What car do you think was the first to feature current styling?

"IloveToyotaCenturies" (toyotacenturyfanatic)
03/20/2015 at 15:34 • Filed to: None

this thread's title is actually a bit of a lie; this is a three part question.

1. What car do you think was the first to feature modern styling?

Contrary to how it may sound, modern and current styling are not one in the same. The first cars to have modern styling deviated from the normal boxy / angular styling to a more curvaceous, streamlined shape. They usually feature obnoxiously large panel gaps and perhaps even share the same basic silhouette as later cars. A great example of this is the first generation Acura MDX, especially when compared to the car it replaced (the SLX)

Notice how the MDX is much more rounded and streamlined in its profile and overall shape than the SLX. Also take note of the MDX's enormous panel gaps. Gross.

2. What do you think was the first car to feature current styling?

When cars were first beginning to look modern, a lot of manufacturers decided to compensate for the profusion of overly angular cars in generations past with an overly round look. Many of today's cars still have a surplus of curves, but the overall styling is far better !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

and usually mixed with sharp edges. Below are some cars that provide good example of the aforementioned transition.

3 . What do you think was the first car to feature "next generation" design?

next-gen design entails bold styling, a very cohesive overall look, minimal panel gaps and often times LED lighting. Below are some examples of cars with next-gen styling.

To win internet points, include a picture and an explanation for your choices.

DISCUSSION (12)

RazoE > IloveToyotaCenturies
03/20/2015 at 15:40

id say the 5th gen Camry. The 4th gen still had protruding bumpers and 2 tone lines cut into the body. The 5th was taller, had the bumper that blended into the body and no side cut outs. If not the first then definitely the more popular one to feature

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > IloveToyotaCenturies
03/20/2015 at 15:42

I still see the design language of the last-gen Celica in so many new cars.

Kinja'd!!!

JR1 > IloveToyotaCenturies
03/20/2015 at 15:43

Kinja'd!!!

I will answer current generation. The R8 (to my knowledge) was the first to use LED headlights which have become a centerpiece of current car lineups.

Sn210 > IloveToyotaCenturies
03/20/2015 at 15:52

say what you want about the e65 Bangle 7, most of ze Germans went from boxy to curvy after it came out. Wheels got a lot bigger too

Kinja'd!!!

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > IloveToyotaCenturies
03/20/2015 at 15:55

With Luxury SUV/Crossover's:

Kinja'd!!!

nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul > JR1
03/20/2015 at 15:57

did they also start led accent trend? Seems like every modern car has a string of LEDs somewhere on the front.

jariten1781 > IloveToyotaCenturies
03/20/2015 at 16:22

When I think of the transition from simple straight stamping to more modern stuff (for the masses) it's always the Taurus opening the door then the LH cars really going all in. If you took a first or second gen LH, deleted the side molding and inserted a crease instead, and modernized the lighting it'd fit in a current lineup. For trucks it was obviously the redesigned Ram...they all trace back to that.

Current styling I'd say is just sticking on aggressive features to the general soap bar. So more creases, obnoxious grills, etc. I'm not sure you can really pin-point it since it's been more evolutionary than revolutionary.

Next gen: hard to say cause some of what people are trying now will fail. i8 is a good contender. VW XL-1 is another in a totally different direction.

Zohaibman72 > IloveToyotaCenturies
03/20/2015 at 16:27

Kinja'd!!!

This does not look like a car that came out in 1997, let alone an SUV. It has a few things that are dated, like the two tone body work, and that cut between the headlight, but other than that it looks like a huge change that all SUVs followed. This is mostly do to the fact that it is esentially, in it's simplest form, a lifted up Camry/Lexus ES. But they look nothing alike, I even found the same colour scheme to highlight how different it is.

Kinja'd!!!

If it weren't for the new S-Class, this looks like something that could come out today, just add LEDs.

Kinja'd!!!

it is a bit older, but tons of cars are now getting big, mesh grilles that go near the floor, and extremely aggressive monster-like stances. Ironic, because Lexus used to make some pretty meh looking cars, now they make the most striking, apalling, rude, offensive, controversial looking cars in their class. And I love it, Toyota overall has been pretty risky recently, which is a huge refresher from their mid 2000s boring romp in Lexus, Toyota and Scion.

JR1 > nFamousCJ - Keeper of Stringbean, Gengars and a Deezul
03/20/2015 at 17:03

I believe it was the Audi A6 from 06 that introduced that