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HomeDesign Notes

Design Notes

1968 Chrysler New Yorker 2-door hardtop
Design Notes

1968 Chrysler New Yorker: The peak of ‘peak Chrysler?’

November 14, 2025 Steve 22

(EXPANDED FROM 7/8/2022) Paul Niedermeyer (2021) has called the 1965 Chrysler New Yorker “the last great Chrysler.” He argued that this particular vintage “represents a pinnacle: never again would the New Yorker attain this degree […]

1974 AMC Matador Brougham coupe didn't do luxury very well
Design Notes

Should AMC have given the 1974 Matador coupe a luxury spin-off?

October 30, 2025 Steve 10

(EXPANDED FROM 8/21/2020) Patrick Foster (2024) illustrates how fanboy sentiment can undercut the quality of historical analysis by arguing that AMC should have offered a luxury spin-off of the 1974 Matador coupe — and that […]

1961 Chrysler New Yorker convertible
Design Notes

Chrysler brand looked the least weird of automaker’s 1961 line

October 20, 2025 Steve 12

(EXPANDED FROM 6/13/2022) While the 1961 Chrysler was hardly a stylistic masterpiece, it strikes me as being the least weird of the automaker’s lineup. The Plymouth suffered from a bizarre shark-faced fascia and the Imperial’s […]

Design Notes

1967-74 Mercury Cougar: A classic goes to hell

October 9, 2025 Steve 21

(EXPANDED FROM 7/20/2022) The 1967-74 Mercury Cougar is a tragic story of a classic design going to hell. The first-generation models, which were produced from 1967-68, were among the best-looking pony cars of the late-60s. […]

1955 Packard hood
Design Notes

1955 Packard styling too closely copied Cadillac’s to rebuild its cachet

September 24, 2025 Steve 35

(EXPANDED FROM 1/20/2023) This essay has generated more blowback than almost any other post at Indie Auto. In a way I find that surprising because it makes what strikes me as a fairly mundane point: […]

2008 Scion xB
Design Notes

Toyota ruined the Scion xB by making it too big

September 11, 2025 Steve 11

(EXPANDED FROM 1/22/2021) Toyota has had an enviably strong track record here in the United States, but it has had a few misses. They include its mishandling of the ill-fated Scion subbrand. Although one could […]

1964 Studebaker Daytona rear quarter
Design Notes

1964 Studebaker: Brooks Stevens hammered final nail in the coffin

August 27, 2025 Steve 27

(EXPANDED FROM 4/16/2021) One of my more unpopular takes is that Studebaker shouldn’t have assigned Brooks Stevens to restyle the 1964 Lark. He may have had a more mainstream design sensibility than Raymond Loewy, but […]

1973 Saab 96
Design Notes

Should Saab have come out with a retro 96 in the 1990s?

August 19, 2025 Steve 9

EXPANDED FROM 3/14/2022) In a Hemmings post about a 1971 Saab 96 for sale, Mike McNessor (2014) described the car as “irresistible and timeless as the VW Beetle or the Mini.” He went on to wonder […]

1972 Ford Thunderbird
Design Notes

How did Bunkie Knudsen influence the 1972 Ford Thunderbird?

August 8, 2025 Steve 9

(EXPANDED FROM 8/12/2022) For 1972 the Ford Thunderbird brochure tried to get extra fancy with see-through paper. And on inside pages the text gushed that the only way to change the car was to “Make […]

2025 Kia K5 rear
Design Notes

Will cars with ‘crying-eyes’ styling withstand the test of time?

July 31, 2025 Steve 10

(EXPANDED FROM 2/18/2022) The automotive media tend to treat even the ugliest styling trends like the courtiers who ignore when the emperor has no clothes. I thus found it refreshing to see Sajeev Mehta critique […]

Posts pagination

« 1 2 3 … 9 »
  • 1950 Nash Rambler hood ornament
    Speedreaders.info is a rare source of book reviews, but quality varies
    June 3, 2026 0
  • 1958 Lincoln
    1958-60 Lincoln: Failing to beat GM at its own game
    June 2, 2026 12
  • 1957 Nash Ambassador
    Three videos: The death of car culture, rich people’s cars and the 1957 Nash
    May 29, 2026 6
  • 1963 Mercury Marauder
    1963 Mercury Marauder: Ford tries to do a premium-priced car on the cheap
    May 27, 2026 11
  • Did 1964 Ramblers share more parts between size classes than competitors?
    May 26, 2026 1
  • 1976 Tatra T-613
    Tatra was yet another automaker that deemphasized aerodynamics by 1970s
    May 22, 2026 12
  • Patrick Foster shows how International Harvester failed to adapt
    May 13, 2026 5
  • 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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