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HomeDesign Notes

Design Notes

1978 Ford Fairmont 4-door seda
Design Notes

U.S. cars often suffered from weak styling continuity and boxy shapes in 1970-80s

February 28, 2025 Steve 17

(EXPANDED FROM 1/23/2023) This post’s comment thread has received a burst of new attention, so I thought it would be worth expanding upon my original argument. I wrote this article in response to debates about […]

1978 Volkswagen Scirocco
Design Notes

First-generation Scirocco was trendy but didn’t look like a Volkswagen

February 14, 2025 Steve 26

(EXPANDED FROM 1/16/2023) Yesterday Aaron Severson weighed in on the original Volkswagen Scirocco, so this is a good time to expand on a piece I wrote a few years ago after finding a rare — […]

1958 Imperial
Design Notes

1958 Imperial: Virgil Exner’s best shot at Cadillac

February 5, 2025 Steve 8

(EXPANDED FROM 9/2/2022) The 1958 Imperial has received little attention by automotive historians even though it arguably represented the brand at its peak. Never again would Chrysler’s luxury car offer so many field-leading product innovations. […]

1964 Lincoln Continental
Design Notes

The 1964-65 Lincoln Continental was a step backward rather than forward

January 13, 2025 Steve 5

(EXPANDED FROM 4/13/2022) A brochure for the 1964 Lincoln Continental was almost apologetic in describing “significant improvements” to the car. “You will appreciate greater leg room, knee room and head room. In the rear compartment, […]

1956 Ugly Car of Year Award
Design Notes

1956 Ugly Car of the Year Award: Indies get desperate

December 31, 2024 Steve 17

(EXPANDED FROM 11/25/2022) For 1956 the Big Three were on relatively good behavior. Only two of their products was outrageous enough to be nominated for Indie Auto’s Ugly Car of the Year Award. All the […]

1971 AMC Gremlin and VW Beetle front
Design Notes

Richard Teague’s styling helped to kill American Motors

December 20, 2024 Steve 28

(EXPANDED FROM 3/19/2021) This story has received more reader pushback than almost any other single piece that I have published in Indie Auto. Even so, I think that it epitomizes what this blog is all […]

Design Notes

Ford did better than Chrysler in differentiating its 1970s mid-sized coupes

December 13, 2024 Steve 13

(EXPANDED FROM 5/14/2021) A few years ago CJ and Geeber commented that the 1975 Dodge Charger would have worked better if it had been given the more distinctive design of the 1978 Magnum XE. That’s […]

1968 Chevrolet Impala taillights
Design Notes

1968 Chevrolet Impala shows how much American cars changed in 10 years

October 24, 2024 Steve 4

We recently took a look at a 1958 Impala, so let’s fast forward 10 years. The 1968 Impala illustrates how much the U.S. auto industry had changed in one decade. The 1968 Impala was almost […]

2022 Chevrolet Corvette front
Design Notes

Styling comparison: C8 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray versus the original

September 5, 2024 Steve 17

(UPDATED FROM 10/19/2022) When I finally saw a new mid-engined Chevrolet Corvette Stingray in the wild a few years ago I wondered why General Motors called it a Corvette. The so-called C8 generation is simply […]

1963 Cadillac Coupe de Ville
Design Notes

1963 Cadillac: The car that mainstreamed the brougham look

August 23, 2024 Steve 16

(EXPANDED FROM 12/16/2022) Pointing to the exact moment that the brougham look gained traction in the U.S. is an inexact science. For one thing, this design approach, which mimicked the classic look of luxury cars […]

Posts pagination

« 1 … 4 5 6 … 9 »
  • Is Jaguar smart to run away from its design heritage?
    October 8, 2026 20
  • AMC Pacer clay model
    Why does Joe Ligo’s PBS series sanewash AMC’s mid-70s recklessness?
    October 6, 2026 20
  • 2026 Ram pickups
    A pyrrhic regulatory rollback and how poorly the 1978 Matador coupe sold
    October 2, 2026 12
  • 1962 Chrysler 300
    Did the 1962-65 Chrysler 300 ‘dilute’ the letter series?
    September 29, 2026 7
  • 1968 Ford Mustang
    Three rules led to a stultifying level of conformity in 1960s U.S. car design
    September 24, 2026 12
  • 1976ish Toyota Corolla
    Data on imports sheds light on their dramatic gains from 1964-80
    September 18, 2026 5
  • 1974 Chrysler New Yorker
    1974 Chrysler New Yorker was a tragedy that played out on four levels
    September 16, 2026 16
  • Internet problems reminded me of U.S. automakers in the 1970s
    May 2, 2026 1
  • 1956 Buick hood scoop
    Readers brainstorm ideas for future Indie Auto stories
    October 14, 2022 141
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