The UGLY American.
June 25th 2008 13:21
Beauty, in automotive terms, like most other things, is in the eye of the beholder.
American Motor manufacturers have plugged on for years, probably decades with a self belief in themselves that defies logic.
To the rest of the world, American designed Motor cars are mostly ugly! Sorry to be so blunt but there we are. You will note that I said most, not all are hideous, there are a few exceptions. Generally speaking the rest, are only vehicles a Mother or an American could love and they look totally out of place anywhere but the good old USA!
The American era of the good looking car stretches from the late 1920’s through to the late 1960’s.
This was a time of yearly facelifts, Chrome and fins and amazingly some new models releases were not just a simple facelift, they were completely new cars every year!
Cars such as the classic 1961 Clap-door Lincoln Continental is a vehicle now regarded as a styling icon and quite rightly so. Its lines are clean with minimal but restrained decoration. For some reason American car styling in the 1970’s became a caricature of itself, the cars became bloated, the manufacturers lost their vision. Just compare the first 1964 Ford Mustang with a 1974 Ford Mustang to see what I mean.
Fast forwarding to the present day the American industry is now offering vehicles which have world wide appeal. Both Cadillac and Chrysler are offering good looking vehicles which have a clear identity and have been accepted on world markets.
Unfortunately the American companies still foist an array of nightmares onto the car buying public. They are better than they were, obviously they have to be. There are no second chances when you compete with the Japanese motor industry. One of the worst examples from recent times is the Pontiac Aztek. If you haven’t seen one, then allow me to describe it as follows: Take one poorly built Honda CRV clone, cover front and rear with about three acres of plastic and bake in a very hot oven. Allow plastic to become molten and then remove.
It took the big three (GM, Ford & Chrysler) years to work out why people bought imported cars; it took the buying public minutes. Wonder why?
American Motor manufacturers have plugged on for years, probably decades with a self belief in themselves that defies logic.
To the rest of the world, American designed Motor cars are mostly ugly! Sorry to be so blunt but there we are. You will note that I said most, not all are hideous, there are a few exceptions. Generally speaking the rest, are only vehicles a Mother or an American could love and they look totally out of place anywhere but the good old USA!
The American era of the good looking car stretches from the late 1920’s through to the late 1960’s.
This was a time of yearly facelifts, Chrome and fins and amazingly some new models releases were not just a simple facelift, they were completely new cars every year!
Cars such as the classic 1961 Clap-door Lincoln Continental is a vehicle now regarded as a styling icon and quite rightly so. Its lines are clean with minimal but restrained decoration. For some reason American car styling in the 1970’s became a caricature of itself, the cars became bloated, the manufacturers lost their vision. Just compare the first 1964 Ford Mustang with a 1974 Ford Mustang to see what I mean.
Fast forwarding to the present day the American industry is now offering vehicles which have world wide appeal. Both Cadillac and Chrysler are offering good looking vehicles which have a clear identity and have been accepted on world markets.
Unfortunately the American companies still foist an array of nightmares onto the car buying public. They are better than they were, obviously they have to be. There are no second chances when you compete with the Japanese motor industry. One of the worst examples from recent times is the Pontiac Aztek. If you haven’t seen one, then allow me to describe it as follows: Take one poorly built Honda CRV clone, cover front and rear with about three acres of plastic and bake in a very hot oven. Allow plastic to become molten and then remove.
It took the big three (GM, Ford & Chrysler) years to work out why people bought imported cars; it took the buying public minutes. Wonder why?
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