[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by ajaypjayaraj

How did this...
Attachment 1268149

become this???
Attachment 1268150

I think this might be how:


cya
R

[rr_zen]

Originally Posted by D4D

Suzuki designs are inconsistent. Some look extremely good(swift), some very bad(Omni, Ritz, Esteem).

Not really sure why you would call the design of the Esteem bad as its one of the most elegant ones that looks contemporary even today. I agree that the Ritz does not have a great design though.

[ajaypjayaraj]

Originally Posted by Rehaan

I think this might be how:

Attachment 1268600

Lol. Seriously! The old pic still makes me drool.

Rehaan, seeing them side by side looks like a gym equipment marketing picture showing before and after, only inverted in this case. Before was perfect figure!

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Agree with the general sentiment on the thread, the present generation of cars really can't hold a candle to the design elegance of the earlier generation.

However, I am also surprised at the extreme negativity surrounding the Xcent. Cut-throat phrases thrown like 'Xcent was the maximum I could take'. For once- I felt hyundai got the better of the sub-4m constraints compared to the competition- with cleaner lines. I am not a fan of the fluidic design philosophy and pretty much liked the absence of excessive design elements here-

Attachment 1268476

Agreed it is no lancer/ linea, but then, atleast IMHO- it's no DZire/ Vibe/ Quanto either.

Basically the Xcent is the prettiest from the ugliest so even though it maybe smart looking but there is no way you can make a sub 4m sedan look classy. It just looks palatable and inoffensive but not classy like the Lancer, vRS.

Cars those days with no pedestrian safety or sub 4m rule meant the designer actually could work more on style with less constraints.

[mchanna]

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[zenren]

Originally Posted by GTO

The examples shared so far have been good -> bad, or bad -> good.

Here's a unique one. How did Mahindra possibly go from:

Bad....
....to worse?

They managed to make the Xylo good looking by putting it next to the smaller sibling.

[condor]

Simple, under-stated Elegance seems to have disappeared .. For me, Even Honda is a big culprit here. (Though not as bad as Toyota)

One Favorite, that I can still drool over: The Acura Legend from the mid-90's.






Note: these pics dont do justice to this lovely car.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Basically the Xcent is the prettiest from the ugliest so even though it maybe smart looking but there is no way you can make a sub 4m sedan look classy. It just looks palatable and inoffensive but not classy like the Lancer, vRS.



Cars those days with no pedestrian safety or sub 4m rule meant the designer actually could work more on style with less constraints.

Agreed.

But history shows us that palatable and inoffensive might end up classy if the future gets worse. Case in point- this thread has seen the likes of Hyundai Santro, Hyundai Accent, Maruti Baleno etc which were never considered pretty during their teenage days.

Anyways, my opinion is only that it is not bad among the current crop of contraptions! For everything else, I've got this beauty- which for me stands right up there with the Lancers and the Skodas of the world.







Sent from my iPhone using Team-BHP

[ajaypjayaraj]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

there is no way you can make a sub 4m sedan look classy. It just looks palatable and inoffensive but not classy like the Lancer, vRS.

I beg to differ. Agreed that it cannot have the planted stance of the Lancer or Vrs within the 4 mtr dimensions. But within that 4 mtr mass of the car, design less quirky head lamps, tail lamps, give a better grille up front, reduce the stealth-fighter-like angles and creases on every possible panel of the car. It's as if they can't avoid these in a economic car. But why? I think they focus on a crowd which cares less about these details but still wants something "futuristic" and has "premium" feel to it. Basically it should look different to the confused crowd. Good or bad is not something that matters to a large extent as long as car has the bang for buck.
There goes the design.

[vb-saan]

There are exceptions as well. VW cars have been positively progressive over the years, e.g.; Golf, Polo, Jetta etc.

IMO, its the Asian manufacturers and Ford who drastically change the looks of their cars generation-by-generation.

Originally Posted by rajushank84

How in the world did this...

... become this?:

I think this one is a wrong comparison. AFAIK, the actual successor for the Accent was the ugly Verna -> Verna Trasnform -> Fluidic Verna. They just mix up the names across segments.

[abhi29]

Originally Posted by mandhir.s.bajwa

Thats true to a large extent. The old charm and the design language is lost and almost no car has it's own aura. One way or the other they all share the similar design pattern...The language of straight clean lines is simply missing these days and it's all about curves and lines flowing in all imaginable directions.

I think having a common design language is a good thing to do, it helps create identity for the brand, IMO Hyundai has done well with their fluidic design language while retaining specific character for each car. But that being said, the fuidic thing is grossly overdone in EON, to me it simply lacks basic aesthetics in the name modern design.

On clean lines, i think designs from Fiat and VW still have that sense of minimalism and class. They are not so 'in-your-face' like the Japs and koreans

[drivingme.crazy]

I guess this one fits this thread too. The old Aveo was one of my favorite designs.

Old:


New:

[ampere]

Basically looks like there are not many takers for clean lines. One of my first brush with cars (as in when I saw them on roads and not drive them!) was what I used to call the holy trinity of the time.

Opel Astra, Lancer and the old Honda City.

In that tradition that only guys that tend follow that legacy are the VAG twins. Vento and Rapid

[saket77]

Originally Posted by abhi29

I think having a common design language is a good thing to do, it helps create identity for the brand,

I would differ on this. A common/ family face of cars from same manufacturer means that if you don't like a particular kind of face, then you will not like anything from that particular stable. Also, it does not does justice to all its customers across the varied product range. For example, just imagine a situation, a 25L Passat, an 18L Jetta, a 10L Vento and a 6L Polo, all sharing a similar face. That 25L car buyer must be wanting to look different from a 6L Polo. No offense meant to anyone, but it's human nature.

Originally Posted by abhi29

IMO Hyundai has done well with their fluidic design language while retaining specific character for each car. But that being said, the fuidic thing is grossly overdone in EON, to me it simply lacks basic aesthetics in the name modern design.

Agreed. It's overdone in Eon.

Originally Posted by abhi29

On clean lines, i think designs from Fiat and VW still have that sense of minimalism and class. They are not so 'in-your-face' like the Japs and koreans

Probably there is an assumption by most manufacturers offering cars for the middle class buyers (mostly Japs & Koreans) that they will like flashy designs rather than simple ones. Styling is more important for masses of this class. When we are talking about the good designs of past, they are mostly 'sober' designs with toned down designs. Much less flashy than newer offerings. Unfortunately, masses are liking funky styling more than the classic designs in name of 'new' design.

Still whenever I close my eyes and think about the word 'car', one with a long bonnet, boot and classic lines and a low slung design come in front of my eyes. Not constrained under the 4m rule! When I think of hatchback, mostly same as above minus the boot...but much racy than a sedan.

Unfortunately when I open my eyes, its a tall-boy's world again.

[condor]

Originally Posted by ampere

In that tradition that only guys that tend follow that legacy are the VAG twins. Vento and Rapid

But compared to the stuff we have seen earlier, these two are actually bland