Random Shots
2010s
Design Notes
Honda CR-V: Making it less simple
Honda’s CR-V started out as a wonderfully practical small crossover utility vehicle. However, with each successive generation it has gotten bigger and more “stylish.” Consider the difference between the third-generation (2007-11) and second-generation (2002-6) CR-Vs […]
Current Events
Should VW’s design chief fear civilization’s end?
(UPDATED 12/15/2022) Volkswagen Group’s global design chief Walter de Silva is worried that optimizing aerodynamics in order to meet tightening emissions standards could hurt aesthetics and branding. In an Automotive News question-and-answer piece, he complained […]
Media Analysis
TTAC helps Chrysler go pavlovian
The third-generation Dodge Challenger has always run a distant third in sales to the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro, arguably because of it is the most extreme caricature of a pony car. The chunky, almost […]
Random Shots
Media Analysis
2015 Mustang: How obesity is justified
Except for relatively rare moments of downsizing, the dominant tendency in the American auto industry is toward bigger, glitzier and more powerful vehicles. Each time a car adds poundage, the automaker — usually with the […]
Drive-By Musings
Car design conformity was the norm even before regulations
Question-of-the-day features can often result in banal flame wars. That’s why I was pleasantly surprised that a “red meat” question by The Truth About Cars — is regulation ruining car design — generated a fairly […]
Design Notes
A frowny face
The 2010-to-present Volvo S60 has relatively distinctive taillights but they culminate in odd center brows. Share your reactions to this post with a comment below or a note to the editor.
Media Analysis
The truth about cut-and-spin journalism
We have previously discussed how the relentless pressure for content at 24/7 automotive websites can lead to basic errors (go here). A more subtle but common problem is cut-and-spin journalism. This is where a harried […]
Drive-By Musings
Is Automobile Quarterly dead?
As mentioned in a Links mini-review, this high-quality magazine appears to have died — but its ghost remains (the publication’s website is gone but the Facebook page is still online). The auto history media has devoted very […]