[SV]

Originally Posted by Montgomery of North America

2011 Montgomery Icon sedan brings new levels of style and quality to its class

12 January 2010 - DETROIT, MICHIGAN, USA - Montgomery of North America today unveiled the new second-generation Icon compact sedan. Redesigned from the ground up, the new Icon raises the level of sophistication in a way not seen since the previous-generation Icon of 2003.

Slick style

The Icon sedan follows its hatchback sibling in wearing the latest version of Montgomery's Layered Tension styling theme, adding a new twist with its sleek coupe-like roofline.

Smooth ride, sharp handling

The Icon II benefits from sophisticated German engineering, endowing it with ride and handling characteristics unmatched by its competitors. With double-wishbone front and five-link rear suspension the Icon II combines a smooth, unflustered ride with stable cornering characteristics. Electro-hydraulic steering helps the car turn with precision, while saving fuel over its predecessor's hydraulic system.

Power meets efficiency

For the American market, the Icon II offers two engine options:

-a 1420cc turbocharged inline four delivering 140bhp at 5200rpm and 158lb-ft at 1600rpm
-a 1595cc TurboKompressor turbocharged and supercharged inline four generating 186bhp at 6000rpm and 200lb-ft at 1500rpm

Both engines are available with a six-speed manual or a six-speed ZKG dual-clutch transmission.

Both the TurboKompressor engine and ZKG dual-clutch gearbox are segment-firsts, demonstrating Montgomery's commitment to innovative engineering.

While the new Icon has grown in size over its predecessor (length 177.1in / width 69.8in / height 56.8in) it has managed to stay trim, with a curb weight of 2,772lb for the 1.4T sedan.

All these engineering feats combine to give the Icon admirable efficiency for it class, with an estimated EPA highway mileage rating of 40MPG.

Style and substance within reach

Despite all these improvements, the new Icon II remains affordable, starting at $16,500 for a 1.4T S manual sedan.

With its sleek style, sublime handling, a refined ride quality, and with class-leading efficiency, the Icon is everything buyers in its class have been looking for. Expect the Icon II to take the American market by storm when it reaches customers in both 4-door sedan and 5-door hatchback form in February

Specifications
Price sheet

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I'm not terribly happy with this sketch (it's a bit of a step back compared to my last one, I'd say) mostly because I did it quickly and wasn't focusing on improving my technique. Next sketch will be better, I promise!

[Rob]

Looks very athletic... I likey. :)
The specification and price sheets are a nice touch, too. What category does the Icon fall into?

[mario_128]

looks like a passat CC,A5 sportback and mazda 3 with a hint of ford. all up a very good car

[SV]

Originally Posted by Rob

Looks very athletic... I likey. :)
The specification and price sheets are a nice touch, too. What category does the Icon fall into?

Thanks, I do specs and pricing for all Montgomery branded cars (and Shannon and Aviolis too). The Icon is a C-segment car rivaling the Focus and Golf, you can find a sketch of the hatch here.

Originally Posted by mario_128

looks like a passat CC,A5 sportback and mazda 3 with a hint of ford. all up a very good car

Thanks for the comments. Audi has definitely been influencing some of my more recent designs, at least for the Montgomery brand; I'm trying to move towards a classier look for that particular lineup and the Audi character is what I'm going for. With a bit more variation/imagination in design, though, not just the same-sausage-different-lengths thing.

[2o6]

Typical european! Just slap on a trunk and call it a day! ;)


Seriously, it looks great. I really enjoy looking at it. The cleverly sculpted rear is nice, although I hate the wheels.

[PRODIGY]

1 word.. WOW!!

:)

[SV]

Originally Posted by 2o6

Typical european! Just slap on a trunk and call it a day! ;)


Seriously, it looks great. I really enjoy looking at it. The cleverly sculpted rear is nice, although I hate the wheels.

Heh, thanks. Though I'd argue that there's been considerable tweaking of the roofline as well ;)

I'm not a big fan of the wheels, either, they were a last-minute job.

Originally Posted by PRODIGY

1 word.. WOW!!

:)

=D

[DoMiNo]

Sincere apologies for totally neglecting to comment here, SV! It looks fantastic, particularly because it enjoys a shape and stance seemingly foreign to the "hatchback conversions" mentioned by 2o6 that we typically see from European manufacturers. It's a very graceful, coupe-ish shape and looks very premium. I love how you've so elegantly mated a Ford-like organic design language with some more typically German elements; it's a wonderful combination.

Aside from something off about the front wheel, it's also a spectacular sketch, and just absurdly clean...I don't even know how you do it. Wonderful work.

[SV]

Originally Posted by DoMiNo

Sincere apologies for totally neglecting to comment here, SV! It looks fantastic, particularly because it enjoys a shape and stance seemingly foreign to the "hatchback conversions" mentioned by 2o6 that we typically see from European manufacturers. It's a very graceful, coupe-ish shape and looks very premium. I love how you've so elegantly mated a Ford-like organic design language with some more typically German elements; it's a wonderful combination.

Aside from something off about the front wheel, it's also a spectacular sketch, and just absurdly clean...I don't even know how you do it. Wonderful work.

Thanks for the feedback Domino! I may have overdone the coupe-ish look a bit, actually; headroom can't be particularly good with the shape I sketched, but let's just call it artistic license Either way I'd say the profile is roughly as rakish as the new Focus, so it would be pretty sleek regardless.

As for cleanliness, your sketches are pretty darn clean too. In fact, I wouldn't mind abandoning some of the neatness in favor of a bit of the energy your sketches have.

You're right about the front wheel, it seems to be on a slightly different plane compared to the rear wheel...oops...otherwise I'm pretty happy with the perspective, though.

[DoMiNo]

Originally Posted by SV

headroom can't be particularly good with the shape I sketched, but let's just call it artistic license

I'm all for artistic license And besides, I'm of the mind that headroom is vastly overrated...form over function!