IAT is one of China's biggest prototype companies, providing styling and engineering support to the OEMs. The Crosswind II concept was one of three very competently resolved full-size models displayed on their large stand at the show, and it is a development of the Cross-Coupé model seen two years ago in Beijing. It's a simple concept: the top half is coupé, the lower half has a tough offroader aesthetic, and it's powered by a 150kW electric motor. Showing us around the car was Chen Qunyi, IAT's young design director, who explained that the front face has been revised and the interior fully developed. "It's a combination of speed and offroad performance that's uniquely Chinese to suit the more remote roads of some provinces," Qunyi explained.
According to Qunyi, the front face is ‘tough and strong' and is the most revised area of the previous 2008 design. It now sports a wide monographic face with the headlamps mounted high up, reaching back as far as the front wheelarch and with a broad silver band between, topped with the IAT emblem. Beneath this is a full-width grille with two grille bars and a bold hexagon pattern mesh, while the lower side cheeks feature a strip of LED running lamps in an L-shaped formation. Although it reminds somewhat of the new Kia Sportage or Land-Rover LRX concept, the overall effect is confident and striking, especially in the bright copper body color of the show car.
The tan and grey leather interior is accessed via huge gullwing doors that fill the side view and there's a deeply cowled binnacle with yellow digital displays, which is framed either side by a pair of rear camera screens.
What's most interesting with the IAT concept is that it demonstrates a keen ability to develop competent design solutions amongst the Chinese prototype companies such as IAT, TJ Innova or CH Auto that easily matches or exceeds that which we saw from some major domestic brands.
