Why don't I like Japanese car styling?
Discussion
I've been a car nut forever.
But the cars which I've liked have always been European.
There's something about the styling of Japanese cars in particular which has always irked me and as a result I've owned very few Japanese cars.
I appreciate the engineering which goes into Japanese cars and ones I've known (owned by other people) have been extremely reliable.
The closest they've got to styling I could live with was the LS400... there wasn't really anything objectionable about that car.
Look at this Corolla... it's horrible. There's no need for it.
You could argue it's a sort of 'base' spec car so there's no justification for trying hard... which is a fair point... so why include all those scoops and grilles on the front, why not just the normal horizontal oblong shapes you would normally associate with a basic car?
There's a styling flavour which seems to be in Japanese design houses which marks them out as distinctly Japanese design.
Lexus LFA - where to start!
But the cars which I've liked have always been European.
There's something about the styling of Japanese cars in particular which has always irked me and as a result I've owned very few Japanese cars.
I appreciate the engineering which goes into Japanese cars and ones I've known (owned by other people) have been extremely reliable.
The closest they've got to styling I could live with was the LS400... there wasn't really anything objectionable about that car.
Look at this Corolla... it's horrible. There's no need for it.
You could argue it's a sort of 'base' spec car so there's no justification for trying hard... which is a fair point... so why include all those scoops and grilles on the front, why not just the normal horizontal oblong shapes you would normally associate with a basic car?
There's a styling flavour which seems to be in Japanese design houses which marks them out as distinctly Japanese design.
Lexus LFA - where to start!
I've no idea why you don't like them, maybe you're a mad man/woman! I do understand what you are saying though with the design aspect, you can usually tell an Asian designed car from a European/American styled vehicle.
Personally I love them as they seem more likely to be different instead of conform and I think that's only a good thing. Take the FK8 Honda Civic Type-R for example, whether you like it or not, there is nothing else on the road that looks like it and it's great that Honda had the balls to release a car that looks as it does. Certain manufacturers (BMW, Audi) seem to stick with a template for most of their cars which I really don't like. Why not try and make each model look different?
Stuff like this really annoys me though, I know it isn't just european makes that do this. They went to the trouble of creating a hole for the exhaust, put nice shiney chrome around it and then blank it off. Why???!!
Personally I love them as they seem more likely to be different instead of conform and I think that's only a good thing. Take the FK8 Honda Civic Type-R for example, whether you like it or not, there is nothing else on the road that looks like it and it's great that Honda had the balls to release a car that looks as it does. Certain manufacturers (BMW, Audi) seem to stick with a template for most of their cars which I really don't like. Why not try and make each model look different?
Stuff like this really annoys me though, I know it isn't just european makes that do this. They went to the trouble of creating a hole for the exhaust, put nice shiney chrome around it and then blank it off. Why???!!
I get what you're saying. For a few years now I think the "design language" of the far eastern carmakers have diverged a bit from European tastes. I'm including companies such as Toyota, Kia, Nissan, Honda etc. They seem to have lot of pointy bits and sharp angles which protrude out from the bodywork which isn't to my tastes. Suitable for folding up and turning into a giant robot maybe but not sleek looking IMO.
I think the design language of European manufacturers has diverged from European tastes as well!
Modern mainstream cars are almost all pretty vile to my eyes, and the few which aren't are mostly from the far East. For example, to my eyes the Mazda 3 and Toyota Prius are both far better looking than any C-segment hatch coming out of Europe.
Modern mainstream cars are almost all pretty vile to my eyes, and the few which aren't are mostly from the far East. For example, to my eyes the Mazda 3 and Toyota Prius are both far better looking than any C-segment hatch coming out of Europe.
TO73074E said:
I've no idea why you don't like them, maybe you're a mad man/woman! I do understand what you are saying though with the design aspect, you can usually tell an Asian designed car from a European/American styled vehicle.
Personally I love them as they seem more likely to be different instead of conform and I think that's only a good thing. Take the FK8 Honda Civic Type-R for example, whether you like it or not, there is nothing else on the road that looks like it and it's great that Honda had the balls to release a car that looks as it does. Certain manufacturers (BMW, Audi) seem to stick with a template for most of their cars which I really don't like. Why not try and make each model look different?
Stuff like this really annoys me though, I know it isn't just european makes that do this. They went to the trouble of creating a hole for the exhaust, put nice shiney chrome around it and then blank it off. Why???!!
I'm sure it doesn't take much thinking to work it out:Personally I love them as they seem more likely to be different instead of conform and I think that's only a good thing. Take the FK8 Honda Civic Type-R for example, whether you like it or not, there is nothing else on the road that looks like it and it's great that Honda had the balls to release a car that looks as it does. Certain manufacturers (BMW, Audi) seem to stick with a template for most of their cars which I really don't like. Why not try and make each model look different?
Stuff like this really annoys me though, I know it isn't just european makes that do this. They went to the trouble of creating a hole for the exhaust, put nice shiney chrome around it and then blank it off. Why???!!
- Having just an applique in the rear fascia you can control its size/shape more carefully for no cost
- An exhaust and a fascia have quite a lot of positional tolerance therefore the hole would need to be quite oversized to suite, or have more expensive positional control features to have the two match up
- An exhaust moves with powertrain motion so the hole size needs to account for that
At the end of the day, it's down to cost to get the finish they want.
GroundEffect said:
At the end of the day, it's down to cost to get the finish they want.
And how many people do you think even notice, let alone care? It's just a styling feature like the ridiculous "diffusers" you get on modern cars which end in a gaping hole six inches forward of the bumper. TO73074E said:
I've no idea why you don't like them, maybe you're a mad man/woman! I do understand what you are saying though with the design aspect, you can usually tell an Asian designed car from a European/American styled vehicle.
Personally I love them as they seem more likely to be different instead of conform and I think that's only a good thing. Take the FK8 Honda Civic Type-R for example, whether you like it or not, there is nothing else on the road that looks like it and it's great that Honda had the balls to release a car that looks as it does. Certain manufacturers (BMW, Audi) seem to stick with a template for most of their cars which I really don't like. Why not try and make each model look different?
Stuff like this really annoys me though, I know it isn't just european makes that do this. They went to the trouble of creating a hole for the exhaust, put nice shiney chrome around it and then blank it off. Why???!!
There are a lot of customers for Japanese car styling. So I accept it definitely a discussion about personal taste. Personally I love them as they seem more likely to be different instead of conform and I think that's only a good thing. Take the FK8 Honda Civic Type-R for example, whether you like it or not, there is nothing else on the road that looks like it and it's great that Honda had the balls to release a car that looks as it does. Certain manufacturers (BMW, Audi) seem to stick with a template for most of their cars which I really don't like. Why not try and make each model look different?
Stuff like this really annoys me though, I know it isn't just european makes that do this. They went to the trouble of creating a hole for the exhaust, put nice shiney chrome around it and then blank it off. Why???!!
I think some of it is just a general over-styling in all modern cars. Swoops, flourishes, grilles etc seem to abound nowadays.
If I think back at some of the Japanese cars I have had in the 80s/90s - Supra (Mk2), MR2 (Mk1), Honda CRX I think they were much 'purer' then than now, though you could always find something that pushed the envelope like the later Mk3/4 Celicas. Once into the late 90s/00s things began to take off... My 370z I think looks fantastic yet there are quite a few people who aren't keen on the styling. Weirdos.
I do also wonder whether there is some element of prejudice (or simply some cultural/taste differences) as some of the styling you see on Japanese cars that cause negative comments when found on a BMW or Porsche are labelled as design details and lauded. Perhaps dialed down a little more/more sublte? Or fewer of them?
If I think back at some of the Japanese cars I have had in the 80s/90s - Supra (Mk2), MR2 (Mk1), Honda CRX I think they were much 'purer' then than now, though you could always find something that pushed the envelope like the later Mk3/4 Celicas. Once into the late 90s/00s things began to take off... My 370z I think looks fantastic yet there are quite a few people who aren't keen on the styling. Weirdos.
I do also wonder whether there is some element of prejudice (or simply some cultural/taste differences) as some of the styling you see on Japanese cars that cause negative comments when found on a BMW or Porsche are labelled as design details and lauded. Perhaps dialed down a little more/more sublte? Or fewer of them?
Om said:
I think some of it is just a general over-styling in all modern cars. Swoops, flourishes, grilles etc seem to abound nowadays.
If I think back at some of the Japanese cars I have had in the 80s/90s - Supra (Mk2), MR2 (Mk1), Honda CRX I think they were much 'purer' then than now, though you could always find something that pushed the envelope like the later Mk3/4 Celicas. Once into the late 90s/00s things began to take off... My 370z I think looks fantastic yet there are quite a few people who aren't keen on the styling. Weirdos.
I do also wonder whether there is some element of prejudice (or simply some cultural/taste differences) as some of the styling you see on Japanese cars that cause negative comments when found on a BMW or Porsche are labelled as design details and lauded. Perhaps dialed down a little more/more sublte? Or fewer of them?
Naa... remember the Chris Bangle BMWs... they got roasted. Similarly for an up to date example... the buggs bunny grilles on the current BMWs. If I think back at some of the Japanese cars I have had in the 80s/90s - Supra (Mk2), MR2 (Mk1), Honda CRX I think they were much 'purer' then than now, though you could always find something that pushed the envelope like the later Mk3/4 Celicas. Once into the late 90s/00s things began to take off... My 370z I think looks fantastic yet there are quite a few people who aren't keen on the styling. Weirdos.
I do also wonder whether there is some element of prejudice (or simply some cultural/taste differences) as some of the styling you see on Japanese cars that cause negative comments when found on a BMW or Porsche are labelled as design details and lauded. Perhaps dialed down a little more/more sublte? Or fewer of them?
Your point appears to make cars look dull, especially to suit their segment? Basic cars should be bland?
That was a thing up to the early 00s because these features cost a lot more. Now with modern tooling processes and for example lamp technologies (LED etc) now allow much more elaborate designs without costing the earth...
...so why should they hold back? And make their cars look purposefully basic? It's pure economics - make the car appear more expensive than it is.
Even the Dacia Sandero now looks a lot more elaborate than it did 5-10 years ago.
That was a thing up to the early 00s because these features cost a lot more. Now with modern tooling processes and for example lamp technologies (LED etc) now allow much more elaborate designs without costing the earth...
...so why should they hold back? And make their cars look purposefully basic? It's pure economics - make the car appear more expensive than it is.
Even the Dacia Sandero now looks a lot more elaborate than it did 5-10 years ago.
I used to think like this, many years ago, I couldn’t imagine Japanese stuff being desirable. For many years I’ve realised I was wrong back in the day, they’re brilliant.
I think the turning point was my dad being a VW GTi man, then going all Honda vtec, they seemed leagues ahead.
I’m not a fan of the recent stuff, but nineties and noughties they blew it out of the park, and now being on that side of the world I love even the worst of the old skool stuff. Japan is brilliant.
I think the turning point was my dad being a VW GTi man, then going all Honda vtec, they seemed leagues ahead.
I’m not a fan of the recent stuff, but nineties and noughties they blew it out of the park, and now being on that side of the world I love even the worst of the old skool stuff. Japan is brilliant.
Google [bot] said:
I used to think like this, many years ago, I couldn’t imagine Japanese stuff being desirable. For many years I’ve realised I was wrong back in the day, they’re brilliant.
I think the turning point was my dad being a VW GTi man, then going all Honda vtec, they seemed leagues ahead.
I’m not a fan of the recent stuff, but nineties and noughties they blew it out of the park, and now being on that side of the world I love even the worst of the old skool stuff. Japan is brilliant.
Older tends to be better. The MK1 MR2 was pretty good in a wedgy sort of way. I think the turning point was my dad being a VW GTi man, then going all Honda vtec, they seemed leagues ahead.
I’m not a fan of the recent stuff, but nineties and noughties they blew it out of the park, and now being on that side of the world I love even the worst of the old skool stuff. Japan is brilliant.
People like their own things. I love Japanese cars, their styling (exterior and interior) and engineering. For me Eurotrash is either stuck in the past or far too reserved, nervously hazarding a crease here or there, it's just so tedious. Then when they do try something new it just looks utter rubbish (new BMW grills), or Mercedes interiors - I have an iPad at home I don't want one in the car too.
Actually having grown up with Japanese cars for decades, I would have agreed with you completely up to about 15 years back, but now in my opinion many Japanese cars have taken on very European design cues, whereas before they were undoubtedly Japanese in style, somewhat weird and oddball, blobby perhaps. In my eyes the recent Euro-volution of Japanese car design has been extremely evident. Many Mazdas could just as easily be badged Ford for example. There's little to separate an Opel such as a Mokka from one of those Hyundais in general style. (OK, Korean, but hey).
GroundEffect said:
I'm sure it doesn't take much thinking to work it out:
- Having just an applique in the rear fascia you can control its size/shape more carefully for no cost
- An exhaust and a fascia have quite a lot of positional tolerance therefore the hole would need to be quite oversized to suite, or have more expensive positional control features to have the two match up
- An exhaust moves with powertrain motion so the hole size needs to account for that
At the end of the day, it's down to cost to get the finish they want.
I'll be brief as I don't want to derail the thread. Surely the better solution is to just have a plain bumper? The higher end models seem to have the exhausted routed normally. The chrome surround just highlights there is nothing happening there but this is where an exhaust would normally be! It's even worse when you know the exhaust is a few inches behind it but pointed 90 degrees downwards. "Ooh but it's more premium if you buy the flagship model and the exhaust exits where it is expected". No it's a rubbish design. Sorry but it's stupid, rant over. - Having just an applique in the rear fascia you can control its size/shape more carefully for no cost
- An exhaust and a fascia have quite a lot of positional tolerance therefore the hole would need to be quite oversized to suite, or have more expensive positional control features to have the two match up
- An exhaust moves with powertrain motion so the hole size needs to account for that
At the end of the day, it's down to cost to get the finish they want.
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