In car manufacturing, design is something which is paid great attention to. We design cars for functionality, for ergonomics and performance, and for safety; we also design them so that they look good and, in many cases, are unique enough to be noticed without even seeing the badge.  
The Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier might not be the first name that you associate with car design – given that his principal work was in the field of conceptual city-scaping and urban living spaces – but this article from The Telegraph in the UK describes how his idea for a Voiture Minimum was planned as the ultimate car for urban living.  
It mentions how he was “totally obsessed” with automobiles throughout the Twenties and Thirties and also mentions how he placed the car in plans of his buildings – drawing a connection between urban living and automotive design which was “unheard of” at the time.
 
The Voiture Minium has lent its shape to a lot of other iconic vehicle throughout the years, but remained mainly a concept for Le Corbusier at the time – and the article’s title “The forgotten people’s car,” reminds us of this fact. But this excellent piece does get us thinking about a lot of other elements of design.  
Voiture Minimum was designed to fit a certain set of specifications – not just to look cool. It had to be affordable and efficient, and suited for the huge cities and city expansions planned at the time, and it was in fact entered as part of a competition to fit a certain urban-focussed brief.
 
Modern cars are designed to suit their terrain – or variety of terrains – perfectly. There are urban-slanted designs and those suited to harsher environments and more difficult driving conditions. And there are, of course, those which are suited to a variety of terrains (link to AWD). But what do you think is the most important element of a car’s design brief? Any of these mentioned above? Practicality? Economy? Fuel efficiency? I’d love to hear your thoughts.