Walking through the 2019 New York International Auto Show can be overwhelming. With all the shiny sheet metal on display—some of it for the first time—it’s easy to lose yourself in all of the big news and announcements. But, if you take some time and keep your eyes peeled, you’ll see there are a lot of beautiful design details peppered throughout the show’s attractions that you might have missed otherwise. Yes, concept cars will have bucket loads of futuristic moldings and supercars are packed with aerodynamic facets, but even something as mundane as a family sedan can hide an interesting quirk or two.
So, in case you missed them, these are the most beautiful details hidden throughout the cars at NYIAS 2019.
Acura TLX Taillights
Acura deserves a huge amount of credit for the bold design choices it’s made over the past few years. Acura’s design language is polarizing, to say the least, but if you look closely, you’ll spot intricacies that deserve appreciation. The taillights on the new TLX are one of them: They mirror the car’s headlights, making what could’ve been a run-of-the-mill tail lamp into a delightfully complex display.
Audi E-Tron Dashboard
Open-pore wood isn’t anything new as far as car interiors go, but the Audi E-Tron pulls it off brilliantly. The all-electric SUV is a vision of the future for Audi, and the designers could have gone the digital and clinical route, but it’s nice to see the soft, organic material nicely complement the future-forward E-Tron.
Genesis Mint Front Seats
There are a lot of details to fawn over on the Genesis Mint concept car, but if one stands out above the rest, it’s the front seats. If they look askew in the photo, that’s because when you open the door, they automatically slide back and rotate for easier ingress and egress. And it might only be a concept car, but Genesis brand boss Manfred Fitzgerald says he desperately wants to see something like the Mint on the road in the near future.
Kia Habanero
With autonomous driving taking more operation responsibility away from the driver, the experience of driving as a whole is on the verge of a paradigm shift. There will more time to appreciate and interact with the interior, so designers are starting to cater to that by pouring more energy into details like seat and dashboard design. The Kia Habanero might look like the crossover of tomorrow on the outside, but the not-so-subtle mid-century flair on the inside would be a welcomed addition to the Korean automaker’s lineup.
Koenigsegg Jesko Rear Wing
The Koenigsegg Jesko’s rear wing isn’t exactly a “hidden detail,” seeing as how it’s one of if not the largest objects on the show floor, it’s hard to miss. It helps the Jesko achieve 2,200 pounds of downforce when deployed but can level out to reduce drag and let the Norwegian supercar hit its supposed 300 mph top speed.
Lincoln Nautilus Taillights
Lincoln is quickly becoming a powerhouse in the American Luxury market. It’s very rare an automaker adopts a design language which works on all of its cars, no matter the body style. The Nautilus can easily be described as mini-Navigator, but it has its own unique details worth a mention. The tail lights, for instance, look like the full-width setup Lincoln has applied elsewhere but move in closer and the design takes on a sort of stylized eagles wing.
Nissan GT-R50 Taillights
You’ve probably seen the Nissan GT-R50 by now and drooled over as much as everybody else has (just ignore the $1.1 million price tag) because it was a chance for Italdesign to flex its creative muscles. Walk around the back, and you’ll see the semi-floating tail lights which look like jet engines, so they compliment the moveable rear wing with aircraft-like actuators.
Range Rover Velar Center Console
Range Rover has been moving towards this level of minimalism for a while, but the new Velar SVAutobiography Dynamic highlights how far Range Rover interiors have come and how well they’re executed.