An early sketch showing the...
An early sketch showing the rear-end detail
The rear bumper was the responsibility of Abeng, who had also worked on the R GTI. He has similarly used an aluminum blade to give the car width. It also acts as a functional diffuser, with a panel extending under the car to channel air through it.
He sought to lower the rear end, since the stock bumper visually sits quite high. The solution was to suspend the tailpipes below the blade and sandwich them into the rear apron.
In order to avoid heat and vibration, the tailpipes have a two-piece construction - a black anodized outer and a silver aluminum inner. The inner piece has been intricately machined to include radiator-style channels that allow cool air to pass through. Furthermore, the rectangular outlets funnel back to a round pipe that sleeves over the APR exhaust system. Isolated from the exhaust, heat and vibration are further eliminated.
This early rendering of the...
This early rendering of the exterior shows red paint, simpler wheels, and an R GTI-inspired front blade
While subtle, Abeng's side sills add to the PCC's overall elegance. They elongate the appearance but feature a sporty angle-cut to the rear. There's also a crease that runs along the length of the sills to echo a similar crease in the stock bodywork. When viewed as a whole, they contribute to the overall success of the car, but in isolation they are ingeniously simply. The same can be said of Raul's trunk spoiler...
The team originally considered a more ambitious rear wing. However, the stock CC has a surprisingly prominent lip molded into its trunk. So the designs got progressively smaller until they produced the delicate 8mm-thick blade seen here.
Machined from billet, the underside has been hollowed-out (like all the aluminum parts on the car) so the spoiler is only 3mm thick in places. And with only five fixing points, this high-tech solution was the perfect punctuation point for the PCC.
The blade theme was continued into the wheels - inspired by a jet turbine. Smaller 19" wheels were first considered but 20s were finally chosen to better suit the size of the car.
 Some of Nancy's original designs...  Some of Nancy's original designs for the exterior graphics |  | |
Much of Raul's design work involved creating spokes that were slim enough to compliment the overall theme, yet didn't appear fragile or flimsy.
Careful measurement maximized the width of the wheels, allowing 9.5" rims all round. And by using different offsets front and rear, the team was able to push the wheels out as far as possible.
The wheel centers were then machined from 4" blocks of aluminum. Modular front lips intended for three-piece wheels were finally welded behind these custom centers, allowing the air valves to be hidden at the back.
Finishing Last
During the entire design process, it was Nancy's task to create individual finishes for every part. She spent months researching different materials and techniques to give the desired quality and feel.
For the wheels, her experimentation produced a totally unique appearance. It involved bead-blasting the entire wheel to create a slightly rough, matte finish. The face of the wheel was then machined to give a contrasting shiny finish. Finally, they were clear matte anodized to get the desired look.
When seen in the flesh, the contrast of wet gloss paint in grey and black, combined with semi-matte aluminum pieces and the rough matte wheels with machined faces creates a spellbinding effect. We stared at the car for hours at its unveiling, trying to absorb its textures and contrasts, not quite understanding what had been done but knowing it worked as an incredible package.
For the exterior, Derek envisaged red paint. Previous concepts had been black, white and grey, so red was an interesting departure. However, the team was limited by the supply of early production cars and could only get ones with a dark base-coat. This led them back to darker colors, finally settling on "Jet grey" as the perfect background for their black graphics, tying everything together elegantly but with powerful sporting overtones.