Today, cars are more than just mechanical objects, having become increasingly sophisticated and packed with electronics, and they continue to play a central role in our 21st-century lives. Yet they now face a major challenge: evolving and adapting to reduce their environmental footprint.

Beauty in Form and Function

From the very beginning, the automobile has been a remarkable and complex fusion of technology and aesthetics. Over time, it evolved to serve a dual function: delivering performance and mobility first—initially focused on speed and aerodynamics, later shifting to safety, comfort and durability—but also secondly acting as a symbol of status and personal identity. 

Beyond manufacturing, the automotive sector is fundamentally a design industry. Aesthetics transcend the vehicle’s external appearance to shape the overall quality of the driving experience and therefore play a crucial role. For automakers, design remains a cornerstone of their brands. Even amid the industry's biggest transformation—electrification and connectivity—most consumers remain attached to design. In France, 75% of drivers care about shape, 46% about color, and 40% about the dashboard, with younger drivers especially attentive to seats and screens[3]. And that’s not to mention the sound signature: while sports cars have long been distinguished by engine roars, it’s now the silence of electric vehicles that signals cleaner mobility. 

Alongside engineers, designers play a key role in our industry, adapting vehicle styling to reflect both evolving aesthetic trends and changing lifestyles. For a long time, the car’s shape was seen as an extension of the human body; today, it increasingly mirrors the home and office. This “third living space” centers on the Human-Machine Interface (HMI), which includes all user interactions and is becoming essential as vehicles grow more connected. Within these interiors – where infotainment, gaming and productivity apps are designed to be increasingly customizable, seamless and secure – a form of software signature is emerging, complementing the lighting signature that has long set one car apart from another. FORVIA’s latest concept car, Saphir, unveiled at Auto Shanghai 2025, exemplifies these latest trends. 

The automotive industry was producing engineering masterpieces long before “software-defined” vehicles emerged. Cars have always been one of the most sophisticated everyday objects. From the beginning, designers have had to navigate physical and regulatory constraints—balancing safety with comfort, strength with lightness, and aesthetics with aerodynamics or cost. As technology progressed, this complex system only became more intricate. Mechanical components (“hardware”) were gradually integrated with electronics (“hardware + software”), with ABS as a pioneering example. In 2022, the average car contained 200 million lines of code—twice as many as an iPhone—and by 2025, that number is expected to reach 650 million[4], compared to just 14 million in a Boeing 787[5].

Beauty in Industry

Mass-producing an object as complex as the automobile is a genuine industrial challenge, requiring manufacturers to juggle multiple demands at once. First, they must master a wide range of production processes, many involving high-precision electromechanics while regularly integrating innovations – such as IME, or in-mold electronics where electronics are directly embedded into plastic molding. Then comes the tricky equation of producing large volumes while ensuring the highest quality standards, all at the most competitive cost.

It’s no coincidence that, having become a mass-production industry through standardization and large-scale manufacturing, the automotive sector has set the technical benchmark for work organization and industrial efficiency, shaped first by Fordism, then by Toyota’s “lean management”. When more than 90 million vehicles are produced worldwide each year[6] – and equipment suppliers like FORVIA are asked to machine billions of components with zero defects – adapting to market demands and fluctuations requires not only the best technology but also outstanding organization. The concept of operating rate is equally central: industrial tools must be properly sized to run at the right pace – enough to ensure profitability while maintaining the required quality level. 

It’s no surprise, then, that given the urgent need for decarbonization and the quest for ever greater flexibility and competitiveness, our industry is now at the forefront of Industry 4.0. At FORVIA, nearly half of our manufacturing sites have been turned into “model factories”, which showcase the implementation of our FORVIA Excellence System (FES). These sites also rigorously apply our best environmental standards, summarized in our “10 Green Fundamentals”. Everything is aimed at streamlining operations, guaranteeing quality and continuously improving our environmental performance.

Beauty in Reinvention

The automobile stands at a pivotal moment in its history: with climate change accelerating, our industry is at the forefront of the race to reduce carbon emissions and create a more sustainable future. 

Meeting this challenge starts with the shift to electric propulsion. While FORVIA doesn’t develop electric motors, we are a global leader in power electronics and energy management, especially through Battery Management and Charging Systems. But reducing the sector’s carbon footprint goes far beyond the powertrain. It requires a new design approach, based on circular economy principles: using less, using better, and using longer—to create vehicles that are high-performing, durable, and affordable. With vehicle weights increasing – especially for battery electric vehicles (BEVs) – there’s a critical need to design lighter parts without compromising robustness. It also means inventing new materials which are more sustainable than the current ones. Through our subsidiary MATERI’ACT, which produces low and ultra-low-carbon materials at scale—with up to 85% lower CO₂ emissions—FORVIA is actively driving the industry’s transition to sustainability.

Equally important is to adjust regulatory policies to serve the industry, particularly in Europe, to encourage more local content in vehicles. This will help reduce the carbon footprint of supply chains while maintaining the competitiveness of those producing high-value components close to demand. As a mass-production industry, the automotive sector plays a significant role in national and regional economies. Behind the well-known brands developed by manufacturers lies a vast network of suppliers and indirect contributors, who provide up to 75% of a vehicle’s value content[7]. In Europe alone, 13 million jobs and 8% of the region’s wealth are at stake.

While our industry is shifting to major new hubs like China, which are now shaping the future of mobility. A vibrant community of passionate individuals, challenge seekers and top talent is ready to make its mark on the global stage. They are pioneering the reinvention of the automobile: a unique, ever-evolving icon fueled by relentless innovation – and that’s the true beauty of our industry.

[1] Mattioli et al., “The political economy of car dependence: a systems of provision approach”, Energy Research & Social Science, Volume 66, August 2020, 101486.

[2] Cf. Yoann Demoli and Pierre Lannoy, Sociologie de l’automobile, La Découverte, 2018.

[3] Survey conducted by Elabe, 3-6 December 2019. 

[4] Goldman Sachs, “Software IS Taking Over the Auto Industry”, 2022.

[5] Goldman Sachs, “Software IS Taking Over the Auto Industry”, 2022.

[6] International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA).

[7] “Automotive Suppliers Demand Fair Play: EU Must Set Clear Content Targets ” – Text co-signed by automotive suppliers (including FORVIA) and sent to the EU on 28 January 2025. // https://www.forvia.com/en/press/automotive-suppliers-demand-fair-play-e…