As the automotive industry accelerates its transformation towards intelligence, electrification, sharing, and connectivity, traditional reverse engineering development models have proven inadequate for addressing the demands of complex functional integration and new vehicle configurations. Forward vehicle design has consequently emerged as a critical pathway for driving technological innovation. This paper systematically reviews the evolution of automotive design methodologies, technological breakthroughs, and key challenges. It highlights the advantages of the traditional V-model development process in performance balancing and styling design. However, intelligent vehicle design employs model-based systems engineering methods to achieve deep interdisciplinary integration and optimizes virtual-physical collaborative design through digital twin technology, thereby significantly improving development efficiency. The paper identifies that software-defined vehicles, modular flexible design, and distributed electric drive technologies have driven innovation in chassis configurations. Notably, integrated design has demonstrated significant results in the fusion of structure, safety, and cabin driving. Nevertheless, key bottlenecks remain, including the complexity of technological integration, the lag in dynamic modeling theory, and the underdeveloped domestic industrial software ecosystem. To address these challenges, the paper proposes the establishment of an innovative system for vehicle forward design centered on model-based systems engineering. It further advocates for strengthening unified dynamic modeling and multi-objective collaborative control theories for modular re-configurable vehicles. Additionally, the paper calls for greater collaboration among government, industry, academia, and research institutions to break through core industrial software technologies, thus enhancing the domestic computer-aided design tool chain ecosystem and advancing technological innovation within the automotive sector.
