“Maybe. Then again . . . maybe not. Perhaps this is all just temporary. Consider what happened to American car design in the wake of the 1958 recession. Suddenly, all the jet-aged, tail-finned, twin-turbined, dynaflowed imagery had run its course. The design pendulum began to swing back in the other direction — towards cleanliness and understatement. Elegance and simplicity. Car designers had to adjust, and they did. Compare a 1960 Continental to the 1961 model, and you’ll see what I mean. My point is this: It’s quite possible that someday, some year, the market will grow weary of ‘surface entertainment’ and yearn for something more honest. When that will happen is tough to pinpoint, but history suggests that it eventually will.”
— Jason White, AutoDesign (2012)
RE:SOURCES
- White, Jason; 2012. “So . . . Is Teutonic car design obsolete?” AutoDesign. Posted December. Website no longer online.
Also see ‘Mercedes-Benz W123: Back when form really did follow function’
How can car design return when designers no longer exist. What supposedly exists as car designers today are basically monkeys with computers making the same SUV over again and again. GM is on the road to becoming an electric truck maker.