Random Shots
Design
Design Notes
1958 Buick: A toothy-grinning failure
The 1958 Buick represented the swan song of head stylist Harley Earl’s drive to turn General Motors cars into chrome-ladden rolling sculpture. The public massively rejected the Buick’s toothy look; production fell to less than a third of […]
Satire
Sci-fi design of 2016 Toyota Prius draws debate
AUTOMOTIVE VIEWS NEWSWIRE — If the 2016 Toyota Prius strikes you as out of this world, that’s on purpose. The normally staid Toyota Motor Corp. decided that the fourth-generation Prius needed space-age swoopiness to go […]
Quotes
Chevrolet Camaro’s design has deteriorated over last 40 years
“Back in ’79 we were at a BBQ and the grill ran out of gas. The 5 gallon propane cylinder would NOT fit thru the trunk opening in my friend’s new Z-28. I see not much […]
Design Notes
2015 Honda Fit: Increasingly tacky
Over the years I’ve mostly bought Hondas — and almost always have gravitated toward the brand’s smallest models. Once the Civic got too big I was glad that Honda brought to the United States a […]
Current Events
2015 Mustang: Faux pony car goes generic
With the 2015 redesign of the Mustang, Ford had the potential to reassert its leadership in what I have referred to as the faux pony car field. Instead, Ford took the cheap and easy way […]
Design Notes
Kia Soul: Better to be hip than simple
The Kia Soul is naught but a second-generation Scion xB with better styling. The Soul is roughly comparable to the xB in size and weight. I’d classify the Soul as the tall wagon equivalent of […]
Quotes
Behold, a sensitive New Age car nut
“Buying a car based on looks is like screwing for the post coitus cuddle.” — Barry Hubris, Autoblog
Design Notes
Requiem for quads
The taillights for the 2014-15 Chevrolet Camaro supposedly “took styling cues from the original first generation Camaro” (Wikipedia, 2015). Why dump the iconic quad taillights in favor of a look that is even more boringly generic than that of the 1967-68 Camaro? […]
Design Notes