Are you really looking forward to the future?

[Orion]

Are you really looking forward to the future in automotive design?

Before: I say no. I think they ruined the TVR Speed 12's look. I loved how wide it used to look, and the race car models look much better.

After:​

Before: Lincoln Navigator - Just plain ugly now, and the interior looks cheesier.

After:

Before: Chrysler Sebring (I know you saw this comming.)

After:

Before: Lets not forget the Lancer Evolution.

After:

I wouldn't call that sexy. **


Before: Scion xB - What used to be a cool boxy brick is now more round and curvy.

After:

I don't like how the automotive world is evolving, this also include speed limiters set at 37MPH for some diesel engines. I enjoyed the look of the old Mustang 5.0 and Mustang SVT Cobra, but not the new ones, they just don't appeal to me. These are a few examples of what cars I don't like as they evolve. I also liked the 2006 Toyota Camry V6 SE more than the new one.

Are you looking towards the future? I know I'm not... ** Sure there might be better engines, but the only car that is new that I like is the Ford Fusion SE V6.

 

[DustDriver]

At least most of them will sound good, but as soon as the car makers switch to electric motors all those groovy engine and exhaust sounds will be gone.

And they'll have to make the switch sometime in the (hopefully not so near) future

 

[Keichi Tsuchiya]

I think the pick of the XB you have is incorrect:

I don't even think thats the right logo it has on.

 

[Aquendwato]

The Scion xB was never anything other than an ass-ugly car. It looks like a fridge. And the new Evo looks amazing.

 

[Keichi Tsuchiya]

True, I was just correcting him. Although I think the newer one looks a bit better.

 

[Barracuda]

I am definitely not looking forward to the future . I hate whats going on now anyways so the future has got to be 100x worse

 

[LoudMusic]

In that selection, no. But there are cars of the future that look pretty great.

 

[Joey D]

I'm looking forward to the future because I was promised a jet pack.

 

[McLaren]

It depends. I agree the Navigator looked better before, but stuff grows on you, I suppose.

As for the TVR, there is no future for the Speed 12. There's a projected new one, but none are produced.

And BTW, one's a Speed 12, the other is a Cerbera Speed 12.

 

[YSSMAN]

Sure, there are some poor examples of "next gen" cars out now, or coming out soon, but for the most part I have more to look to in the future than I do today (given my love for American cars).

 

[Wolfe]

Um...why, again, are the Navigator and Sebring in that list? Is there anything particularly worrying about two Detroit manufacturers making two unspectacular models just a bit more visually offensive than they were before?

The one car I can agree with you on is the Evo X. I mean, I wouldn't call the previous car particularly attractive, but at least it didn't look like a failed attempt at fusing an Audi with an Alfa Romeo.

 

[Joey D]

I think he's just showing vehicles that once looked good getting uglier over time.

 

[YSSMAN]

Well, if thats the case, Porsche must be building the most beautiful cars in the world...

 

[Perfect Balance]

It's not really the looks for me. I want a lightweight rwd that is affordable, and doesn't have loads of computers.

Something like a 240sx, any Silvia, MR2, old Corollas, Miatas.

Everything now is bulky, heavy, and expensive.

 

[Gil]

But some of the new technology absolutely rocks!!!

The only thing that's really sad to me is that IF I ever get a wild hair to restore the first car I ever owned, or thought was cool, It isn't all that difficult to bring a 1962 T-bird or a 1970 Dodge Challenger back to life.

For that matter all the cars I grew up with are fairly easily restorable.

For the youth of today, how do you go about restoring some of the highly "disposable" cars of today?

Would you really want to restore a Kia Rio? A Plymouth Sebring?
Escort ZX-3?

For that matter what about restoring the "high-tech" stuff in a newer BMW, or Infiniti?

Something to think about...

 

[a6m5]

That's when Porsche design peaked for me. Gradual decline since.

On xB, I thought the first one was amazing. Granted, it was love it/hate it design, but small survey I conducted(involving like 30 people, I know, it isn't scientific.) showed pretty much 50/50 split. Considering the controversial looks, coming out 50/50 for a car that looks like that is a home run, I think. New bB(JDM) is starting to grow on me, new xB(Scion), not so much.[/borat]

 

[YSSMAN]

It's not really the looks for me. I want a lightweight rwd that is affordable, and doesn't have loads of computers.

Something like a 240sx, any Silvia, MR2, old Corollas, Miatas.

Everything now is bulky, heavy, and expensive.

You've got Toyota to thank for killing that. Without having them leading that marketplace, manufacturers just ducked out.

...GM is coming back with a small, relatively lightweight Alpha chassis for 2010 or 2011, but solid plans still aren't completely available...

 

[Perfect Balance]

You've got Toyota to thank for killing that. Without having them leading that marketplace, manufacturers just ducked out.

...GM is coming back with a small, relatively lightweight Alpha chassis for 2010 or 2011, but solid plans still aren't completely available...

Your hatred of Toyota and your love of GM in the same post. How do you manage to pull it off so frequently?

I'm not a fan of american design though.

 

[Sage]

I think that in general the 2000s have shifted a bit down in the styling ladder. However, I think some manufacturers are starting to get the memo, and frankly, for every recent redesign that you can point out as a failure (why didn’t you include any Audis?), I can find one that’s a success.

 

[YSSMAN]

Your hatred of Toyota and your love of GM in the same post. How do you manage to pull it off so frequently?

I'm not a fan of american design though.

Hey, when Toyota leaves the door open, I can usually find a way to stick GM or Ford in there...

Either way, not having Toyota doing it pretty much gave Nissan and Mazda a reason not to do it, and everybody jumped ship at once. All that really is left of the cheap, RWD segment is the Mustang, but given that it has been there longer than anyone else, it really doesn't come as a surprise.

Either way, the future of "affordable" RWD models largely hinders on this car:

The Holden Torana, and its American counterpart, the Pontiac G6. Both should be on the market by 2010 or 2011, both should start right around $20K USD, and both should eventually spawn a Cadillac sedan and coupe, and may even underpin the Solstice/Sky/GT replacement further down the road.

 

[Orion]

I think the pick of the XB you have is incorrect:

I don't even think thats the right logo it has on.

That is the Toyota bB. Toyota version of the xB.

I really don't want cars to change any more. I really hate the new Shelby Mustang GT, but I love the old Shelby Mustang GT500E. Come on, the Monte Carlo is nice looking, but it is a FF.

 

[TheCracker]

As for the TVR, there is no future for the Speed 12. There's a projected new one, but none are produced.

And BTW, one's a Speed 12, the other is a Cerbera Speed 12.

And he got it the wrong way round too. The Speed 12 (the yellow one) came before the Cerbera Speed 12 (silver one).

That's when Porsche design peaked for me. Gradual decline since.

80's boy

 

[Pupik]

I'm looking forward to the future because I was promised a jet pack.

If you don't get it on the New Car We-Owe slip, then the sales department can't honor it. Better dig it up before heading out to the shop...I could go on about how automotive design and light-weight engineering peaked in the mid-1990s, but then again, I became tragically un-hip and fashionless in my tastes somewhere around 1999. Or was it 1993?

Cars are getting more features and more safety thingamajigs* so its not surprising that cars are getting heavier and less athletic. But that's what the public wants, and the casual buyer consumes them; the angry, pessimistic bed-wetting automotive enthusiasts have to settle for Lotus Elises and old, oddball stuff from another age. Of course, what is an "enthusiast", since there are too many flavors of us to try to satisfy, and too many expectations to sate as well? Automakers are to be driven by profit, safety and environmental regulations, focus groups, and parts supplier tie-ins.

I claim we have now made the transition from Golden Age to the [wikipedia]Seborgium[/wikipedia] Age of automobiles; short-lived, fast-moving, heavy, realtively unknown, esoteric, and too many different names for the same thing. But like any enthusiast, the combination of education, fascination, and skepticism makes the man, and not the fanboy; I am still interested in these horseless carriages, as it is not just a hobby, it's a career for me.


*= Wow, that's a real word according to Firefox's spell-checker!

 

[JCE]

I'm really looking forward to these:

In the case of this one it is already out--I'm just waiting on seeing one in person:

 

[Mrs. Famine]

Agh! My eyes!!

The future of cars seems to be 'how many angles can we include?', 'how much black plastic can we fit in?' and 'how can we reduce the glass and lights?'.
I'm a big fan of old school, such as the Peugeot 205 GTi, the Mk1 Golf GTi, the 80's and early 90's Fords etc.
I know that everything evolves and develops but why wreck something so beautiful? In my mind the Lancer Evo V through to IX are some of the most gorgeous cars ever produced, then they go and do that ^^^ !

 

[Duke]

I'm really looking forward to these:

In the case of this one it is already out--I'm just waiting on seeing one in person:

Bahhooooey. The only one of those that looks decent at all is the Camaro, and that's only because they ripped so hard and fast from the original '67-'69 model it can't help but look good.

What is up with all these giant whalemouth-grille-things? Can we move on to making decent looking, well-proportioned cars again, please? They all look like some broke-ass ricer knocked the front fascia off on a speed bump and can't afford to get it fixed.

[edit] That Skyline is just heinous. The truly annoying thing is that all 3 of those cars could look 1000% better if you just painted all that black crap to match the bodywork. The Evo is salvageable that way, at any rate, as the current Audi A4/S4 would be too. Here's the design inspiration for that horrible Skyline, though:

"Welcome to my nightmare..."

 

[El Jarretto]

To be honest, no. Cars keep getting uglier and heavier, they're made out of plastic and built in Mexico. I really can;t stand modern cars, there's too much crap and they're just ugly. I loathe them.

 

[GT Pro]

It all depends with the intelligence of tomorrow's car manufacturers...

However, the future looks bright, going by these recent designs-

But there has been a few companies that have had a chance to release a boldly new and different design and beyond but have chose not to (In saying this I mean tastefully modern designs that the public enjoyed viewing). Chrysler's biggest mistake in design came when it dropped all plans for the Chrysler ME Four-Twelve imo.

Who could not buy that design; it's beautiful.

Also, who could forget the Ford GT-90?

Built 12 years ago and the design still looks tasteful today (less the wheels and rear-view mirrors which will undoubtedly be replaced with cameras).

 

[TheCracker]

Built 12 years ago and the design still looks tasteful today (less the wheels and rear-view mirrors which will undoubtedly be replaced with cameras).

The Ford GT was infinitely better looking and better proportioned than the GT90

 

[GT Pro]

The Ford GT was infinitely better looking and better proportioned than the GT90

The 'GT' was unveiled a whole 7 years after the GT90; the designs had little in common. The point I'm trying to make with the 'GT90' is that it was a technological tour-de-force (a top speed close to 402 km/h from a 720 hp quad-turbocharged V12 engine, also testing blue halogen headlights, a speed-controlled spoiler and door-mounted infrared detectors) in it's time and was more than a tasteful pointer to the future of automobile design.