IED students imagine a pod-shaped BMW in 2015

Click above image for more IED concepts in high-res

While we certainly don't expect BMW to make such drastic design changes to its lineup within this decade, third-year students at the Turin-based IED (istituto Europeo di Design) were asked to interpret what the German automaker's automobiles would look like in 2015. Although they worked from a clean slate, inspiration was to come from natural elements such as the sea, wind, or the earth. Thirty-five students were divided into eighteen teams for the task. Those teams conjured up, and approved, twelve proposals. Of those, eight were developed into 1:4 scale models. To ensure the quality standards of their trademark, each of the stages of development were supervised under the watchful eye of BMW execs Thomas Plath, Anders Warming, and the controversial Mr. Bangle-butt himself...Chris Bangle. Check the gallery below for high-res images of the fruits of their labor.

[Source: Car Body Design]