Why Do Cars Of The 90's Have Better Style Than Now?

The author had access to better drugs?

Well name a few cars from this decade that actually define a genre such and spawn copycats like the Miata, and the host of small convertibles that followed.

That is the point.

Many of the designs of this decade are regurgitated hack of other styles. You see it everywhere, they are simply copying bits and pieces from everyone else.

Bravo 009. I hold the style of the 90's in high regard. Not only were most of the designs timless, but they seemed to have a bigger impact, most likely do to the fact that technology was also becoming 'the car' - computers control was moving in and really making changes.

I'm no chasis code expert, but I can mention a few cars that are 'classic' IMO:

Early 90's BMW 5-Series
Late 90's BMW 7-Series
1996 Audi A4 (huge impact - beautiful!)
Acura Legend
1996 E-Class (ovid headlights)
Supra, Skyline, RX-7, Evo VII
Mid 90's Honda Civic (tuner trend) Overall I believe Honda's best designs came from the 90's, very clean, sharp designs for a mainstream car.

Thank you, I have my moments - but it looks like the market is turning into a cut and paste style of design.

Take the new Hyundais and Hondas. Easy to confuse them with other brands when looking from the rear.

The profile and rear of the LS is very similar to the 7 Series.

Where has the originality gone?

Although I see what you're getting at with examples like the Miata, isn't it too soon to expect to compare the "success" of 90s design to 00s design? I'm sure 10 years from now we'll look back with nostalgia at the "naught" designs. With enough thought a similar article could be written for every decade, and the 80s are even mentioned in the article. The 70s speak for themselves with cars like the new Camaro, Challenger and Mustang.

Everything is cyclical. The 60's and early seventies were good. The late 70's and most of the 80's were boring. The 90's were a renaissance so to speak. The 00's I'm afraid is yet another dry time as far as designs go.

Lexus and Hyundai will continue to plagiarize other companies' designs and regurgitate them into ambiguous shapes for the masses.

It's hard to say that anything from the nineties had as much as an impact as BMW's flame surfaced bangle-butt design from the 2002 7 series.

If you look at the German cars, they continue to innovate with their designs and set the pattern that Asian manufacturers will copy from. Among Asian makes, only Nissan/Infiniti has an original visual concept (now, if i like it is another story, but it is original)

It seems like every new car design I see from the Japanese is derived from either BMW's flame surface theme, or Audi's sleek losenge look from the A4/A6/A8 of the late nineties.

I don't think that designs from the nineties were better. We have some unvelievably gorgeous cars on the road now. I think the reason why styling seems to appear to have gone stale is that there are so many bland Japanese and Korean cars on the road.

BMW, Cadillac, and Audi are still making fantastic new designs.

Tell Toyota/Lexus, Honda/Acura, and Hyundai to get a clue and get original.

"Thank you, I have my moments - but it looks like the market is turning into a cut and paste style of design."

That is true, but you mustn't forget the design breakthroughs of this decade.

In no particular order:

MINI Cooper
2002 BMW 7 Series
2003 Range Rover
Nissan 350Z
BMW X5
Audi R8
Rolls-Royce Phantom
Audi A8
Bentley Continental GT
Porsche Cayman
Cadillac CTS
Mercedes-Benz CLS
Maserati Quattroporte
Aston Martin DB9
Ferrari Enzo
Mercedes-Benz SL
Audi A5/S5
BMW 6 Series
Infiniti G

...I could go on.

BMW 7 series. Many have copied Bangle butt even though the press hated it. It's grown on me.
Infinity FX series. the first to do the crossover correctly

I'll never get used to the Bangle butt and I can't believe that the styling of some of the most expensive cars like the RR has deteriorated.

the bangle butt was FUGLY and even bmw has modded it to look less disgusting.

it HAS NOT been widely copied. what HAS been widely copied, is the handsome cousin that first appeared on the Nissan Maxima a coupla generations back.

this design theme featured a smooth fastback line from the roof to the edge of the rear bumper, and back forward. with a section you had to VISUALIZE as passing thru the rectangle of the body. the trunk SEEMED to protrude thru this suggested line, but was still integral to the basic body shape. the BangedupButt on the other hand, featured a dumb, DISCONTINUOUS trunk line that JARRED the eyeballs.

look at the profile of just about every modern sedan, from corollas to camrys to lexi; from the whole range of nissan sedans; m-b sedans; gm sedans; etc. etc. you will see this smooth, flowing, NISSAN style theme, NOT the banglebutt.

this "Beauteous Maximus" line (to give the Maxima derived lines a suitable name) is sorta close to the BangleButt, which is why many have confused WHICH it was, that became UNIVERSALLY COPIED.

so here's the evolutionary history of "Beauteous" and the Bangle "Beast":
1) both merge two forms. the basic body rectangular box, and a fastback extension of the roof line. 2) to not lose trunk volume to the fastback slope, the line is just visually SUGGESTED as it passes thru the body. it continues visually in the bumper shape. 3) the original bangle design wanted to emphasize there was no loss of volume; so it enlarged the trunk top surface. (later modded versions reduced this eyesore.) 4) the "B. Maximus" design on the other hand, basically left the trunk top alone, so it remained INTEGRATED with the rest of the lower body.

5) because this B Max line did not disturb the body lines, and merely SUGGESTED a plane THRU the trunk, it was much more subtle. most car buyers never took note of it, other than it made for nice rear ends on 4-dr sedans. 6) car designers DID take note however, and it has become almost universally copied.

7) as bmw toned down the extreme ugliness of the original bangle butt, it sorta morphed towards the cleaner Beauteous Maximus form. so many ordinary folk have erroneously concluded, that the universally copied B. Max. theme was derived FROM the BangleButt. it was the in reality the OPPOSITE. bmw snuck up using convergent evolution.

but the Beauteous Maximus was FIRST.

You are so wrong that a title and a spot is being reserved for you in Guiness's book. Your post was good for a chuckle though. The mere notion that any company would copy any element from a nissan, let alone the practically-invisible-except-when-being-made-fun-of maxima, is amusing.

What about the butt on the Hyundai XG300/350 that was awhile back as well. It looks a little similar in the butt cheek area.

Exactly. Some could argue that even the XG had the raised-decklid look first, since it came out as a 2001.

I could agree with this, especially with the comment above about the Miata. But also take note of the Civic hatchback that was around in the 90s. Now look what you have. Subaru WRX comes in hatch, Mazda 3, Toyota Matrix/Pontiac Vibe, the list goes on of cars that are in hatch form now and are gaining popularity like crazy.

Don't think the Civic is responsible for the hatch style - we had hatches forever in Europe, the Civic was just 'another'. Although it did look good.

Cant forget about the Golfs and Rabbits of the world.

Two of what I consider to be the best looking cars ever were the original Lexus SC400 and the BMW 850csi.

Both Lexus and BMW still make a similar sized two-door now, but neither really has that "wow" factor.

Agreed - the 850 made a much bigger impact than say, the 650 (closest thing to it)

Actually, I think the 6 Series was very controversial when it first came out. The design is polarizing, stunning, beautiful, artistic, timeless, contemporary... that car won't be looking old any time soon.

Where's the Mitsubishi 3000GT or 2nd generation Eclipse? Or even the Mazda RX-7?

All are unique designs but the first Gen RX7 was far more innovative and ground breaking.

The 3000GT never spawned a following with copycats, and the Eclipse suffers a similar fate.

I agree with you. But from a classic standpoint, and since we're only talking about the 90's, they were some of the best from that decade.

i saw a 3000GT just the other nite. still looks good. and DISTINCTIVE. i wouldn't have even noticed it otherwise.

The best looking car designs of the 1990's:

1993 Lexus GS300
1993 Lexus SC300/SC400
1992 Acura Legend
(particularly the coupe - the sedan looked good too, but it was very reminiscent of the BMW 7-series of the era. the coupe had it's own unique angular look)
1992 Acura NSX
1997 BMW 5 series
1995 BMW 7 series
1999 Mercedes-Benz CLK coupe
1998 Audi A6
2001 BMW M3
1992 Dodge Viper
1997 Toyota Landcruiser

The 1999 Cadillac Seville (SLS/STS) should be on the list too. It still looks good today.

Can't forget the 1997 DB7 that resurrected Aston Martin and the Jaguar XK8 that made everyone forget all about the XJS.

Now this is just my opinion, but I believe that the most beautiful Jaguar of the 90s was the XJ220- minus its rims.

Agreed. (to Cdoke)

1990 300ZX TWIN TURBO

Today's most gorgeous designs:

Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione
Aston Martin DB9
Bentley Continental GT
Rolls Royce Phantom Coupe
Jaguar XK8R
Ferrari F430
BMW M3 / M5 / M6
Mercedes-Benz S-Class w/ AMG body kit
Audi R8
Cadillac CTS coupe concept
Maserati Quattroporte
Maserati Gran Turismo

Gorgeous stuff. Can't say that i would rank nineties design ahead of right now when i think about these beauties.

Interesting all either American or European

Well, that's because, in truth, there is not a single Asian car on sale that could be considered one of the most beautiful on the road today.

The most unique and moving Japanese design is the Infiniti FX. The EX looks good, too.

Honda's designs are good but they're pretty bland, with healthy doses of weird.

Lexus styling is just tired, boring, derived.

the best Lexus designs ever were the SC and GS from the 1990's. Everything else is either an ambiguous blur (current LS) or an outright rip-off (1989-2006 LS.)

Although I'm no fan of it, (nor are most people on this site) and I'm not saying it looks that good - however - I do believe that the Lexus RX created some copy cats in its sudtleties - mainly the "chin up" or "nose in the air" front end design. Studying the front end and you'll see what I mean - it's really the only character this car has, but it DOES hold a presence of snooty-ness that attracts its buyers.

The original G35 coupe should get some recognition hear. That was the single more gorgeous coupe/sports car to come from Japan this decade, and deserves to be on "the list".

Pushrod, I totally agree.

I do prefer the designs of the 1990's to the designs of today. Today all the car companies have huge grills which make them look hideous. I used to own a 1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX and I miss the curves from that car.

i agree with oversized grills getting too common.

and it's not like that much air intake is really NEEDED. ironically, this has spawned further ugliness in stupid plastic SHIELDS to block too much air entry.

see R. Cumberford's article w/ photos on this subject, in the current Automobile magazine.

Inspiring/good looking cars of the 90's

Mercedes SLK - revived folding metal roofs.
1991 (round then wasn't it?) - BMW 3 series - clean, crisp, and a huge advancement
I suppose the 1999 - 3 series too, just for being good.
1996 Merc E class - almost made the S class redundant.
1995 7 series - it showed big cars could be athletic and comfortable, and was an antidote to the bloated S class
1997 Mercedes ML - terrible car but set the trend for future road-biased SUVs.
Toyota Rav-4
Honda CR-V - this and the Rav pretty much started the cute-ute phase.
1999 Merc S class - the new luxury style, elegant, clean, modest.
1990 Renault Clio. Set the standard for small cars for the next 10 years.
1993 Peugeot 306 - one of the best family hatches, with Pininfarina styling and great handling, and advanced diesel technology.
1998 Ford Focus - the best family car for decades, best selling car in Britain for nearly 10 years
Audi A8 - established Audi as a world player
1999 BMW M5 - the definitive sports saloon.

That 7 series still looks great today. A well kept black one is hot!

First car I was ever in that had foot "pillows" in the rear seating area.

Super dark blue looked good as well.

Great car!

I love them - and my dad has one! It's great!

Although the trouble is people assume you're a Russian gangster if you drive one now...I think if I travel with him I'll just sit in the back seat and put a peaked cap on him :)

And I think it looks great - understated aggression.

"Mercedes SLK - revived folding metal roofs."

Wrong. This is the beauty of having a popular, if overrated, name; people assume you came first at some things. The slk didn't revive the hardtop, seeing as the 3000GT Spyder beat it to market, being released in the 1995 model year. And the Spyder, to this day, looks better than any hardtop to hit the road since then.

I had no idea about the Spyder - I had never even heard of it.

My dad had a metallic green 1997 indivisual 740iL. It was a beauty. I still think its the best colour ever.

The only two I can think of that could look as good as cars do now is a Toyota Supra and a Lamborghini Diablo

The last twin turbo supra was 10 years ahead of its time! Truly amazing and leap years ahead of the Supra it replaced. One of the greatest "All New" of all time.

That would actually be an intesting thread. What were the greatest "All New Cars" of all time? Not renamed, restyled, updated. I'm talking E46 being relaced by the E92. The second generation GS replacing the first generation GS, etc...

Certainly the 90's was the design heyday for Chrysler, with the Voyager, Grand Cherokee, Plymouth Prowler and their range of fantastic concept cars which never saw production.

FIAT had the Coupe, and Alfa Romeo had the 156.

I think what you are seeing today is a 'globalisation' of design studios, so you can have a Renault designed in Korea and a BMW designed in America.

In the 90's their was a clear distinction between cars of different origin, expressing the 'typical' design style which defined that country.

Sadly today that distinction has been diluted.

I've just realised a a major flaw in my argument.

The FIAT Coupe and Alfa Romeo were designed by foreigners. The Coupe was designed by Chris Bangle, and the 156 By Walter De' Silvia- A Danish.

I guess these are just great designs in their own right, however I can't help wondering that although these people were not Italian, they were working under the roof of Italian design studios, surrounded and influenced by Italian designers and the country itself.

Now days a SAAB can be designed in Germany (which is the case) etc., where designers become 'removed' from the spirit of the marque and its country of origin.

Renault/Peugeot/Citroen usually do their designing in-house or with the Italians - Renaults and Citroens always look very French.

1 thing - 'Walter De' Silvia- A Danish.'

A Danish? He's a pastry? :P

"Renaults and Citroens always look very French"

Too bad that Renault's are now just Nissans in pretty frocks.

A sad time.

Surely the other way around? I believe Renault is the dominant partner in the business - Renault gave Nissan their diesels and platforms, Nissan the AWD hardware and reliability (well some).

Not quite.

Renault gave Nissan their B-segment platform (Nissan Tiida, Note) which in turn is used on the Megane and Scenic.

Nissan's A-segment and C-segment platform is used by Nissan (The Clio is a Micra underneath and the Laguna a Primera).

The 3.5 V6 in the Espace and Val Satis is from Nissan, and the Renault Koleos is a Nissan X-Trail with a body designed in Korea (over there it is a Samsung).

The ponderous six-speeder in the Megane 225 and Clio Sport is a Nissan item also.

Basically the only 'real' new Renault is the Twingo- based on the previous-generation Clio with Renault-developed turbo-charged engines.

...They'll probably find their way into Nissan models very soon.

*Nissan's A-segment and C-segment platform is used by Renault*

Although I recall the A-segment platform being co-developed.

apparently, the 90's was the best in lots of things, like music, and tv as well as, cars. sadly, its lost somewhere in this century. oh well.

Ummm... the 90s sucked for music.... as does this time

:)

Are you trying to tell us that Vanilla Ice sucked?

To me the best looking BMW of the 90's was the E39 BMW 5 series. RS4 is a good looking car too.

Every new car makes 90's car look weak, small and underpowered. LOL 98 Infiniti i30, 97 Accord.

Only nice car from the 90's was the '92 GS 300, that dual rear outlet look that most manufacturers are using/copying now.

"dual rear outlet look"

The what now?

Does Toyota even make a "StickShiftCamry"?

they do indeed. (or did; i haven't kept current)

when nissan stopped offering v6 stick maximas, you could still get that setup in a camry.

not sure if even the accord offers this. my neice got an Accord 4 because she couldn't get a v6 with the stick, a few years back. (this coulda been just at her dealer, rather than simply no option from honda.)

Yes, 3.0 V6 Stick shift from '92 - '01. 4 Cyl w/ stick shift for ever, '09 CE or SE 4 cyl w/ stick shift!

The 1990s Fiat Multipla should be thrown in here. A car so ugly words fail to describe it - and that's what makes it a unique car. Interesting how ugly design can elevate a car to near cult status.

The Multipla is a fantastic car though.

Here's one I have to suggest, 1993 Ford Probe GT :)

Also a few favorite, 1990 Honda Accord, 1995 Honda Prelude, and the obvious (or obviously controversial) 1999 BMW X5 4.4i.

I don't think your qualified to comment on design, huu.

It's no surprise you picked on Japanese cars, but it is interesting to note these are ALL sports coupes.

Notice how many of the European cars mentioned are just ordinary sedans -that's the difference. Anyone can design a coupe that looks good (even Hyundai) but it is more difficult to design a sedan that warrants iconic status and is mentioned years after its inception as being a truly 'great' design.

Let's take another look at that list:

The Celica is not timeless, not more so than any other of its contemporaries.

The Skyline? R32 Maybe. Subsequent models have been ugly, boxy creations which have not dated well.

PLEASE stop lecturing us on the fact that every single breakthrough European car was ripped off an earlier Japanese car. Firstly your comparisons are amateur and weak, and second, whatever examples you can come up with, there are at least double that where Japanese cars have directly emulated European design.

About time you realised Europe has been the undisputed leader of car design for decades. Japan is in the little-league in comparison.

*picked all Japanese cars*

"About time you realised Europe has been the undisputed leader of car design for decades. Japan is in the little-league in comparison."


WRONG. take the simple element of headlamps. japan has OFTEN if not always taken the bold, innovative steps beyond contemporary designs. some may not have been attractive. but many more were, and have been much copied. and the various mfgrs have tended to keep a consistent "family look" in lamp designs.

mercedes, on the other hand, has head lamp designs ALL OVER THE MAP on various models, striving for SOMETHING that mite look good.

bmw was such a stick-in-th-mud, they NEVER departed from dual and quad ROUND lamps while the rectangular shapes everyone else used came and went. this conservative attitude sorta worked, when round finally became fashionable AGAIN.

and the nissan maxima's fresh, innovative 'fastback 4-dr sedan' extended line, all the way down to the bumper, has been just about UNIVERSALLY incorporated across the WHOLE INDUSTRY. (see my posr re: the BangledButt above, for the details.)

Can you be more specific about what model Maxima you are talking about, (US, Japan version etc.) maybe a link to an image?

u.s. version. about 2, maybe 3 generations back; i don't recall the exact year it started.

the shape is most prominent looking at the car's profile. which again, you will see in most every modern sedan's profile too.

If you want to talk about modern sedan side profiles, look no further than the Audi 5000/100. Before the defaming "60 Minutes" fiasco, the car was considered a breakthrough in design. It was the first to utilize "aero" side surfacing, i.e. a lack of cladding, making the car look far more modern. It set standards. The original Ford Taurus was the first to imitate the theme, and it was a smashing success (until Ford ruined it).

ok, i just did a google search to find when exactly nissan ORIGINATED the "Beauteous Maxima" profile. it started with the 2000 model.

i took note of it, when i first saw it a local auto show in Honolulu. it looked a little strange at first, so i gave it closer scrutiny to see what the designer mite've had in mind. the sloping, wide, top surface of the rear bumper is what made it unique.

when you position yourself to get a 3/4 rear view, you notice that the angle of the bumper top matches that of the back window and trailing edge of the C-pillar. if you VISUALIZE a plane slicing THRU the trunk, the result is a long, clean, continuous fastback line from the rooftop down to the bumper, tucking under with the lower bumper surface. once you've seen that, it is also apparent from a 90-degree side and 3/4 frontal view.

the result, a LARGE but clean Fastback profile hitherto not possible on "two box" 4-door cars. in profile, it is sorta like an elongated porsche 911. and there is NO LOSS of trunk volume.

this subtle, elegant line, as i said, has since been copied by just about EVERY other manufacturer of 4-door sedans.

s4--

the Audi 5000/100 was STILL just another 2-box 4-door sedan.

the 2000 maxima started a design theme COPIED by euro and american as well as all the other asian manufacturers.

it was/is an elegant line. as i said, it wasn't even easily noticeable initially. only after close scrutiny and a modicum of IMAGINATION to SEE the suggested cutting plane thru the trunk, does it become apparent.

the subtlety was lost on most car buyers. but EVERY DESIGNER at EVERY OTHER car company could NOT HELP taking note, and applying it on their own newer models.

Ok,

I understand what you are talking about on the 2000 Maxima, however I cannot help think you are hypothesizing about it being universally adopted by other designers, how can you be sure the Maxima was the first with this design element?

As far as the Maxima design goes, I don't think that particular element you are discussing is particularly ground-breaking.

All well proportioned sedans adhere to a strict geometry which (in most cases) ensures the C-pillar line follows down to the rear bumper lower edge, in much the same way the A-pillar should theoretically cut through the centre of the front wheel.

All sedans do what the Maxima does. I think there the Maxima IS different is the relationship between the C-pillar and rear wheel. The C-pillar sits almost on top of it, so that 'imaginary' line you speak of cuts directly through the boot line more prominently.

In essence, the C-pillar is more steeply raked and finishes aft of the rear wheel, that 'imaginary' line actually finishing mid-bumper. This design is more obvious on the 5-series, however one cannot be certain it was influenced by the Maxima.

I know the 1998 Fiat Marea had similar C-pillar proportions, although the boot was noticeably higher than the shoulder line of the car.

The 2000 Maxima was somehow both boring and ugly to look at. I NEVER liked that model. It didn't start any trends.

However, compare the Audi 5000...

http://www.audiworld.com/model/100/pix/91-100.jpg

To its contemporaries:

http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/toyota-camry-6.jpg

http://www.bmwpugetsound.com/member_cars/images/seiferth_535_05.jpg

http://www.europeanmotorcars-ltd.com/cars/86300SDL/8.jpg

http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/1979-86-jaguar-xj6-series-iii.jpg

To put it simply, the car looked newer than anything else out there. It was groundbreaking. It wasn't just "another" two-box sedan; no, not at all. Keep in mind that all four of the pictures above are of 1986 models--the 5000/100 was released in 1982.

Read up on Wikipedia:

"Edging out the Ford Sierra as Car of the Year in Europe, the 1983 Audi 100 had a remarkable aerodynamic look, achieving a drag coefficient of 0.30 for its smoothest base model. The increased aerodynamic efficiency resulted in better fuel economy and consumers all over the world were waking up to this fact. This became a great marketing tool for Audi in the 1980s and marked a huge leap forward from the boxy shape of the C2 as well as the technology it introduced, including the Procon Ten safety system. Audi was able to catch up to modern smooth look first seen in this sector on the 1975 Citroën CX.

The Audi in turn influenced the Ford Taurus, an American-made sedan from 1986. This rounded look became the norm by the 1990s. It also set a styling trend of flush wheel covers, a thick black side door moulding and blacked out window frames eventually adopted by a range of cars from the 1984 Honda Accord to the K cars.

...The 100 also featured a breakthrough diesel engine, one of the first to use direct-injection in the turbo-diesel model."

Also, read what The Truth About Cars has to say. This is from an article written in 2006:

"If Wal-Mart (of all places) sells dinner plates suitable for the Museum of Modern Art, why are today’s cars so dull? My theory: car designers are still in the thrall of the 1984 Audi 5000.

When the Audi 5000 debuted in 1983, the motoring press slobbered all over themselves. They showered the model with endless praise, touting it as “the world’s most aerodynamic sedan.”"

Matthew:

"I understand what you are talking about on the 2000 Maxima, however I cannot help think you are hypothesizing about it being universally adopted by other designers, how can you be sure the Maxima was the first with this design element?"


i've seen this integrated line on most, if not all newer cars, subsequent to the 2000 maxima. if you can point it out on an earlier car, i may revise my claim.


"All well proportioned sedans adhere to a strict geometry which (in most cases) ensures the C-pillar line follows down to the rear bumper lower edge, in much the same way the A-pillar should theoretically cut through the centre of the front wheel."

ok, maybe that is a BASIC design principle. but what made the Nissan line unique, is in INTEGRATING the bumper profile to carry the line down, then tucked forward again. as i said, not unlike the 911 tail.


"All sedans do what the Maxima does. I think there the Maxima IS different is the relationship between the C-pillar and rear wheel...

"In essence, the C-pillar is more steeply raked and finishes aft of the rear wheel, that 'imaginary' line actually finishing mid-bumper. This design is more obvious on the 5-series, however one cannot be certain it was influenced by the Maxima."


again, the KEY was integrating the bumper profile to continue the c-pillar line. i was initially led to that by the ANGLE of the bumper TOP SURFACE. most bumpers prior to that had flat tops, parallel to the ground. another near universal feature, is a cutout in the bumper at the lip of the trunk/boot lid. this would not have been necessary on FLAT bumpers.

what year 5-series are you talking about?


"I know the 1998 Fiat Marea had similar C-pillar proportions, although the boot was noticeably higher than the shoulder line of the car."

we're not familiar with this in the states. can you post a link to a photo? (and for the pertinent 5-er too?)

s4:
"considered a breakthrough in design. It was the first to utilize "aero" side surfacing, i.e. a lack of cladding, making the car look far more modern."


s4, i can't really see what you find so exciting. and i do NOT SEE "lack of cladding." just the opposite in fact, in FAT PADDING on the sides that make it (and the similar designs you linked) look like BUMPER CARS at their lower sides.

i'll allow at the least the cladding are in the same plane as the bumpers, so are somewhat integrated.

now if you meant "lack of chrome trim," i can see that and agree. but the audi was not 1st in that. the lincolns of the early '60s featured clean slab sides.

You don't get it.

Give it up already.

XY,

I just got it. I seemed to have over-analysed the Maxima. Now I know the feature you are speaking of, and I cannot belive we had a detailed discussion on it.

So what your saying is, the Maxima's rear bumper is sloped downward. Is THAT it?

That still makes the Maxima a traditional two-box design.

"So what your saying is, the Maxima's rear bumper is sloped downward. Is THAT it?"

that was a CUE, not the whole issue. having a bumper profile that visually EXTENDS the glass and c-pillar, including a SUGGESTED cut thru the trunk, ties together and integrates the WHOLE REAR SECTION of the car. often, the rear taillamp is also designed to meld with this line.

prior to this innovative visual trick, most cars' rears were made up of separate, non-related elements. flat bumpers. random rear corner shaping. random taillight placements. etc. etc.

the 'beauteous maxima' breakthru initiated INTEGRATED, SMOOTH fastbacks. across the whole industry.

Here's something - headlamp designs.

The "foggy" or "sracthed up" looking boxes that were on cars for decades were still prominant in the 90's and died out in the 00's - replaced by the clean-lense multi-density lamps - and no, the over used projector beams.

Some cars in the EARLY 90's had projector beams and looked way ahead of their time, (EARLY 90s!) I'll mention a few please add any I miss:

1995 Infiniti J30
1995 Lexus ES
Toyota Supra
BMW 7 Series
Audi 100 (I think?)

BMW 3 Series (http://images.automotive.com/reviews/images/96bmw328.jpg)

Audi A6 (http://images.automotive.com/reviews/images/98audia6.jpg)

Lexus LS400 (http://www.edmunds.com/pictures/VEHICLE/2000/Lexus/1647/2000.lexus.ls400.6432-396x249.jpg)

BMW 5 Series (http://dharam.us/love-my-cars/My-540i/DSC05300.JPG)

Audi A4 ('98 refresh) (http://www.chooseyouritem.com/autos/photos/272500/272820.jpg)

That's all I can think of.

To me, the single best looking sports car from the 90's is the original and "2nd gen" (1994-96) Dodge Stealth R/T. The frigid, boring 300z, the god-awful hideous supra, the horribly overdone and overrated z and g35c, none of them can touch that car. The only cars that come close are the RX7 and NSX.

Dodge outdid themselves on that timeless design.

ARE YOU SERIOUS??? The Dodge Stealth was a clone of the Mitsubishi 3000GT.

yes. true.

so both the stealth AND the Mitsu 3000gt were good designs.

technologically, they were breakthroughs too. one of the 1st awd sports cars (vs sedans), with 4 wheel steering too.

i recall taking a test drive in one. if i had the money then, i just mite've bought one.

wow pretty racist. just the typical redneck of course. oh should I point out your spelling?

LOL!

NO ONE has cranked out cars with UGLIER c-pillars than Saturn. not sure whether gm or one of its euro subsidiaries was responsible.

I think 90s design was the most rubbish in automotive history. All the crappy cars came out in econobox class, but certainly there were some awesome cars like the Mclaren F1, Mazda RX7, GTR, and the old 7 series and S class. But there here horrendous cars by the millions too.

Crappy Toyota Corollas
Ford Taurus
Jaguar XJS
VW Golf (the worst incarnation during 90s)
Mazda 626

And millions of other crappy cars hurdled around the 90s. There was no performance to speak of, and interior quality was no better than dust bins.

For the 90s expensive cars were great, but the cheaper ones terrible, by that standard actually, the economy cars have become much better nowadays.

Oh Huu, your posts are now BEYOND ridiculous.

Do you even know what you are going on about? Or is it a case of retrospective internet scouring and too many red wines?

Your comparisons are so laughable I'd feel embarrassed to be a Canadian right now.

And the major flaw in your 'arguments' (I would use that term loosely) is this:

Car development is about stages. The body is designed and 'frozen' (put on ice, so to speak) in the early stages of a cars development. To put simply for you Huu, a car with a 1992 model year, say, was actually designed in 1989 (bearing in mind most cars at that time took four to five years to develop).

With this logic, one would assume it would be nigh on impossible for a 1992 BMW to 'copy' a 1991 Toyota when the BMW design had long since been finalised before the Toyota came to market.

Comprehend, Huuey?

The real point that should be made however, is that appropriation and 'inspiration' is all part of the design world.

Designers do appropriate other design aspects not only from other cars, but industrial design, furniture, electronic goods...anything that is seen as cutting-edge. It is the same in any design discipline, not just automotive.

Another point to remember is that the cars you compared to each other were from a similar design period, and (read above post) despite huu's lack of understanding of the automotive world, cars of a similar vintage share similar styling traits -it's because that's what was innovative and cutting-edge at the time.

"Facts?"

You think you have "facts?"

Are you insane?

Everything on your list was attractive, but what you said was ridiculous. For instance:

"1999 Nissan Silvia, headlight shape now found on Mercedes CLS and apparently the next SL along with Suzuki's SX4.
http://image.importtuner.com/f/xstuneds14/6406742+w320+h240+cr0+re1+ar1/1999-nissan-silvia-my-15.jpg"

WTF? Just because the edges of the Silvia's headlamps went up slightly, both the CLS and SX4 "copied" it?

"1994 Acura Integra SEDAN (boxy yet sleek, coupe looking) with the body molded quad-lamps. The Mercedes E-class didn't have it until 1996.
http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/autoreview/400x266/1994-2001-Acura-Integra-95801011990105.jpg"

And yet, both Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz had quad headlamps long before this...

"1991 Toyota Carrina (found it looking for the Mark II sedan). Copied the 1992 (yes, 1992) BMW 3 series headlights.
http://www.stationwagon.com/gallery/pictures/1991_Toyota_Carina_II.jpg"

Is this some sort of joke?

EVERYTHING you said was absolutely contemptible--I don't even want to post them all here!

But the strangest: THE 6 SERIES COPIED THE SUPRA BECAUSE IT HAD A LONG, ROUNDED BODY??? WHAT THE HELL?!

One more thing...

"Brainwashed Eurotrash."

I'm fairly certain Matthew is not European, perhaps American.

Rational discussion: 1 Huu76: 0

Huu, I can tell when someone loses an argument when they have to resort to talking about time travel.

By the way I am neither European OR American...

huu76, the pix you linked to were enjoyable, but unfortunately using a phrase such as "brainwashed Eurotrash" invalidates your arguments and makes you look rather profane and xenophobic.

'92 Lex GS 300/ Toyota Aristo - haters!!!

Has there ever been a better looking car than the 1996-98 Porsche 993 Turbo?