By David Adams | PODER Magazine
From an early age, Maximiliano Larroquette never considered being anything other than an automotive engineer. It runs in his family. Even as a child taking toys apart, he shared a passion for engineering with his father. He built his first car, a dune buggy, at age 16 in his native country of Argentina.
Now at 40, 18 years after moving to the United States, he finds himself at the cutting edge of U.S. automotive design as the American car industry struggles to keep pace in a fast-changing world. Currently a Lead Engineer and Product Manager focusing on concept vehicles for GMC and Cadillac, he has built an impressive resumé that includes participating in the much-anticipated all-electric Chevy Volt, due out later this year, as well as the GMC Graphyte, the Chevrolet Nomad and the Saturn Curve.
His latest project is the GMC Granite, which aims to expand the relatively new compact crossover concept to offer a smaller vehicle with maximum interior space. In fact, Laroquette says it’s the smallest vehicle GMC has designed, two feet smaller than the GMC Terrain. Even so, it offers a spacious interior. As proof he notes that one member of the design team in 6’ 3”. Laroquette calls Granite an “urban utility vehicle, a loft on wheels for someone with an active lifestyle.”
The design incorporates some of the key elements now being incorporated throughout the industry. “We look at every opportunity to use as many materials as possible. We look for durable materials, but we are also responsible for the environment,” he says. The Granite’s 1.4 liter engine is turbo-charged for added efficiency, though GMC isn’t releasing the fuel economy details.
As a designer, Laroquette likes being in the driving seat. “I’m more like an architect, making sure that the functionality of the car is properly composed,” he says. He leaves features like the power train to others. “I’m not a stylist. I have to put it all together,” he explains. “We try to balance everything—weight, mass and resistance. The challenge is to make the vehicle as compact as possible, and how much functionality you can combine with that. Fuel economy is always present in my mind, even more so now. That’s why we use turbo-drive. It’s one more card up your sleeve.”
There’s not much more designers can do with aero-dynamics. “We’ve mastered that,” he says. Instead, the new challenge is to find ways to minimize the footprint of the vehicle, and give the feel of an SUV without actually being one. Call it fuel efficiency with a more upscale look.
Laroquette, who is originally from Buenos Aires, worked at Ford for two years before joining at General Motors in 2001. While he jokes that he prefers the weather “back home” to the cold Michigan winters, “I have always been a car fanatic, that’s what keeps me in Detroit.”
Laroquette’s story might seems an unusual one, but he says he has found plenty of Argentines in and around the Detroit car industry. Because there are no car design jobs in Argentina, there has been a steady flow of talented Argentine automotive engineers into the U.S., starting in the mid-1980s. He counts about 30 Argentine families in the Detroit area that are employed in the car industry. “It’s like a big family,” he says.
WE GET THE SCOOP FIRST-HAND FROM THE GMC VeHICLE DESIGNER
[PODER ENTERPRISE]
What makes an Argentine come to the U.S. to design cars?
[MAXIMILIANO LAROQUETTE] I don’t remember ever not being in love with cars. My father is an automotive engineer. My grandfather on my mother’s side was a toolmaker. I used to run around his shop all the time. Argentina does car manufacturing, but there’s no automotive industry. I wanted to be part of design and engineering, not manufacturing.
[PE] You entered automotive design at an interesting time. Has it surprised you how cars are changing so fast?
[ML] Cars have never stopped evolving. In the last 10 years it has changed dramatically. We expect the pace of change to continue in the same way. If you stay still, you fall behind.
[PE] What will your next car look like? What are you seeking? To work on a new design, improve an existing design, or revolutionize it completely?
[ML] That’s a good question, but I can’t tell you. You always build on what you have done in the past. There will be more eco-friendly vehicles, more usage of alternative energies and different materials to achieve better design solutions, and they will be more integrated into society—more connected to the internet in real time.
