It is indeed curious that the automotive industry's toughest crisis coincides with a period of extensive auto-museumification. The Porsche Museum opened in Stuttgart, after Daimler, BMW, and Volkswagen had already successfully turned their past into headlines with their self-built temples. But the car is certainly not a case for a museum. New concepts are needed, and designers are clearly called upon to make their contribution here. Electric propulsion, which is the focus of our cover story, not only makes new body forms possible, it demands them. The story is rounded off by two contributions: Lutz Fügener is convinced that the eco-car must come from a premium brand, and Peter Naumann accuses the automotive industry of having ignored the signs of the times.

March/ April 2009, Verlag form, 106 pages, 23 × 29.8 cm, Softcover, Edition in German/ English