In downturn, carmakers try to grin and bear it

NEW YORK — Even with all the bad news that has pounded the auto industry, carmakers are trying to put on happy faces. Literally: They are incorporating smiles and other cheerful characteristics into their designs.

The hope is that consumers will warm to vehicles that might reflect their own personalities and feelings.

“‘Charm’ — I thought this was very important,” says Peter Arnell, inventor and chief designer of the electric Peapod vehicle. “‘Happiness’ — this was part of the conversation too. I wanted to convey that the car was happy to be a car, to say transportation can be happy.”

He adds, “It’s smiling at you and you smile back.”

That goes along with the cheery Honda Fit, Suzuki SX4 and Toyota Prius. The Smart ForTwo seems to have pursed lips, like it’s ready to start a conversation. And is that a little smirk coming from the Mini Cooper that’s ready to take on the growling SUVs on the road?

Researchers at Austria’s Vienna University have indeed determined that the shape of the Volkswagen Beetle mimics the face of a smiling woman or child.

“It’s very purposeful to give our cars personality,” says Moray Callum, executive director of Ford Americas Design. “It’s something we’re learning a lot about and doing a lot of … and the front of the car, we call it the ‘face’ of the car.”

The Mustang has its “eyebrows” lowered to appear menacing, and its dark grill is intended to be aggressive and powerful, while the Fiesta is supposed to look bright-eyed and youthful, he explains.

In addition to creating a persona for the vehicles, Ford also has developed a dossier on the personality of its target customer. The code name for a likely purchaser of the Fiesta, for example, is Antonella.

“We designed this girl as a real person and her real lifestyle, then we went out and found all the Antonellas of the world. It helps to have that person in mind,” says Callum. “Antonella wants something distinguishable, something that stands out in the crowd, something she feels she’ll have fun in and be proud to show her friends.”

While real-life Antonellas might not necessarily be the life of every party, she probably relates to the characteristics of her car more than she knows, Callum says. “We’re not mimicking the buyers, but we’re looking for what emotions will connect with them.”

That’s translated onto the Fiesta’s exterior through a sloped hood, aerodynamic headlamps and an overall teardrop shape, Callum explains. The fun part is represented in colors such as fuchsia and neon apple green.

The car’s interior has switches that mimic those you’d find on a cell phone, and the rest is very sculpted.

This car’s not for everyone — and that’s the point, Callum says. “We at Ford are trying to expand our range of vehicles not only for Antonella but all her friends.”

The movement toward happy-looking cars is probably a wise marketing decision, says consumer behaviorist Kit Yarrow, chair of Golden Gate University’s psychology department, because women, as well as Gen Xers and Gen Yers, are more receptive to friendly and positive imagery.

“They’re starting to cater toward a demographic that doesn’t always want the stern beast. They want a friendlier, more approachable vehicle,” she says.

When Arnell, whose branding background also includes work for Dodge and non-auto companies Donna Karan, Banana Republic and Samsung, took on the Peapod project, he wanted to change the typical auto design that was supposed to enhance an image of performance and masculinity, he explains.

“My decision was to have this vehicle make a statement and clear perspective of its feelings. I wanted it to say how it feels to be a battery vehicle, and I want you to know that it was smiling at the planet,” Arnell says.

Arnell says designing a car is “extraordinary” because there is a long list of non-aesthetic needs — geometry, functionality, safety, and legal and financial requirements — but it’s still largely judged on appearance.

It’s actually surprising, he says, that so many cars look so different.

Differentiation is key, though, in marketplace success, says psychologist Lars Perner.

“A car becomes a part of so many people’s selves,” says Perner, an assistant professor of clinical marketing at the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California. “Considering the cost of the car and the amount of time spent with a car, people become very closely related to their car.”

The economic meltdown has left people wondering if they should even buy a new car, Perner says, so one that leaves them with an optimistic perception “would be helpful.”