Render Bodriguez

As we near completion of the STI, we have begun putting some thought into the vinyl scheme for the car. With about a dozen generous sponsors, as well as a brand to market, it took some careful planning and multiple iterations before we reached a point that we were happy with.

Through our decision process, we pulsed our network of loyal followers on IWSTI and the Illini Automotive Club, to gain some input on logo placement, colors, etc. At BME, we try our best to be inclusive with what we do. We feel that it is great to get the community involved, which is something that we will continue to do as time goes on.

We started with a green combo... While it looked great and received many positive reactions, we felt that it had already been done and would require a lot of work in order to get the entire car to flow. Many of the fuel parts on the STI are red, and we just could not have that without painting them to match... So, green was crossed off of the list.

 

Then, we tried red. It tied in with the color scheme of the BME brand, and would match our already-red fuel goodies. Buuuut, we felt that the red was difficult to read and a bit dark against the DGM paint. So red was crossed off of the list.

After this, Pat and I sat and discussed for a while on what we could try... We knew that keeping red in the mix would reduce additional work of having to paint any parts. We also needed to add stickers for NASA and # requirements, so space was becoming more and more scare. After a discussion, we decided that we wanted something clean, memorable, and unique to the BME branding. Here is the end result...

All renderings were completed using Forza 4 on Xbox 360. As juvenile as it sounds, we felt that it was the best tool available to make quick and accurate renderings. We're extremely happy with how everything is coming together and look forward to the next steps in completing this build.

In our ongoing plan for BME to be entirely self-sufficient, we have also began working with Adobe Illustrator. By increasing our knowledge of this software, we will be able to create our own vector images. Which will allow us to design and print our own vinyl.