Lamenting the decline of the car

[Innsertnamehere]

Originally Posted by Truenorth00

All cars look alike because:

1) Common safety standards. Particularly pedestrian impact standards.

2) Common platform used across multiple brands for each automaker. It's like getting Rogers or Fido for cell service. Same network.

Fuel economy has very little to do with it at this point. Especially in an era where nobody has any issues buying big, boxy pickups. And the more square the shape, the easier it is to make.

Frankly cars don’t look more alike than they have at any point in history either. It’s not like stuff from the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s didn’t share styling cues from each other, a lot of those cars look very similar as well.

Cars today are quite diverse in styling if you ask me, at the very least equally diverse compared to other eras. It’s fairly easy to spot different brands and I’d say car companies have actually generally gotten better at reducing “clone” models that are just rebadged versions of the same car (gmc vs Chevy vs Pontiac, etc)

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere

Frankly cars don’t look more alike than they have at any point in history either. It’s not like stuff from the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s didn’t share styling cues from each other, a lot of those cars look very similar as well.

Cars today are quite diverse in styling if you ask me, at the very least equally diverse compared to other eras. It’s fairly easy to spot different brands and I’d say car companies have actually generally gotten better at reducing “clone” models that are just rebadged versions of the same car (gmc vs Chevy vs Pontiac, etc)

I have to agree.

Pedestrian standards only affect the profile of the hood and front fascia to make it safer(?) to get hit by a car. It only affects styling detail to the point of not having obtrusive objects that might impale somebody when they are hit. Obviously being hit by the wall that is the front of a modern pickup is most likely a fatal event, so the standards have their limitations.

Common platforms affect hard points but not styling. Details and sheet metal sculpting can make two vehicles sharing the same platform appear quite different, and this is actually the case in the real world now.

[Innsertnamehere]

Originally Posted by OldDartmouthMark

I have to agree.

Pedestrian standards only affect the profile of the hood and front fascia to make it safer(?) to get hit by a car. It only affects styling detail to the point of not having obtrusive objects that might impale somebody when they are hit. Obviously being hit by the wall that is the front of a modern pickup is most likely a fatal event, so the standards have their limitations.

Common platforms affect hard points but not styling. Details and sheet metal sculpting can make two vehicles sharing the same platform appear quite different, and this is actually the case in the real world now.

Yup.

I mean if you think this car:



and this truck:



look the same, I want what you are on. And these vehicles actually share the same platform.

[urbandreamer]

Cars in the early 90s did look very similar: I recall CAR magazine did a great cover story mocking the trend of generic jellybean sameness, especially across the Ford and Japanese brands ranges. That led to the "shock" "new edge" look of the '94 Ford Focus.

Used car prices have become so expensive I'm considering the least cool cars on the market: Crown Victoria ex-cop cars, SMART ForTwo, Mazda 5.

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by urbandreamer

Cars in the early 90s did look very similar: I recall CAR magazine did a great cover story mocking the trend of generic jellybean sameness, especially across the Ford and Japanese brands ranges. That led to the "shock" "new edge" look of the '94 Ford Focus.

I seem to recall that any cars that took any sort of design risk around the turn of the century were widely condemned amongst the greater public: Ford Thunderbird, Plymouth Prowler, Pontiac Aztec, PT Cruiser...

[Truenorth00]

I can understand the hate for the rest. But never understood the dislike of the Thunderbird.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by Truenorth00

I can understand the hate for the rest. But never understood the dislike of the Thunderbird.

[urbandreamer]

The retro Tbird had a nice exterior but was severely compromised by having the same interior as the Lincoln LS. I really liked the 1989 Ford Thunderbird SC. An ex gf had a PT Cruiser - it wasn't too bad: nice exterior but the interior was cheap. I kind of liked the Aztec the best of that GM van platform. In St Thomas the other day, I saw a teal green c.1990 Pontiac Trans Sport: insta transport back to the 90s ha. It looks better today than it did in 1990.

[Innsertnamehere]

I saw a late 90's/early 2000's thunderbird at the gas station the other night that looked like it had just rolled off the lot. Like not a spec on the paint, no faded headlights, the interior from a quick glance over looked immaculate. It looked like it had 10 kilometres on the odometre. Blew me away.

[rofina]

Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere

I saw a late 90's/early 2000's thunderbird at the gas station the other night that looked like it had just rolled off the lot. Like not a spec on the paint, no faded headlights, the interior from a quick glance over looked immaculate. It looked like it had 10 kilometres on the odometre. Blew me away.

I love it when you see a random time capsule car.

Stock. Mint. Something so cool about it.

[thewave46]

Originally Posted by rofina

I love it when you see a random time capsule car.

Stock. Mint. Something so cool about it.

Absolutely.

Especially when it's something relatively ordinary in my opinion. Chevelles and Mustangs and Supras were special, so they were better taken care of. They're cool, but they're much more common today due to that fact.

A plain-Jane 1960s-era 4-door Impala (or insert another mundane car here) was simply transportation during its era. So, to see one that's still in very good shape long after its mass-produced counterparts were scrapped is interesting.

[rofina]

Originally Posted by thewave46

Absolutely.

Especially when it's something relatively ordinary in my opinion. Chevelles and Mustangs and Supras were special, so they were better taken care of. They're cool, but they're much more common today due to that fact.

A plain-Jane 1960s-era 4-door Impala (or insert another mundane car here) was simply transportation during its era. So, to see one that's still in very good shape long after its mass-produced counterparts were scrapped is interesting.

Yup! I agree. The mass market cars of yesteryear are even more special as time capsules.

[jonny24]

Originally Posted by urbandreamer

Cars in the early 90s did look very similar: I recall CAR magazine did a great cover story mocking the trend of generic jellybean sameness, especially across the Ford and Japanese brands ranges. That led to the "shock" "new edge" look of the '94 Ford Focus.

Used car prices have become so expensive I'm considering the least cool cars on the market: Crown Victoria ex-cop cars, SMART ForTwo, Mazda 5.

Good news, those are cool again now My cousin just out of high school bought one and is now "the guy with the awesome cop car"

[rousseau]

Which sounds better? An old 911...

https://youtu.be/NvnJr82oULk?t=13

...or a 2014 Lexus ISF?

https://youtu.be/sE0AHsQFbNM?t=650

I think they both sound awesome, but I'm curious if any of you car guys might have a clear preference.

[lio45]

Originally Posted by rofina

I love it when you see a random time capsule car.

Stock. Mint. Something so cool about it.

Originally Posted by thewave46

Absolutely.

Especially when it's something relatively ordinary in my opinion. Chevelles and Mustangs and Supras were special, so they were better taken care of. They're cool, but they're much more common today due to that fact.

A plain-Jane 1960s-era 4-door Impala (or insert another mundane car here) was simply transportation during its era. So, to see one that's still in very good shape long after its mass-produced counterparts were scrapped is interesting.

There's a late 1970s Chevette in showroom condition that appeared in the downtown of my Quebec hometown a few weeks ago; it's parked at a building, and looks like someone's daily driver (i.e. moves occasionally).

I was precisely thinking: what a cool time capsule.

[thewave46]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Which sounds better? An old 911...

https://youtu.be/NvnJr82oULk?t=13

...or a 2014 Lexus ISF?

https://youtu.be/sE0AHsQFbNM?t=650

I think they both sound awesome, but I'm curious if any of you car guys might have a clear preference.

They're both awesome in their own ways. You're comparing old-school flat-6 to modern V8.

I love that mechanical sound of the flat-6. It's just so mechanical in the way it sounds. It wasn't the product of engineers trying to balance customer desires of what it should sound like (aside from some regulatory noise bits). It was a product of the engine layout and the engineers trying to extract what they could from that engine. Sound didn't even probably enter the conversation, except for 'We have to make this quiet so it doesn't get banned'.

The IS-F is different. It's modern, catered. It's definitely a nice-sounding V8, certainly and elicits a certain nostalgia of Detroit V8s of yore. It just sounds like it was engineered to be that; it's too clean (I'm struggling for the right word) and the rumble is something that was designed-in. The sound is a product of what the engineers wanted it to sound like, not what the natural sound of the engine really is.

[Architype]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Which sounds better? An old 911...

https://youtu.be/NvnJr82oULk?t=13

...or a 2014 Lexus ISF?

https://youtu.be/sE0AHsQFbNM?t=650

I think they both sound awesome, but I'm curious if any of you car guys might have a clear preference.

Did you know some of the new performance cars actually have fake engine noise, designed to impress in the age of smaller and more sound efficient (wimpy sounding) engines. Cars like the VW GTI, Lexus LFA, BMW M4, Ford Mustang, Ford F150, have amplified, processed, or sound sampled engine noise coming through speakers to keep drivers noise happy.

Here's a video on the subject from 6 years ago. It's even more advanced now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lQPc9VXBzk

Another:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1igATxUmya4

[urbandreamer]

I like the Hyundai Casper: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/n...ni-south-korea

[canucklehead2]

Originally Posted by urbandreamer

I like the Hyundai Casper: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/n...ni-south-korea

Heck yes! I'd buy one! Then again my current whip is a 2006 Smart Fortwo cdi! My only quibble is there's no EV version planned for that lil Casper it seems not to mention it won't be for export it seems! I wish Canada would at least see one or two Chinese automakers test the waters here before US expansion plans... Since at least X-Peng seems to want to sell globally sooner than later.

[Architype]

Originally Posted by urbandreamer

I like the Hyundai Casper: https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/n...ni-south-korea

This one is better, it's a sedan, if you can afford it.

2022 Mercedes-Benz EQS | Jay Leno's Garage
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUm7s7VyyOU