The head of design at Aston Martin says although electrification may well bring about a Golden Age of automotive design, it is quite simply “not the answer”…

Marek Reichman, the chief creative officer at Aston Martin, says electrification is “not the answer” to the industry’slong-term goal of reducing automotive emissions.

“Electrification is not the answer; it is a stage on our journey to zero fuels, but it is not the answer,” he told Drive.

According to the 56-year-old Englishman, there are a number of obstacles standing in the way of the sustained success of electric vehicles (EVs).

“You will never be able to recharge an EV in two minutes like you refuel now. The convenience will never be there. Then there’s the raw materials needed to produce enough batteries for the number of cars we produce today. Right now, many millions of cars are produced every year. Where are the minerals for those batteries going to come from? Every year?

“Then we have to think about national grids; the electrical infrastructure. Charging stations are not the solution; neither is home charging on existing grids,” he said.

So, what is the answer? Well, Reichman suggests the internal combustion engine (ICE) may well survive, pointing towards biofuel as a potential solution. He also believes hydrogen fuel cells have potential.

“The legislation really starts to change in 2027, 2028 through to 2030 in terms of emissions regulations. Is that going to be the last call for internal combustion engines?”

“I see it living as long as it possibly can; as long as the legislation will allow, because there are customers who love and want those types of cars. And once we get deeper into zero fuels then there’s more chance of an ICE unit surviving.”

“At the end of the day, the tailpipe is going to be where companies will be legislated. So biofuel or a hydrogen fuel-cell offer potential solutions here.”

Interestingly, his comments came while he was in Australia to present the new Valhalla to local media. The supercar, of course, combines a twin-turbo V8 petrol engine with a pair of electric motors.

Still, Reichman says the shift towards electric powertrains – and the packaging freedoms that come with this type of propulsion – has at least set up the industry for what he terms a “Golden Age” for design.

“If people are brave enough, you can uncover very, very different solutions to all those questions [of packaging] because now they’re not constrained, particularly in our segment, to housing a V12 or V8 or even a V6. But if you can eliminate those lumps you’ve got more freedom in terms of the language of the car.”

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