown in EV sales. Challenging market conditions and the high cost of funding the transition to EVs is giving manufacturers cause for pause. Tesla is halting work on further factories, and GM and Honda scrapping a partnership to produce affordable EVs, for example/ Meanwhile, Mercedes EQ models are sat unloved and unsold on dealer lots, an...

This episode is *really* visual. To see our line-by-line review of the Toyota Century SUV in real time, watch along at https://youtu.be/BtDJNCnuVlY?si=WAzJXEJ55_KeWa8c Criticism and the automotive industry make for uncomfortable bed fellows. We put so much heart and soul in to creating a car that when someone points out its flaws, it can be like being told that someone doesn't like our child....

📺 Watch this episode on YouTube! Take a peak at the design secrets behind the new Tesla Model 3, also known as Highland, and how they give Tesla an incredible pricing advantage against legacy OEMs. Joe and Drew also discuss a small French company called Lormauto, which is reinventing the origianl Renault Twingo as a EV designed for life. And they take a looks at the interiors of the new Mercedes...

In this special episode, Joe and Drew take a look - both macro and micro - at the recent IAA, also known as the Munich motor show.     The motor show itself: This is the second coming of the biennial motor show in Munich. We talked about how it's evolved and what it means for brands who are compelled to show at the Messe, or exhibition grounds, and in the centre of the city.     The Mercedes...

In this episode: GM's post-CarPlay Culture So GM's gone out on a limb and said they're ditching Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for their next generation of cars. To help them on their way, they've hired Mike Abbot, formerly head of Apple's (notoriously) flakey iCloud services. But we reckon that hiring a big name from another sector won't be enough to fulfil GM's...

In this very special episode, Joe and Drew revisit Drew's interview with the father of micromobility, Horace Dediu. This isn't the first time this interview's gone to air. You may have heard it first time around on Drew's other podcast, The Next Billion Seconds, or on Horace's own Micromobility podcast.  It is, however, the first time we've sat down to discuss the man...

In this episode of Looking Out - The Podcast, Joe and Drew discuss: BMW's i Vision Dee, why some folk find her scary, and what she says about BMW's future Joe's surprisingly normal Christmas run in an EV from Gothenburg to Leeds Why CES left us longing for a more systemic approach from the auto industry to the challenges we face Joe also gives a preview of an upcoming piece for Look...

Joe and Drew dive deep on the most popular topics from our recent newsletter. In this show, they explore: why Hyundai is giving us reasons to be happy, what it means when design no longer matters to Apple,  and the future of Europe's small cars. They also mourn the death of Twitter and explore how you might assess in-car subscription services. Show Links: Measure of Success - Christopher Butt...

Joe and Drew dive deep on the most popular topics from our recent newsletter. In this show, they explore: the EV charging clustercuss,  why a car costs more than your house,  and cars in the cloud. They also share some thoughts on the end of the age of abundance, and the emergence of AI art. Show Links: The Bentley Batur The end of the age of abundance Jeep's new EVs Looking Out: Subscribe to...