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That's correct and like Juice, I'm inclined to be very disappointed in this "interpretation" of a classic so inimitable that even the people who invented it shouldn't try to copy it.
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
True, true classics are "sacred" and should be respected. Surely all that talent at AMG could carve out whole new worlds.
Which really wsn't even a street car. But those curves and proportions...computers just can't seem to get them right.
I think it's the type of car you'd have to mold from clay.
what a mess.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Yes, a mess - but why didn't they just put some Dodge Caravan auto hatch closers in the doors :confuse: :P
I like the Harley pipes idea a lot. Would be fun to out-annoy those dorks.
Actually, that's along the lines of how I think when I am in the fintail...if a loud bike revs next to me or some jerk tailgates me, I just rev it a little...inhale those unrefined emissions, see what it gets you.
You're not kidding!
Shifty, I wonder if you have an idea of how much car designers make since you've been around the auto profession a long time.
I can't find any figues or stats on that.
I'm guessing that when you start off you'd be in a team maybe designing a hub cap or a bumper or minor trim details, and once you prove yourself you move up to designing the entire car?
Do you have an idea of what an entry level designer makes, and what an experienced one makes? I've always been curious.
Thanks
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Shifty's last known bike: (by no means the prettiest British bike....)
Looking at some of this...er...stuff that has made it into production lately, I don't know how anyone proves themselves. If these are the good designs, I'd hate to see the bad ones! :lemon:
I think car designers are taught how to conform to the tastes of their professors, and this lets them conform to the tastes of the lead designers once they land a job. This might be why awkward or ugly can attach itself to brands and the same bad themes can live for a long time.
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
HINT: German, often affiliated with BMW. Very old firm, also associated with micro-cars.
Significance is first European production car to use a toothed timing belt instead of a camshaft chain.
Circa early 1960s.
Next to it is a Rover P5 with the faux coupe body.
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
Once you said that, I thought maybe "Alvis" but the car isn't nearly ugly enough. :P
Quite the Blivet, that.
Full size
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
This was apparently a blatant knock-off of the Bentley VI that Austin pulled off after WW II so as to take the name "upmarket" as we would say.
125 HP pushing 2000 kg :surprise:
Live and learn. Thanks for posting it.
I think the mark VI Bentley and the Austin A125 Sheerline, seen here, were pretty close contemporaries and although the design is very similar it is more a case of Bentley going downmarket, as the body which they had was actually built by Pressed Steel Fisher, who already did work for Austin, including this. This is probably the only regular post-war car that was ever fitted with P100 headlights, and I think they ruin what would otherwise be a far more elegant car.
In fairness to Austin, they were one of the leading builders before the war of limousines and large saloons for the British market - for provincial wedding / funeral trade etc - and would have been suppliers to many local authorities too - most towns in Britain before the war would have had their Mayor or Alderman turning up in a big Austin or a Wolseley - or just possibly a big Vauxhall or Humber - as only a big city could afford a Daimler or a Bentley in the thirties.
I was one of those who though he could be those odds, and for a time, I did. I loved the work and actually looked forward to coming in everyday. I would often be the first to come in and the last to leave I enjoyed it so much. Then my company became a victim of the early 1990s recession and I went off on a different career path.
As far as current automotive design, I'm so sick of today's current trend of tall short bodies sporting huge "Hot Wheels" style wheels, squashed roofs with little slit windows, and big high tails. Can't anybody design anything original anymore? And please, no more stupid crossovers - they all look alike anyway. I like my cars to be long, low, and wide.
These days, all design is done on computers. Designers are more technicians than artists these days and there's little room for creativity. I used to design using big drawing tables and drafting machines using pen and ink and other media. My advise to kids wanting to be designers is this: If you're good at anything else, pursue that talent. If you still want to be a designer, be prepared to sacrifice a lot. Work is hard to find. There's no job security. You'll be doing a lot of other work you hate in the interim. I worked a lot of crappy jobs waiting for design work - factory work, taxi driver, mail processing, warehouse, etc. You can do freelance, but it'll take a while until you build a reputation and a client base. You'll have to find your own health care insurance and pay for it or risk going without and praying you don't get sick or injured. The best candidates for designers are young women. They can always marry a doctor, lawyer, or senior executive who can support them while they pursue their design career. If you're an ugly guy like me, you're SOL.
I guess that last part explains the Acura ZDX :sick: :lemon:
I'm not a fan of really big cars, though--nothing bigger than, say, a W126 Mercedes. I guess I'm just a Bauhaus kind of guy--I like functional, clean lines. I offer the following as good design:
Giugiaro's original VW Golf--one of the cleanest designs ever:
The second-generation Honda CRX--low cowl, excellent visibility, pure form-follows-function:
and Bill Mitchell's splendid second-generation Corvair:
My brother used to own one of these special Corvairs. Do you know it?
Then there was this even rarer car. . .
The Fitch Corvair was a very competent car--it could give a 1965 Porsche 911 fits. I wish I had one.
Try this one:
I think I read recently that John Fitch still has, and occasionally drives, the original Fitch Phoenix. He is an outstanding guy who has raced every type of car imaginable
and an accomplished inventor who came up with those sand filled barrels you see in front of bridge abutments (they've saved thousands of lives).
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
There is, however, a VW connection--the scene depicted above is taken from The Love Bug.