GM has opened a new advanced design studio in Royal Leamington Spa, England, and subsequently unveiled a Chevy Corvette EV design study and a teaser for a new GMC concept. General Motors says this is the first of multiple Corvette design concepts to come in 2025.
The new UK design studio is a 24,584-square-foot facility led by Jaguar Land Rover and Lotus alumnus Julian Thompson and employs more than 30 designers and creatives. It’s equipped for both digital and physical clay model development. Thompson oversaw Jaguar design from 2019-2021 and has penned the Lotus Elise S1, the Range Rover Evoque, and the Land Rover LRX Concept that was the basis for the production Evoque. His experience with high-end luxury vehicles and cutting-edge concepts positions him to advance GM design with some European flair.
The new design studio is part of GM’s years-long reorientation of its business in Europe. GM exited the European market when it sold Opel and Vauxhall to PSA Groupe in 2017 and returned with the introduction of the Cadillac Lyriq to Europe in 2024. General Motors is also working to expand Chevy Corvette sales across the European mainland, which is motivating the new English studio to churn out radical Corvette concepts.
“Our advanced design team’s mandate extends well beyond creating production vehicles,” said Michael Simcoe, senior VP of global design. “While they collaborate within our global design network on production and concept vehicle programs, these teams are primarily tasked with imagining what mobility could look like five, 10, and even 20 years into the future and driving innovation for GM.”
The Corvette concept unveiled by the UK studio is a radically futuristic EV with some subtle heritage inspiration, like a reimagined cross-flag emblem and a rear split window design inspired by the C2 Stingray. GM calls its full wrap-around side glass “Apex Vision,” and it has powered win doors, which would be a Corvette first. The teaser images for the GMC concept don’t reveal much, but they show two seats with a large side glass opening, a light signature made of horizontal slats, and close-ups of the geographic coordinates of Royal Leamington Spa and Warren, Michigan etched into some trim pieces.
Comments
Will their designs “leak oil”?
remember having years ago submitted a Resume to them, however they do not took me. Today prefer my bed and sofa full time
It’s a big bust so far.
GM is laying people off left and right at the Tech Center in Warren and yet opening this? It makes no sense. They sell, like, nothing in the UK so why is a design center needed there? Maybe someone can explain.
Did the guy who coined the word “radical” pay George Barta to sprinkle the word throughout this piece?