The future of Dacia, according to designer Miles Nurnberger Car News

The arrival of former Aston Martin designer Miles Nurnberger at Dacia coincided with the unveiling of the new Dacia Jogger and came shortly after a radical transformation plan for the brand was detailed as part of the Renaulution strategy of the parent company of the Renault group.

Speaking on a range of topics, including the brand’s future designs, concept cars and the automaker’s “wonderful” simplicity, Nurnberger gave Autocar the first hints of what to expect as Dacia adopts its new identity and turns to electrification.

When will we see your influence on Dacia cars?

“It will still take years for production cars. Most of my job is worrying about cars that arrive four years later; or even as long as a decade. But I was able to have some influence on the next big model programs that we have coming up before that; more about their execution than their design. Just being able to “squeeze the lemon” on them, really.

How was the transition from your previous role at Aston Martin?

“Everything is the same and everything is different. I feel a bit like an F1 driver who moved teams around. His job is still basically to turn a steering wheel; and my approach to design hasn’t changed. But the terminologies, and all the interactions that I have “I have to have, are so different. Dacia is part of a larger group, so it makes strategic decisions in a different way to Aston. I had to figure out how the machine works here.

“My first three months were all about understanding the strengths and weaknesses of our design team. I’m happy to say there were more! We have a great base and I was able to strengthen the team, bringing new new heads of advanced design and color and materials who both joined us in January.”

Will we see a Miles Nurnburger concept car to start a new era?

“You could do it. The brand has undergone an incredible evolution. Luca de Meo’s ‘Renaultlution’ plan now gives Dacia its own dedicated design team, something it never had before. Our culture is growing; and I would say that the culture, and the concept that you are talking about, it is now up to me to be the guardian.

“We now have a good brand mindset. This will naturally lead us to progress and make new design statements.”

How is the collaboration with Laurens van den Acker and Gilles Vidal going?

“That’s great. Laurens lived down the street from me when we both lived in California and worked for different parts of Ford Motor Company. Gilles was my boss at PSA fifteen years ago. Their design skills were definitely a attraction to me, and they’re two people I already knew I could work well with.”

How do you think the band’s commitment to design is today compared to decades ago?

“Renault has always been a quiet powerhouse for design, but it feels like there is now a new emphasis on design across the whole group, on design as a differentiator.

“Luca is definitely a design enthusiast – highly educated and insightful. But there are also other key design enablers throughout the organization, such as engineering boss Gilles Le Borgne. When I ask him to large proportions in cars, he delivers them, because he understands why I’m asking and why the customer wants them.

Where do you think design ranks as a motivation for a Dacia buyer?

“Right now price, value and functionality all beat it. So for us, being pragmatic is very important. But our customers are also surprisingly emotional. Some of them already rank the design number one. But that doesn’t mean we should start designing for fun. We must be honest and genuine in what we give; there will be no flamboyance. Clean, user-friendly and readable designs will always shine, much like the kind of cars Land Rover used to make.

“Simplicity is a wonderful theme for us.”

Can we develop the Dacia design without going upmarket?

“Of course. We all naturally associate better design with more expensive products, but in fact, it’s a false equivalence. And in terms of process, you often get the best ideas when you tighten the purse strings, reduce the number of components and the complexity, and end up with more elegant and functional solutions.”

What do you think of the design of retro cars?

“It’s not part of my vocabulary at Dacia. There’s a mood for it elsewhere in the group, and the Renault 5 production car is super cool, but if you’re doing retro it should be more about recapturing a feeling than making a visual pastiche of something. I have no problem being romantic with old ideas twisted in new ways, but that’s not my go-to place. I prefer to be progressive.

How do you give a cheap compact car curb appeal? Is there a trick?

“You need good proportions. This means that you don’t have to create a design with a bad position or long overhangs. Beyond…