Why have car makers really fallen off the cliff today?

[Bubble99]

The late 60s with muscle cars was the pinnacle of automotive design imoView attachment 2624828

As for current design. You should also include modern safety features such as collapsible/deforming bumpers and crumple zones as additional reasons for generic designs

Is the reason aerodynamics? Or there was more creative artist back than compared to now where everyone is copying one other?

 

[JoeG4]

There's always been an awful lot of copying, but we look back with survival bias in mind.

Still, in those days I think bright colors were more common and the "corporate look" was a lot less common, eg Ford and Chevy didn't try to make all their cars look the same.

 

[quagmire]

I think it's partially driven by the increasing engine sizes. Full sized trucks in 'Merica are now offering 6 liter V8 and bigger because...bragging rights.🙄 Bigger engine needs more room. Since they can't make the car wider, they making them taller.

Displacement doesn't dictate the actual physical engine size......

5.0 liter V8 from Mustang on the left, 6.2 liter LS V8 engine on the right.





In case of the full size trucks in the US, it isn't so much engine dictating its design, but the big rig look is popular.

 

[TheIntruder]

Reference for what you are describing? I've read just the opposite, so, either I'm confused, or, we are not talking about the same thing.

There are plenty of research papers and other studies on vehicle design and pedestrian safety.

Here's one, and another, with many pretty pictures:

5.3.7 Vehicle Effect Summary

In summary:

• Increased risk of Injury severity and fatalities are associated with increased speed,

• increased speeds have the largest effect on torso injury severity, and the largest effect on the elderly (c.f. adults),

• at 50 km/h, lower extremity serious injuries are more likely than torso or head injuries,

• bumpers are the first impact point and cause the highest percentage of serious injuries and disability, injuring primarily the lower extremities , but may cause injuries higher up the body (femur and pelvis in adult and torso and head in children) if the vehicle is an SUV or truck, and may offer no protection if the vehicle is fitted with a bullbar,

• bonnet surface and leading edge impacts are primarily responsible for fatal and serious adult torso and child head injuries in passenger vehicles and adult head injuries in SUVs and vans,

• torso injuries are more prevalent than head injuries when the vehicle is an SUV and the reverse is true for passenger cars,

• windshields, particularly the A-pillars are responsible for adult head injuries, which are more often fatal,

• over recent years, vehicle front geometry has become more blunt, with one cause being the increase in popularity of SUVs and utilities,

• geometry rather than mass of vehicle is the key factor explaining the injury risk differences observed for SUVs and vans when compared with passenger vehicles, however the effect of vehicle type appears only to be significant to speeds up to, whereupon speed has the most influence on pedestrian outcome,

• SUVs have a greater risk of collision with a pedestrian and a greater chance of producing a more severe injury or fatality than a passenger car, and

• vehicle design and frontal geometry contributes to the risk of a pedestrian collision through reduced pedestrian visibility

I think it's partially driven by the increasing engine sizes. Full sized trucks in 'Merica are now offering 6 liter V8 and bigger because...bragging rights.🙄 Bigger engine needs more room. Since they can't make the car wider, they making them taller.

In the past, a small block Chevy V8 was more compact, and lighter than a BMW inline six, which made it a popular transplant for some BMWs modders.

Today, with the prevalence of forced-induction and hybrid components, even a small displacement inline four is hardly a paragon of compactness.


As is the case most of the time, it's not any single factor that determines the outcome.

Bonnet heights have been increased to provide a suitable energy absorption space between it and the engine components as part of the effort to improve pedestrian safety. The bare silhouettes of vehicle shapes, seen free of the ornamental tricks to disguise the proportions, betray the general changes in form compared to the past.

Conversely, SUVs and trucks naturally have tall section heights to begin with, but with them, styling has served to accentuate that trait as a feature, rather than disguise it.

Pointy ends are not as favorable for lower body pedestrian impacts as bluffs, so they have also become more prevalent.

Stylistic tricks are used to not only enhance a design, but mitigate specific undesirable traits dictated by functional constraints, such as the effect that the additional section height of a battery pack in the floor can impose on a design.

Two good (bad, actually) examples of that are the Polestar One, which relies on the blackened rocker panels to mitigate the odd proportions it would have if they were absent. Otherwise, for such a compact and short vehicle, it would be appear unnaturally tall in profile, but that is dictated by the space needed for the battery in the floor.

The other, the Macan EV, also suffers similarly compared to its ICE predecessor, and even its attempts fail to be entirely successful to my eye. The first picture in this story illustrates it well. Mentally remove the blackened elements and the result is ill-proportioned and not attractive, especially for a brand that build sleek sports cars.

There's a lot going on in the lower body to try to disguise its overall height. So the EV version not only has the "blades" from before but also large black rocker panels. Those blades now sit about a third of the way up from the bottom of the door edge compared to where they were before. From the rear angle, it takes on a "Hunchback of Stuttgart" appearance, which is not particularly elegant, not attractive.

 

[BSDnostalgia]

"SUVs have a greater risk of collision with a pedestrian and a greater chance of producing a more severe injury or fatality than a passenger car, and

• vehicle design and frontal geometry contributes to the risk of a pedestrian collision through reduced pedestrian visibility"

After reading the reports, as above, it looks like the high straight hoods are more dangerous due to reduced visibility, contradicting:

Pointy ends are not as favorable for lower body pedestrian impacts as bluffs, so they have also become more prevalent.

Sorry, I'm still confused. It appears to me that a high, boxy front-end has reduced visibility, especially for children and shorter adults, and, the statistics cited in the papers seem to agree. What am I missing?

 

[1rottenapple]

"SUVs have a greater risk of collision with a pedestrian and a greater chance of producing a more severe injury or fatality than a passenger car, and

• vehicle design and frontal geometry contributes to the risk of a pedestrian collision through reduced pedestrian visibility"

After reading the reports, as above, it looks like the high straight hoods are more dangerous due to reduced visibility, contradicting:


Sorry, I'm still confused. It appears to me that a high, boxy front-end has reduced visibility, especially for children and shorter adults, and, the statistics cited in the papers seem to agree. What am I missing?

Cause big is popular “bigger is better. F the little kids” Is what many automotive car buyers are into right now.

The big truck and muscle looking suv is what sells.

Look at any school. Look at what people drive and I guarantee you half the new cars kids will get dropped off and pick up are big suv and big truck. I saw that the other day while walking during school drop off. It was eye opening.


GM posted big sales numbers for 1/4 sales quarters for 2026 and it’s because of big trucks big suv were the reason for their big sales numbers.

I’m not defending this. I have 4 door ev sedan and a 2 door jeep so I don’t get the big obsession other than perceived safety I think that parents buy big SUV and trucks. Heck my nights just got a tundra. Brand new. It’s never towed but boy they want a truck alright.

 

[Mousse]

Cause big is popular “bigger is better. F the little kids” Is what many automotive car buyers are into right now.

The big truck and muscle looking suv is what sells.

Marketing to the fragile masculinity.😏 Give me a small, agile roadster any day over one of those lumbering pavement princess.

I remember when oversized SUV was a gag?

That commercial was prophetic, y'all. "A C-note ($100) to fill half a tank", built in DVD player, phone calls in the car...😁 Only available in two "manly" colors: Gun Metal and Black. Gawd, commercials were great back then.😎

 

[1rottenapple]

Marketing to the fragile masculinity.😏 Give me a small, agile roadster any day over one of those lumbering pavement princess.

I remember when oversized SUV was a gag?

That commercial was prophetic, y'all. "A C-note ($100) to fill half a tank", built in DVD player, phone calls in the car...😁 Only available in two "manly" colors: Gun Metal and Black. Gawd, commercials were great back then.😎

I remember when the ford expedition came out and people were freaking out. Now it's the normal size SUV. Crazy.

I was in europe 2 years ago and I found the cars there absolutely fantastic. Tons of small hatch backs, practical and efficient. I had fun renting a small 4 door hatch with manual. Slow yes, but absolutely fun to drive. I could not complain.

 

[Bubble99]

How so not all cars where boxing in the front in the 80s. I don’t see cars looking like this today.

 

[TheIntruder]

"SUVs have a greater risk of collision with a pedestrian and a greater chance of producing a more severe injury or fatality than a passenger car, and

• vehicle design and frontal geometry contributes to the risk of a pedestrian collision through reduced pedestrian visibility"

After reading the reports, as above, it looks like the high straight hoods are more dangerous due to reduced visibility, contradicting:


Sorry, I'm still confused. It appears to me that a high, boxy front-end has reduced visibility, especially for children and shorter adults, and, the statistics cited in the papers seem to agree. What am I missing?

The tall section height on a utility vehicle can hinder visibility, but it is inherent in their nature, and not the only risk factor.

A taller section height on a normal passenger vehicle is not the same thing. They have become slightly taller, to provide the buffer space between the bonnet and the engine components, but that doesn't create the same geometry as on a truck.

Compare the front end shapes on a contemporary BMW, and those of 20-30 years ago. The bonnet clearly sits at a higher level (which BMW tries to disguise and distract with surface treatments and blends into the fenders). Instead of distinct bumper shapes, the front is mostly flat (as illustrated by the selection of contemporary vehicles on this page). A far cry from the shark noses that some older owners pine for.

The BMW 5er on this page also illustrates those characteristics. A lot of creases and ridges in the bonnet, and a semi-clamshell shape to soften the transition from the bonnet to the fender. In the past, the fender tops would have been flat, and level with the bonnet itself.

Engineers have to conform to the technical regulations and requirements for vehicles to be street legal.

Designers are not exempt, and that is reflected in things like the lighting fixtures, and the more subtly in the shapes. But their work is more difficult, because it is more visible, and also has to consider aesthetics, which is also influenced by trendiness and fashion.

SUVs and the current boxier styling trends do present greater risks to pedestrians, but that has not come about because of the regulations. If anything, there is a movement to cap section heights to mitigate those risks.

Ultimately, safety regulations do influence styling, even if they go unnoticed.

 

[Queen6]

MR2 Turbo destroyed tires and brake pads. Fast as ****, mine was a deep blue T top. Span it out once on black ice on northeast Scotland, turbo kicked in at exactly the wrong moment landed in a field thankfully with no damage done, Landover pulled it out. In the summer you could feel the grip, wasn't about the speed, was the experience very much a diver's car .

Q-6