Future all-time greats

"HammerheadFistpunch" (hammerheadfistpunch) 01/03/2014 at 12:01 • Filed to: Future Greats

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I was driving home yesterday and an Audi S7 passed by me on the right and it reminded me just how pretty it was and in such an unconventional way. It made me think that the A7/S7 will be all time greats in terms of design (and they are great drives too)

Great proportions, purposeful and artistic. I'm convinced that this design will age well and be remembered fondly as a high water mark of this era. What cars can you think of that are future greats? Design, significance, performance all count.

For Sweden > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:10

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S8 or GTFAC

Milky > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:15

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First gen CLS for the same reasons

EL_ULY > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:17

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lol, I guess i'm the only one that doesn't like this car. Gives me a Chevy Avalanche feeling. By that I mean that the Avalanche was a Silverado, just with a attached bed. Nobody that owned one ever had the back end down EVER lol. This A7, RS7 whatever is just another Audi with OMG, a slightly sloping rear end... *enthusiasts everywhere cumming in their pants shouting "German Engineering!!!* LOL It has beast performance in the right trim, I can respect that, but I see it as an Audi like any other Audi except for "a sloping rear design"... meh, doesn't tickle my fancy.

HammerheadFistpunch > For Sweden 01/03/2014 at 12:18

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The S8 is a model study in design by reduction...what can you do without and still have it be pretty. Its certainly pretty, but its not really groundbreaking. Though in terms of style and performance...holy crap this things got legs.

HammerheadFistpunch > Milky 01/03/2014 at 12:20

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I feel like it hasn't aged well, MB designs haven't latley...not sure what it is but with their designs it feels like a suit draped over a body and when the suit is out of fashion so is the body. The Audi looks, for lack of a better word, integrated, like its actually a good body and the aesthetic is more closely linked to that athleticism inherent in the body...does that make any sense?

For Sweden > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:21

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Finding the halfway point between a A6 and A6 Avant isn't groundbreaking either.

Milky > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:22

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I think its simple & classic, but then again one of my teachers designed it and I'm biased.

Velocity- Peuguette Connoisseur > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:23

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I'm not sure if it's just me or what, but I think the back of the A7/S7 looks droopy and angry, like an old dude. It's kinda ugly. The rest of the car is very pretty though

Textured Soy Protein > Milky 01/03/2014 at 12:24

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I agree, but I've always found the front fascia on the non-AMG version to be not quite substantial enough to flow with the rest of the car. To me, the AMG feels much more cohesive.

Textured Soy Protein > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:25

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I think the CLS 63 AMG design holds up much better than the non-AMG.

EL_ULY > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:25

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oh, and I choose LS600hL

Because in the performance hybrid + Yamaha V8 AWD game since 2008, before performance hybrids were cool :]

Textured Soy Protein > EL_ULY 01/03/2014 at 12:26

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But it's a hatchback . Hatchbacks are cool.

HammerheadFistpunch > EL_ULY 01/03/2014 at 12:29

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It's a great car, no doubt, but its going to look as dates as an LS400 in a few years. The performance wasn't inspiring either. 5.6 to 60 aint bad, but its no S8 either.

HammerheadFistpunch > EL_ULY 01/03/2014 at 12:30

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its not the practicality, its the design, this design...in person...feels greater than the sum of its parts. The Avalanche was literally just less parts. (a suburban chassis, not silverado)

JR1 > For Sweden 01/03/2014 at 12:33

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I just can't get over the headlights on that car, I love Audi design but the A8 headlights are somehow off

JR1 > For Sweden 01/03/2014 at 12:33

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I just can't get over the headlights on that car, I love Audi design but the A8 headlights are somehow off

EL_ULY > Textured Soy Protein 01/03/2014 at 12:33

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lol, I own an A6 Avant, irony times 10 :]

But in my defense, it's a C5, subtle luxury and before the hype car (A5, A7) era

HammerheadFistpunch > For Sweden 01/03/2014 at 12:33

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its a market niche, which is the thing right now, but the design of the thing is pretty inspiring. Take a look at the BMW gran turismo or X6, niches fillers that are horrid and uninspiring. I feel like the integration is spot on, but to each his own. They look better in person than in pictures.

Storz > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:33

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The older CL500 does it for me

HammerheadFistpunch > Storz 01/03/2014 at 12:37

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It is a nice bit of design. You have the advantage of hindsight on this one though. I personally think the SL55 AMG does it for me.

I know someone with one AND a McLaren SLR and they both get me equally excited to see drive off. They are pretty things.

JR1 > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:38

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There are few cars that really will ever be as pretty as the classics today like the original GT40, Ferrari Daytona, and Jaguar E-Type. But one of the modern cars that will deserve high praise for style and setting a trend is the retro modern trend in the 2000s. The Ford GT is a great example.

EL_ULY > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:38

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a sloping back wooow ..... I just don't feel it buddy i'm sorry.

The back reminds me of this also lol

HammerheadFistpunch > JR1 01/03/2014 at 12:40

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Thing is...can retro ever be a great? I mean its just an interpretation on an already great car, so its great...but only by association, or only because of association.

HammerheadFistpunch > EL_ULY 01/03/2014 at 12:41

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Have you gotten a chance to see one up close? the way the lines comes together and the effect of the pinched rear end are stunning. Its a personal opinion, but one shared by many a journalist who write about it.

HammerheadFistpunch > JR1 01/03/2014 at 12:46

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I agree, they look like a mid cycle refresh where the hard points were defined, but they needed to do something to keep it fresh.

HammerheadFistpunch > Textured Soy Protein 01/03/2014 at 12:47

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you make an excellent point.

JR1 > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:48

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I agree with you it kind of rides in the coattails of its fore bearers, but the millennial car loving generation will look back in 20/30 years at the cars of today and they won't think of the old glory days of the 1960s, they will remember the glory days of the 2000s and perhaps even surpass the cars of old.

HammerheadFistpunch > JR1 01/03/2014 at 12:50

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I hope so. I generally have great disdain for retro because its nearly impossible to carry the language forward past one model which means they die off quickly, but some designs carry forward so much charisma, that it just doesn't matter, the GT is one.

EL_ULY > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:55

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The mechanics and technology of the LS600hL back in that day just was incredible. I'm not big on design. Kind of like a really good band playing quality music but because the front man isn't a blonde girl with big tits and is known for a music video, the attention gets steered away from what it is, a mechanical item/good music. Its competing vehicles have their thing, I can respect them. I'm an ex Lexus master tech, in the shop though as far as trade ins, we worked on a variety of vehicles. Having a LS600hL up on the lift is one of the few cars that I like just looking over at the details, tech, and mechanics of the thing. That's how I see cars man, as things, items, just bolts, nuts, parts, and fluids. I'm not an enthusiast by any means. A grumpy mechanic at best lol. The LS600hL was just one of those vehicles at the time that I personally think was an incredible machine that gets over looked because "Lexus is Toyota and they make the Corolla, the most boring beige car blah blah blah "

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JR1 > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 12:55

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There are of course bad examples such as:

HammerheadFistpunch > EL_ULY 01/03/2014 at 12:58

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No I agree as a Technical exercise the LS600h is stunning and I would own one in a heartbeat, I can't picture a better commuter car, but I don't think its one for the ages.

EL_ULY > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 13:04

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Same with the S8, that giant beauty is a damn rocket! I thought I saw somewhere it recording high 11's in the 1/4 mile. A7 though was just an odd ball to me in this modern "German version" of the Chrysler vs. Ford vs Gm battle. But hey, the LS is in there also lol. They all kickass and all suck. Nobody wins. I can't afford them so fuck them all :]

HammerheadFistpunch > JR1 01/03/2014 at 13:05

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That's exactly what I mean, with retro, you get the bag from the first design and then...what? where do you go with it? VW totally redesigned the Beetle with the next model and I suspect they wont know quite what to do when that design is played out. Its like making a prequel, the plot points are already set in place, there is no room for surprise...the story is written we know the ending. The truth about retro is that it WILL sell well until the thin market is satisfied, then sales will tank and the model will die off. Case in point:

Cars all drastically redesigned, dead or dying.

EL_ULY > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 13:09

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Yup, i see them all the time...ALL the time round these parts. But shit dude, I see Aston, Volvo, Lotus, and Mercedes all day here at my 4 in 1 dealership. Auto enthusiasm goes right out the door when these damn things determine your livelihood. I remember an SLR or DBS use to get me giggling, now it's like "Aw shit, what the fuck does this shit need" lol :]

HammerheadFistpunch > EL_ULY 01/03/2014 at 13:11

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fair enough. I still think they are great. The SLR must be a treat to work on. I like looking at the details on that car, but the styling is...controversial... at best.

Pessimippopotamus > For Sweden 01/03/2014 at 13:16

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But that roofline...

For Sweden > Pessimippopotamus 01/03/2014 at 13:17

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Looks like this.

Pessimippopotamus > For Sweden 01/03/2014 at 13:26

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Yet one's so much prettier. You know what else have similar rooflines? A Volvo wagon and a Cadillac Escalade. Yet so different!

Inflame333 > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 13:33

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E46 M3 and E39 M5

EL_ULY > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 13:37

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This dude came in about a month or so ago with his SLR. Well, it came in a tow truck because he hit a curb pretty hard. Just for front pads and rotors it was around the price of a 2014 CLA lol. We have a special lift for those and only one tech here can work on those. The SLR tech training was discontinued a long while back. I always got a Viper vibe from that car looks vise. But pricey bits indeed, it was more McLaren than Mercedes.

HammerheadFistpunch > EL_ULY 01/03/2014 at 13:38

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true, Ive been in one, and it was fantastic, but I feel bad for this guy when its service time.

Reigntastic > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 13:45

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I would go ahead and say Audi in general, but specifically the R8. Otherwise, I really feel that Ford's current design style that we're starting to see with the Focus/Fiesta ST as well as the Fusion will do well.
For a less popular opinion, I really don't think that the E90 BMW designs are going to age well at all. Some of the 3 series they've been making have been downright ugly.

Rico > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 13:56

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A7 is my favorite Audi then it's the R8!

JR1 > HammerheadFistpunch 01/03/2014 at 14:02

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You are absolutely right but at the end of the day these will be e cars we look back fondly on in the future because it a way we already do.