Indie Auto

Design Notes

Yes, but WHY do today’s automobiles look so similar?

by Steve in Design Notes 7

(UPDATED FROM 7/26/2021) A few years ago Peter DeLorenzo (2021) argued that the auto industry had “reached the nadir of design. And it isn’t pretty.” The big reason why: Cars look so blandly similar that they may as well have been designed by a computer. To illustrate his point, DeLorenzo compared the side styling of six four-door coupes. The Audi [...]

Why was Wayne Kady’s favorite design the 1971 Cadillac Eldorado?

June 30, 2026 8

(UPDATED FROM 4/24/2024) In an interview back in 2024 Wayne Kady was hesitant to name his favorite car design among those he had worked on during a 38-year stint at General Motors, saying that was like picking a favorite [...]

1960 Auto Union 1000: What happens when you cross a VW with Detroit iron

June 26, 2026 11

(UPDATED FROM 12/21/2023) Road & Track complained that for 1960 the Auto Union’s two-door hardtop was given a “crude ‘American’ touch, a clumsy wrap-around” windshield (Bond, 1959). That made this body style look even more [...]

Miscellaneous ramblings about being on the road

June 25, 2026 1

The above photo was taken two days ago during a trip across Washington state. Gas prices had come down from the previous week, when I paid a low of $4.89 and a high of $6.09 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline. Those prices are [...]

Did the odd styling of the 1969 Chrysler two-door hardtop hurt its sales?

June 25, 2026 6

(EXPANDED FROM 6/7/2024) Curbside Classic commentator nlpnt (2024) argued a while back that the fuselage Chrysler’s best-looking body style was the wagon. Conversely, I would add that the two-door hardtop was the least [...]

DeBest ad for the 1981 Pontiac Trans Am that was never printed

June 17, 2026 2

(UPDATED FROM 7/17/2023) Pete DeBest thought he had it made. He followed his dad into the car business by landing a gig at Pontiac’s ad agency as a copy writer. Things went great at first. For example, one day he was in a meeting where [...]

Automotive Hall of Fame post on Robert McNamara is still riddled with fact errors

by Steve in Media Analysis 30

(EXPANDED FROM 1/17/2024) More than two years ago we pointed out that the Automotive Hall of Fame posted remarkably inaccurate information about former Ford Motor Company executive Robert McNamara. Their fact errors still haven’t been fixed. This is particularly problematic at a time when people increasingly rely on artificial intelligence that draws [...]