Ten Worst Automotive Fads
07-07-2009, 06:11 AM
#1
Ten Worst Automotive Fads
http://editorial.autos.msn.com/lista...99&topart=vans
There is a subtle but important difference between fashion and a fad. Fashion is the inevitable evolution and refreshment of taste and style in everything from clothing to automobiles, which keeps those things from getting tiresome and stale. Fashion drives innovation for the sake of innovation, and it is generally considered a good thing. On the other hand, fads such as fuzzy dice are as ephemeral and unpredictable as fashion, but in the end are just plain silly.
With the benefit of hindsight, it’s generally pretty easy to recognize a fad, but for each of the designs, technologies or accessories below, there was a window in time and an enthusiastic audience that aligned perfectly to turn a dumb, pointless concept into an embarrassing reality. Sam Livingston, of Car Design Research, has seen plenty of fads come and go and even feels a bit nostalgic for some of them. “Remember, the ambitions behind most of these things were quite noble, I’m sure,” he says. “All of these things probably seemed like a good idea at the time.”
Any list of the worst of anything is guaranteed to elicit some defensive feedback. So let's pre-empt that right now by saying that if you owned any of the automobiles or accessories on this list, we’re not judging you as a person — we’re judging your car. And whether you knew it or not at the time, people were probably judging your car for all the years you owned it. So a little poke to the soft spot you may have had in your heart for that vehicle might sting a bit, but somebody had to tell you — eventually.
Vinyl/Landau Roof
Click to enlarge picture
If you wanted your car to look like a drop-top without any of the benefits, the landau was perfect for you.
Quick quiz: What has all of the problems of a convertible top (tearing, weathering), with none of the pleasures (driving with a top that actually opens, for instance). It’s the vinyl, aka “landau,” top. Although term “landau top” is often used as a catchall term for the multiple variations of the vinyl top, fake-convertible connoisseurs know that true landau tops have landau bars on the C-pillar. These bars are a reference to the conventions of classic coach building — which probably made more sense back in the 1920s and ’30s, when landau cars were first introduced.
By the 1960s and ’70s, however, when the vinyl-top trend was at its height, it probably struck buyers as a hint of luxury on top of the often-brutish sheet metal of the era. Vinyl tops were offered by all three Detroit automakers at the time, on cars including the Cadillac Eldorado, Pontiac Firebird, even the Ford Pinto. And, as fads go, this one lasted quite a long time; the last factory landaus were offered in the 1990s. Now an enthusiast of the genre must appeal sheepishly to the aftermarket to get a roof that says “convertible” on the outside, fixed roof on the inside and cheesy all over.
Fake Wood Paneling
Click to enlarge picture
Wood is not wood unless it comes from a tree. Faux-wood vinyl paneling is just plain cheesy.
Another famous vinyl product meant to simulate the craftsmanship of a bygone era, fake wood paneling began to pop up in the 1960s, draping the sides of luxury station wagons such as the Ford Country Squire. Like the famous woodies of the pre-1950s era (which were, of course, constructed of real wood), these cars showed off their elegantly grained vinyl timbers with pride. That is, until the panels peeled off to reveal the sheet metal beneath.
The siding itself didn’t generally last long, but America’s taste for the richness of faux wood endured well into the 1990s. That is, until the American station wagon was displaced by its brutish big brother, the SUV (more on that later).
Talking Cars
Click to enlarge picture
While today’s voice recognition and response systems are much more evolved and useful than the one on this Datsun 810 Maxima, digital nannies of yesteryear were novelties that were more annoying than helpful.
Picture yourself back in 1982: You are taking your new high-tech Datsun 810 Maxima for a nighttime drive in the country. A Flock of Seagulls’ “I Ran” is playing on the radio. You are all alone in the cockpit — or so you think. When you come to a stop and turn off the ignition, a sultry female voice emanates from behind the dash: “Lights are on.” And so they are. You turn them off and say, “Thanks, baby.”
With a vocabulary of exactly six phrases, the 810 Maxima was the first true talking car, equipped with a digital nanny feature that would chastise you for forgetful behaviors, including not switching off your headlights or failing to buckle your seat belt. And like any true fad, the recordings that were etched into its phonograph-style cylinder swiftly went from way-cool tech to way annoying. But that didn’t stop the insufferable feature from finding its way into other vehicles such as the 1984 Dodge Daytona and Chrysler Laser.
And despite eventually becoming an ’80s punch line, cars that talk have once again resurfaced in the form of voice-prompt GPS navigation systems and Sync-style voice control systems. It seems that this time, however, they have something relevant to say.
Automatic Seat Belts
It’s hard to be too critical of the automatic seat belt. These mechanized devices meant well. And in the post-Nader era of the early 1980s, the chastened automotive industry was just trying to get drivers to actually use the most significant safety device invented in automotive history. There were two main flavors of the technology. A combination manual lap belt and automated shoulder belt was employed in vehicles such as the Toyota Cressida — the lap belt would clip on normally, and the shoulder belt would ride back along a track in the top of the door frame until it had draped its sash of safety across the driver and/or passenger. Another variant automated both lap and shoulder belts with a complicated arrangement that required occupants to slide under the belts for entry and exit.
Both arrangements had the incredibly annoying habit of knocking off eyeglasses or clotheslining anyone unaware enough to be leaning forward when the car was turned on. In the end, automatic seat belts often produced the opposite behavior from what was intended — people simply unhooked the manual release and went beltless.
Discuss: In hindsight, what was the worst automotive faux pas or fad that you bought into?
Spinning Rims
Click to enlarge picture
Spinners . . . really? They are annoying, expensive and tend to break.
Many of the fads in this article are long gone, but spinning rims (aka “spinners”) live on. Invented in the 1980s, these aftermarket goodies do exactly what their name implies, that is, the inner portion of the rim continues to spin on roller bearings after the wheels they are attached to have stopped. Equipping one’s car with a full set of spinners can cost thousands of dollars, making them an expensive yet essential element of the pimped ride so popular in the early part of this decade.
But guess what — it’s over. We realize that many of you are still sporting these rotating novelties, but you are riding on four shiny anachronisms that inspire new snickers from passers-by each day. Spinners are the ultimate one-trick pony. All they do is spin, and the forty-fifth time you see them, the joy is totally gone.
Concurrent with the mid-’80s stock market boom was the evolution of a certain species of shallow, self-involved man (think Gordon Gekko from the film “Wall Street”) who enjoyed turning perfectly good sports cars into embarrassing exercises in self-glorification. The typical member of this clan bought himself a 911, then proceeded to desecrate it with a full-length reflective decal that said “Carrera” and a “Porsche” windshield decal, just in case anyone was wondering what that iconic-looking vehicle he was driving was.
A lot of these vehicles ended up wrapped around roadside trees, since the notoriously tricky rear-engine 911 had a nasty penchant for oversteering that often gave overconfident and underskilled drivers a high-speed lesson in physics. These overbadged cars may have died, but in an unfortunate case of trickle-down economics, these decals were eventually available to drivers of everything from Chevy Cavaliers to Ford Mustangs.
Carbon Fiber Accents
If you liked branded decals in the ’80s, you were definitely into carbon fiber accents in the late ’90s and early this decade. This ultralight, uber-strong material was, and still is, a common structural material for race cars and exotic supercars. Back then it was far too expensive for the sub $100K market. Even so, a brisk business built around “affordable” carbon-fiber accessories (trim and dash panels, mostly) emerged that catered to the “tuner” (think “Fast and Furious”) who wanted to shave off 5 ounces of weight from his Japanese four-banger by, say, replacing a plastic shift knob with one made out of the lightweight material. For the most part, these individuals were more interested in the carbon fiber look than how it actually can be used to improve a car’s performance. Plus, the accessories were often flimsy and felt cheap to the touch.
Even further down the ladder of pointless automotive indulgence is faux carbon fiber. Sold in vinyl sheets, this appliqué can be stuck to any plastic surface in the car to give it the appearance of high-tech fanciness.
Digital Dashboards
Click to enlarge picture
Thankfully, automakers have evolved from making primitive, hard-to-read digital displays to digital interfaces that are easier to use and interpret, such as this one in the 2010 Honda Insight.
A close cousin to the talking car, the digital instrument panel of the 1980s is the precursor to modern touch-screen interfaces. But unlike today’s touch-screens, most early digital dashboards offered few functional improvements over their analog contemporaries, and were harder to read at a glance. Nevertheless, automakers that were looking to tap into the excitement of the burgeoning computer age loved these things. Almost no manufacturer was immune from their allure: The Dodge Daytona, Nissan 300Z, Audi Quattro and Chevrolet Corvette all had digital loveliness available as at least an option.
Digital displays never truly went away, but the ’80s enthusiasm for designing screamingly bright, utterly nonstandardized instrument clusters certainly did. Now that driver distraction is a real danger, automakers smartly focus on making their digital interfaces easier to use and less obtrusive.
Huge SUVs
Click to enlarge picture
Whether or not the popularity of humongous SUVs can be truly called a fad is debatable. One thing is for certain: Their charm was fleeting.
It’s debatable whether the trend towards humongous SUVs that lasted through the 1990s until last year represents a fad, a market phenomenon or a national character flaw. Whatever it was, it reached its gas-guzzling peak from 2003 to 2005, when buyers had a triple choice of huge trucks — the Ford Excursion, Hummer H2 and Chevrolet Suburban — offering fuel economy between 8 and 14 mpg. Of course, we needed these things. We had eight children to bring to soccer practice, hundreds of pounds of groceries to pick up at Costco and an enormous boat to tow. At some point in 2008, however, lifestyles must have changed, because when gas reached $4 a gallon, people couldn’t get rid of these vehicles fast enough, and the entire U.S. auto industry seems to have collapsed as a result.
As fuel-economy standards get more stringent, it’s possible that these dinosaurs will become truly extinct in the coming years, but their impact on the icecaps may last for centuries.
Discuss: In hindsight, what was the worst automotive faux pas or fad that you bought into?
Fake Air Intakes/Outputs/Hood Scoops
Click to enlarge picture
Performance cars need air, and lots of it, so hood scoops, brake vents and other various holes and bulges in the car body are acceptable. If they don’t have a purpose, they just look like a bad toupee on an aging hipster.
Performance cars are heavy breathers. They need air, and lots of it, so sometimes car designers have to cut a hole in the body of the car to either let cool air in or let hot air out. (The Porsche 911 Turbo, for instance, has two huge intakes just behind the driver and passenger-side doors to let air into the engine.) It is just as important for fake performance cars to have the appearance of airflow. Their wheezing, underpowered engines will never impress anyone without hood scoops, brake vents and other various holes and bulges in the car body that generally don’t lead anywhere. These fake air intakes have shown up on brands ranging from Ford to Buick to Mercedes-Benz. The delightful irony of it all is that vents and hood scoops tend to take away from the general aerodynamic efficiency of any vehicle, so if they’re not catching air with the intention of actually using it for performance reasons, they’re just slowing you down.
I'm guilty of Number 7.
There is a subtle but important difference between fashion and a fad. Fashion is the inevitable evolution and refreshment of taste and style in everything from clothing to automobiles, which keeps those things from getting tiresome and stale. Fashion drives innovation for the sake of innovation, and it is generally considered a good thing. On the other hand, fads such as fuzzy dice are as ephemeral and unpredictable as fashion, but in the end are just plain silly.
With the benefit of hindsight, it’s generally pretty easy to recognize a fad, but for each of the designs, technologies or accessories below, there was a window in time and an enthusiastic audience that aligned perfectly to turn a dumb, pointless concept into an embarrassing reality. Sam Livingston, of Car Design Research, has seen plenty of fads come and go and even feels a bit nostalgic for some of them. “Remember, the ambitions behind most of these things were quite noble, I’m sure,” he says. “All of these things probably seemed like a good idea at the time.”
Any list of the worst of anything is guaranteed to elicit some defensive feedback. So let's pre-empt that right now by saying that if you owned any of the automobiles or accessories on this list, we’re not judging you as a person — we’re judging your car. And whether you knew it or not at the time, people were probably judging your car for all the years you owned it. So a little poke to the soft spot you may have had in your heart for that vehicle might sting a bit, but somebody had to tell you — eventually.
Vinyl/Landau Roof
Click to enlarge picture
If you wanted your car to look like a drop-top without any of the benefits, the landau was perfect for you.
Quick quiz: What has all of the problems of a convertible top (tearing, weathering), with none of the pleasures (driving with a top that actually opens, for instance). It’s the vinyl, aka “landau,” top. Although term “landau top” is often used as a catchall term for the multiple variations of the vinyl top, fake-convertible connoisseurs know that true landau tops have landau bars on the C-pillar. These bars are a reference to the conventions of classic coach building — which probably made more sense back in the 1920s and ’30s, when landau cars were first introduced.
By the 1960s and ’70s, however, when the vinyl-top trend was at its height, it probably struck buyers as a hint of luxury on top of the often-brutish sheet metal of the era. Vinyl tops were offered by all three Detroit automakers at the time, on cars including the Cadillac Eldorado, Pontiac Firebird, even the Ford Pinto. And, as fads go, this one lasted quite a long time; the last factory landaus were offered in the 1990s. Now an enthusiast of the genre must appeal sheepishly to the aftermarket to get a roof that says “convertible” on the outside, fixed roof on the inside and cheesy all over.
Fake Wood Paneling
Click to enlarge picture
Wood is not wood unless it comes from a tree. Faux-wood vinyl paneling is just plain cheesy.
Another famous vinyl product meant to simulate the craftsmanship of a bygone era, fake wood paneling began to pop up in the 1960s, draping the sides of luxury station wagons such as the Ford Country Squire. Like the famous woodies of the pre-1950s era (which were, of course, constructed of real wood), these cars showed off their elegantly grained vinyl timbers with pride. That is, until the panels peeled off to reveal the sheet metal beneath.
The siding itself didn’t generally last long, but America’s taste for the richness of faux wood endured well into the 1990s. That is, until the American station wagon was displaced by its brutish big brother, the SUV (more on that later).
Talking Cars
Click to enlarge picture
While today’s voice recognition and response systems are much more evolved and useful than the one on this Datsun 810 Maxima, digital nannies of yesteryear were novelties that were more annoying than helpful.
Picture yourself back in 1982: You are taking your new high-tech Datsun 810 Maxima for a nighttime drive in the country. A Flock of Seagulls’ “I Ran” is playing on the radio. You are all alone in the cockpit — or so you think. When you come to a stop and turn off the ignition, a sultry female voice emanates from behind the dash: “Lights are on.” And so they are. You turn them off and say, “Thanks, baby.”
With a vocabulary of exactly six phrases, the 810 Maxima was the first true talking car, equipped with a digital nanny feature that would chastise you for forgetful behaviors, including not switching off your headlights or failing to buckle your seat belt. And like any true fad, the recordings that were etched into its phonograph-style cylinder swiftly went from way-cool tech to way annoying. But that didn’t stop the insufferable feature from finding its way into other vehicles such as the 1984 Dodge Daytona and Chrysler Laser.
And despite eventually becoming an ’80s punch line, cars that talk have once again resurfaced in the form of voice-prompt GPS navigation systems and Sync-style voice control systems. It seems that this time, however, they have something relevant to say.
Automatic Seat Belts
It’s hard to be too critical of the automatic seat belt. These mechanized devices meant well. And in the post-Nader era of the early 1980s, the chastened automotive industry was just trying to get drivers to actually use the most significant safety device invented in automotive history. There were two main flavors of the technology. A combination manual lap belt and automated shoulder belt was employed in vehicles such as the Toyota Cressida — the lap belt would clip on normally, and the shoulder belt would ride back along a track in the top of the door frame until it had draped its sash of safety across the driver and/or passenger. Another variant automated both lap and shoulder belts with a complicated arrangement that required occupants to slide under the belts for entry and exit.
Both arrangements had the incredibly annoying habit of knocking off eyeglasses or clotheslining anyone unaware enough to be leaning forward when the car was turned on. In the end, automatic seat belts often produced the opposite behavior from what was intended — people simply unhooked the manual release and went beltless.
Discuss: In hindsight, what was the worst automotive faux pas or fad that you bought into?
Spinning Rims
Click to enlarge picture
Spinners . . . really? They are annoying, expensive and tend to break.
Many of the fads in this article are long gone, but spinning rims (aka “spinners”) live on. Invented in the 1980s, these aftermarket goodies do exactly what their name implies, that is, the inner portion of the rim continues to spin on roller bearings after the wheels they are attached to have stopped. Equipping one’s car with a full set of spinners can cost thousands of dollars, making them an expensive yet essential element of the pimped ride so popular in the early part of this decade.
But guess what — it’s over. We realize that many of you are still sporting these rotating novelties, but you are riding on four shiny anachronisms that inspire new snickers from passers-by each day. Spinners are the ultimate one-trick pony. All they do is spin, and the forty-fifth time you see them, the joy is totally gone.
Concurrent with the mid-’80s stock market boom was the evolution of a certain species of shallow, self-involved man (think Gordon Gekko from the film “Wall Street”) who enjoyed turning perfectly good sports cars into embarrassing exercises in self-glorification. The typical member of this clan bought himself a 911, then proceeded to desecrate it with a full-length reflective decal that said “Carrera” and a “Porsche” windshield decal, just in case anyone was wondering what that iconic-looking vehicle he was driving was.
A lot of these vehicles ended up wrapped around roadside trees, since the notoriously tricky rear-engine 911 had a nasty penchant for oversteering that often gave overconfident and underskilled drivers a high-speed lesson in physics. These overbadged cars may have died, but in an unfortunate case of trickle-down economics, these decals were eventually available to drivers of everything from Chevy Cavaliers to Ford Mustangs.
Carbon Fiber Accents
If you liked branded decals in the ’80s, you were definitely into carbon fiber accents in the late ’90s and early this decade. This ultralight, uber-strong material was, and still is, a common structural material for race cars and exotic supercars. Back then it was far too expensive for the sub $100K market. Even so, a brisk business built around “affordable” carbon-fiber accessories (trim and dash panels, mostly) emerged that catered to the “tuner” (think “Fast and Furious”) who wanted to shave off 5 ounces of weight from his Japanese four-banger by, say, replacing a plastic shift knob with one made out of the lightweight material. For the most part, these individuals were more interested in the carbon fiber look than how it actually can be used to improve a car’s performance. Plus, the accessories were often flimsy and felt cheap to the touch.
Even further down the ladder of pointless automotive indulgence is faux carbon fiber. Sold in vinyl sheets, this appliqué can be stuck to any plastic surface in the car to give it the appearance of high-tech fanciness.
Digital Dashboards
Click to enlarge picture
Thankfully, automakers have evolved from making primitive, hard-to-read digital displays to digital interfaces that are easier to use and interpret, such as this one in the 2010 Honda Insight.
A close cousin to the talking car, the digital instrument panel of the 1980s is the precursor to modern touch-screen interfaces. But unlike today’s touch-screens, most early digital dashboards offered few functional improvements over their analog contemporaries, and were harder to read at a glance. Nevertheless, automakers that were looking to tap into the excitement of the burgeoning computer age loved these things. Almost no manufacturer was immune from their allure: The Dodge Daytona, Nissan 300Z, Audi Quattro and Chevrolet Corvette all had digital loveliness available as at least an option.
Digital displays never truly went away, but the ’80s enthusiasm for designing screamingly bright, utterly nonstandardized instrument clusters certainly did. Now that driver distraction is a real danger, automakers smartly focus on making their digital interfaces easier to use and less obtrusive.
Huge SUVs
Click to enlarge picture
Whether or not the popularity of humongous SUVs can be truly called a fad is debatable. One thing is for certain: Their charm was fleeting.
It’s debatable whether the trend towards humongous SUVs that lasted through the 1990s until last year represents a fad, a market phenomenon or a national character flaw. Whatever it was, it reached its gas-guzzling peak from 2003 to 2005, when buyers had a triple choice of huge trucks — the Ford Excursion, Hummer H2 and Chevrolet Suburban — offering fuel economy between 8 and 14 mpg. Of course, we needed these things. We had eight children to bring to soccer practice, hundreds of pounds of groceries to pick up at Costco and an enormous boat to tow. At some point in 2008, however, lifestyles must have changed, because when gas reached $4 a gallon, people couldn’t get rid of these vehicles fast enough, and the entire U.S. auto industry seems to have collapsed as a result.
As fuel-economy standards get more stringent, it’s possible that these dinosaurs will become truly extinct in the coming years, but their impact on the icecaps may last for centuries.
Discuss: In hindsight, what was the worst automotive faux pas or fad that you bought into?
Fake Air Intakes/Outputs/Hood Scoops
Click to enlarge picture
Performance cars need air, and lots of it, so hood scoops, brake vents and other various holes and bulges in the car body are acceptable. If they don’t have a purpose, they just look like a bad toupee on an aging hipster.
Performance cars are heavy breathers. They need air, and lots of it, so sometimes car designers have to cut a hole in the body of the car to either let cool air in or let hot air out. (The Porsche 911 Turbo, for instance, has two huge intakes just behind the driver and passenger-side doors to let air into the engine.) It is just as important for fake performance cars to have the appearance of airflow. Their wheezing, underpowered engines will never impress anyone without hood scoops, brake vents and other various holes and bulges in the car body that generally don’t lead anywhere. These fake air intakes have shown up on brands ranging from Ford to Buick to Mercedes-Benz. The delightful irony of it all is that vents and hood scoops tend to take away from the general aerodynamic efficiency of any vehicle, so if they’re not catching air with the intention of actually using it for performance reasons, they’re just slowing you down.
I'm guilty of Number 7.
07-07-2009, 07:02 AM
#2
Suzuka Master
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i saw a new ford flex or whatever they are with wood paneling. looked cheezy, but it looked like it installed well enough that it was from the factory or at least dealer installed.
Didn't see the driver, but probably an old guy.
Didn't see the driver, but probably an old guy.
07-07-2009, 07:07 AM
#3
Senior Moderator
I still recall when my father brought home a brand new 1976 Monte Carlo with its vinyl roof and being disappointed because that meant we could not drive through the baboon section of the Safari @ Great Adventure.
I've owned cars with automatic seat belts (1989 Ford Escort) and digital dashboards (1985 Mitsubishi Tredia)....and I miss neither feature.
However, I do like carbon fiber trim when it's done tastefully (i.e.: 06-07 Accord V6 6MT) or have a functional purpose for it (i.e.: Nissan GT-R)
I've owned cars with automatic seat belts (1989 Ford Escort) and digital dashboards (1985 Mitsubishi Tredia)....and I miss neither feature.
However, I do like carbon fiber trim when it's done tastefully (i.e.: 06-07 Accord V6 6MT) or have a functional purpose for it (i.e.: Nissan GT-R)
07-07-2009, 07:22 AM
#6
I still recall when my father brought home a brand new 1976 Monte Carlo with its vinyl roof and being disappointed because that meant we could not drive through the baboon section of the Safari @ Great Adventure.
I've owned cars with automatic seat belts (1989 Ford Escort) and digital dashboards (1985 Mitsubishi Tredia)....and I miss neither feature.
However, I do like carbon fiber trim when it's done tastefully (i.e.: 06-07 Accord V6 6MT) or have a functional purpose for it (i.e.: Nissan GT-R)
I've owned cars with automatic seat belts (1989 Ford Escort) and digital dashboards (1985 Mitsubishi Tredia)....and I miss neither feature.
However, I do like carbon fiber trim when it's done tastefully (i.e.: 06-07 Accord V6 6MT) or have a functional purpose for it (i.e.: Nissan GT-R)
07-07-2009, 08:32 AM
#7
registered pw
Join Date: Aug 2003
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the white stripes that ran from the front to the rear of the car. They looked good on race vehicles, but not your ford escort.
Those buick port holes on the front fender. You can identify the trailer trash and ghetto cars by these on every make and model except buick.
I can appreciate the 3 and 4 hole concept that they used to go by.
The big air freshener crowns that adorned the front or rear windshields back in the 90's. There are still a few around.
truck nuts, fags
Those buick port holes on the front fender. You can identify the trailer trash and ghetto cars by these on every make and model except buick.
I can appreciate the 3 and 4 hole concept that they used to go by.
The big air freshener crowns that adorned the front or rear windshields back in the 90's. There are still a few around.
truck nuts, fags
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07-07-2009, 08:51 AM
#9
Oderint dum metuant.
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1) Agree
2) Agree
3) Disagree...loved that on my dad's old Z
4) Agree
5) Agree
6) Agree
7) Could not agree more!!! My car has them and I HATE them. No CF trim and exterior panels should be painted.
8) Disagree...I think they're cool
9) Agree
10) Agree
2) Agree
3) Disagree...loved that on my dad's old Z
4) Agree
5) Agree
6) Agree
7) Could not agree more!!! My car has them and I HATE them. No CF trim and exterior panels should be painted.
8) Disagree...I think they're cool
9) Agree
10) Agree
07-07-2009, 08:51 AM
#10
Punk Rocker
Gotta love the sanctimonious eco-jab at the end of the article. Large SUV's a "national character flaw" and our precious ice caps "may be affected for centuries"! Oh noes!!! Can't any of these jackasses understand that these ice caps they are so worried about have come and gone for millenia, way before man even stood upright, much less drove around in Suburbans??? We had an ice age just 10,000 years ago for christ sakes. Must have been some kind of global warming to get us out of that....
07-07-2009, 10:29 AM
#11
AZ Community Team
Agree on 8), when designed right (and that is the hard part) digital dashes are more functional and fun IMO. I love the digital dash on the new Civic and the high end Ducati's with their tach bar graph is pretty cool.
07-07-2009, 10:47 AM
#12
Oderint dum metuant.
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^My dad's Z had one of those...the tach graph filled the dash behind the steering wheel. My old Probe had a digital dash, but it was nowhere near as nice/cool as the one in the Z. I still liked it, though.
07-07-2009, 11:02 AM
#13
My only car is a Bus
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Great list. I would add a few things onto this list like:
~ Lame engine covers to make it look beefier than it is
~ Cars that beep constantly if you don't wear your seatbelt
~ Cars that have annoying automatic shift patterns like Jag's "J" gate
~ Silly looking spoilers that come from the factory
~ Fake carbon fiber trim
~ T tops
~ People replacing their badges with bright yellow, red, or other obnoxious colors
~ People putting "Type R" or "Type S" or other badges that don't apply to their car on them
~ Lame engine covers to make it look beefier than it is
~ Cars that beep constantly if you don't wear your seatbelt
~ Cars that have annoying automatic shift patterns like Jag's "J" gate
~ Silly looking spoilers that come from the factory
~ Fake carbon fiber trim
~ T tops
~ People replacing their badges with bright yellow, red, or other obnoxious colors
~ People putting "Type R" or "Type S" or other badges that don't apply to their car on them
07-07-2009, 11:02 AM
#14
In the Mid-South meow
iTrader: (2)
I actually liked the way the vinyl top looked on my 72 skylark. Black vinyl on Sunburst Yellow. Without it it would've been too much yellow.
07-07-2009, 11:53 AM
#17
Senior Moderator
I definitely disagree on #8.
I love the digital display on my S2000.
Functional and fun.
I also make use of the digital speedometer display on my CTS-V. On that car it is absolutely critical in ticket avoidance as it's easier to read than the analog speedo display.
I love the digital display on my S2000.
Functional and fun.I also make use of the digital speedometer display on my CTS-V. On that car it is absolutely critical in ticket avoidance as it's easier to read than the analog speedo display.
07-07-2009, 12:04 PM
#18
Three Wheelin'
I can remember my mom's 82 maxima. Thought that car was the shizz.
"lights are on"
"fuel level is low"
"key is in the ignition"
I pretty much learned to drive in that car.
"lights are on"
"fuel level is low"
"key is in the ignition"
I pretty much learned to drive in that car.
07-07-2009, 12:34 PM
#20
Burning Brakes
The automatic seat belts were not a fad--passive restraint was mandated by the government, and these were way cheaper than airbags that eventually replaced them.
Really there are only two categories worth mentioning: fake trim (scoops and landau roofs) and goofy trim (truck balls and spinners).
Big SUV's were a fad, but I have a hard time seeing why they were a particularly bad one--gas was cheap and the baby boomers were cranking out kids. Big SUV's do the things they are supposed to be able to do--haul lots of stuff, go in the snow, and tow shit. They in themselves are not "posers". Their owners could have been, though.
Really there are only two categories worth mentioning: fake trim (scoops and landau roofs) and goofy trim (truck balls and spinners).
Big SUV's were a fad, but I have a hard time seeing why they were a particularly bad one--gas was cheap and the baby boomers were cranking out kids. Big SUV's do the things they are supposed to be able to do--haul lots of stuff, go in the snow, and tow shit. They in themselves are not "posers". Their owners could have been, though.
07-07-2009, 03:46 PM
#22
an asshole from florida
we had a early 90s sonata and it had the automatic seatbelts. they were somewhat annoying but we always had our seatbelts on
I like digital dash's, the s2k and rx8 are real nice
I like digital dash's, the s2k and rx8 are real nice
07-07-2009, 04:14 PM
#23
Senior Moderator
I don't know about that Sonata but with the auto belts on my Escort, the front seat occupants still had to manually secure the lap belt AND IIRC, the owner's manual indicated that the automatic belts were only really effective if the lap belt was secured as well.
07-07-2009, 04:44 PM
#24
Moto Enthusiast
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Sacramento, CA
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I would've included "Altezza" or "Euro" tail lights on the list. That was one of the biggest fads around California, I don't know about the rest of the country. Still ugly though.
07-07-2009, 05:31 PM
#25
when I saw the thread title Spinners immediately came to mind. I was glad to see it on the list. Other than that the list isn't so bad.
Huge SUVs don't really bother me, because I know people who tow or live on farms and require something like that as a family hauler/work horse. So there are people who need them. But the all metal thing bothers me. i am a fan of cladding when it ocmes to off road vehicles. It saves owners who really use their SUVs from paint scratches.
Huge SUVs don't really bother me, because I know people who tow or live on farms and require something like that as a family hauler/work horse. So there are people who need them. But the all metal thing bothers me. i am a fan of cladding when it ocmes to off road vehicles. It saves owners who really use their SUVs from paint scratches.
07-07-2009, 05:45 PM
#26
Evil Mazda Driver
Not sure but I'm hoping that in 20 years the current fad of REALLY narrow side windows will make a list such as this. I can't even stick my head out the window of the Mercedes CLS. What happens if you get into a crash, the car catches fire and the doors are jammed shut? No climbing out the windows for you...you're fucked. 
07-07-2009, 07:40 PM
#29
Great list. I would add a few things onto this list like:
~ Lame engine covers to make it look beefier than it is
~ Cars that beep constantly if you don't wear your seatbelt
~ Cars that have annoying automatic shift patterns like Jag's "J" gate
~ Silly looking spoilers that come from the factory
~ Fake carbon fiber trim
~ T tops
~ People replacing their badges with bright yellow, red, or other obnoxious colors
~ People putting "Type R" or "Type S" or other badges that don't apply to their car on them
~ Lame engine covers to make it look beefier than it is
~ Cars that beep constantly if you don't wear your seatbelt
~ Cars that have annoying automatic shift patterns like Jag's "J" gate
~ Silly looking spoilers that come from the factory
~ Fake carbon fiber trim
~ T tops
~ People replacing their badges with bright yellow, red, or other obnoxious colors
~ People putting "Type R" or "Type S" or other badges that don't apply to their car on them
I think they're the best thing ever. You pretty much get a drop-top minus the faggyness, and the extra care and wear and tear. Also more structurally rigid than a targa.... I was sorely disappointed when I rode in a classmate's 2002 NSX with 15,000 miles and it rattled constantly over 70-75mph.Before anyone says anything, I don't even look remotely white so I can't be called a redneck
07-08-2009, 01:39 AM
#33
My only car is a Bus
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Republik of Kalifornia
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When is a door not a door? When it's ajar!
~ Coffee can exhaust tips
~ Curb feelers
~ Fake wood grain dash kits
~ Under car lighting
~ Cheap body kits
~ Glowing cigarette lighter plug-ins
~ Steel floormats
~ Mirror tinting
~ Wheels with the wrong offset
~ Stick on brake caliper covers
~ Splash graphics
~ Baby on board signs
~ Skull shift knobs
~ Wood bead seat covers
~ Fake wood steering wheel covers
T tops might work but I get a bad 70s vibe from them.
~ Coffee can exhaust tips
~ Curb feelers
~ Fake wood grain dash kits
~ Under car lighting
~ Cheap body kits
~ Glowing cigarette lighter plug-ins
~ Steel floormats
~ Mirror tinting
~ Wheels with the wrong offset
~ Stick on brake caliper covers
~ Splash graphics
~ Baby on board signs
~ Skull shift knobs
~ Wood bead seat covers
~ Fake wood steering wheel covers
T tops might work but I get a bad 70s vibe from them.
07-08-2009, 01:59 AM
#34
One on the right for me
Great list. I would add a few things onto this list like:
~ Lame engine covers to make it look beefier than it is
~ Cars that beep constantly if you don't wear your seatbelt
~ Cars that have annoying automatic shift patterns like Jag's "J" gate
~ Silly looking spoilers that come from the factory
~ Fake carbon fiber trim
~ T tops
~ People replacing their badges with bright yellow, red, or other obnoxious colors
~ People putting "Type R" or "Type S" or other badges that don't apply to their car on them
~ Lame engine covers to make it look beefier than it is
~ Cars that beep constantly if you don't wear your seatbelt
~ Cars that have annoying automatic shift patterns like Jag's "J" gate
~ Silly looking spoilers that come from the factory
~ Fake carbon fiber trim
~ T tops
~ People replacing their badges with bright yellow, red, or other obnoxious colors
~ People putting "Type R" or "Type S" or other badges that don't apply to their car on them
07-08-2009, 04:29 AM
#35
an asshole from florida
i fucking hate the beeping when not wearing the seatbelt. I understand the ones that beep for a few seconds after you start the car but then there are those that just dont stop
07-08-2009, 06:00 AM
#37
when i was a kid mom had a nissan 240, normally it would be 90-95 degrees out, the automatic seat belt constantly choke me and put burn marks on my neck, i'm glad they're gone. would have been better if they only engage when the car is in drive or something.
Huge SUV's are fine if you can afford them.
I think parking your S-class or A8 in front of a not-so-good home should be apart of the list. Nothings wrong with it, just stands out really hard. See it here all the time.
Huge SUV's are fine if you can afford them.
I think parking your S-class or A8 in front of a not-so-good home should be apart of the list. Nothings wrong with it, just stands out really hard. See it here all the time.
