California car design as shown at the Petersen Automotive Museum
Petersen Automotive Museum's California Car Design show has "local style, global influence" as its tagline and the show's shiny examples make a good case. California was settled way later than the east coast and Los Angeles was the first major city in the U.S. built up during the automotive age. As a result, California residents spend more time in cars and naturally started to view them as personal expressions.
Since California was settled by cock-eyed dreamers whose thirst for adventure would have kept them moving if they hadn't run out of dry land, there's a natural tendency to remake/remodel/upgrade what others in more inhospitable regions might accept as "good enough." This has shown itself in the early coachbuilders like Murhpy, Earl, and Bowman & Schwartz, right through to kustomizers like the Barris brothers, Ed Roth, Gene Winfield and Dean Jeffries. Harley Earl grew up in Los Angeles, became head stylist for his father's coachbuilding firm there and was plucked to head General Motors styling where he reigned for 30 years.
Pasadena, California's Art Center School of Design has grown into the premier training facility for car design in the world. And, since the 1970s, carmakers have located design studios in California in order to stay on top of the latest automotive trends, further spreading the state's car style internationally.
Freeman Thomas and J. Mays, two Art Center grads who worked at Volkswagen's southern California design center, came up with the idea of doing an updated VW Beetle concept and sold it to their bosses. When the concept was shown, public reaction inspired the German company to put it into production as the New Beetle--a California car for the world.
Today, Callifornia stays ahead by focusing on electric vehicles. Tesla Motors has sold hundreds of their racy little battery-powered roadsters. And Aptera Motors promises a game-changing three-wheeled electric car that's supposed to reach the market this fall.
For more info: check out California's car show culture:
Highlights of Pebble Beach 2009
Fifty cars for fifty states: California's classic surf woody
Hot rod honeys hop up California car shows
Beverly Hills Concours shows rare classics
Classic vintage cars at Farmers Market show
GM's Harley Earl: Greatest car designer ever?
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