Automotive copycats??

Ok, I know styling is subjective but I hate seeing a blatant copycat. I mean, can't your designers design your own car? That's where my dislike for Lexus came about. I remember at the NAIAS I was looking at the brand new to the world Luxury car line, Lexus and thinking, isn't that a 3 year old Mercedes?
Not all "copycat" work is bad though. Some would say the Miata is a copy of the 60's British roadsters, even mazda said it. But it's not the styling that was copied, it was the purpose and feel and they nailed it then added in reliability.
So, what are the worst styling copycats out there? I picked a few but left plenty out there (heck, I didn't even look at the Chinese cars).

When I saw my first C class sport coup I thought "Cool, VW is coming out with a new Corrado!!!" Then I saw the 3 pointed star. What a bummer.

Then there is the HHR and PT cruiser. I'm sure then prez of GM said "oh, you designed the PT Cruiser? What a great looking car, and a good seller too. Can you design one for us?"

Then there is the debacle known as the Vehicross!

Hey I like the vehicross! If I could find one in challenge budget I would be all over it.

How about the Hyundai/ Mercedes clone. Had the headlight pretty well down.

They've been copying each other forever, it's nothing new. There's a famous story about how GM designers back in the 1950s would go past Chrysler on their lunch break and peek over the fence; when they saw the tailfins on the 1957 Plymouth they had to scramble to put big fins on all the GM cars. From a Motor Trend interview of Chuck Jordan:

MTC:Weren't you also involved with the 1959 Cadillac Eldorado, with the highest-ever fins? Jordan: In 1957 we were working on the 1959s, and Earl, before he retired, in my opinion he lost it. He was still thinking big roofs, big chrome front ends, thick bodies. And for 1959 he wanted the same thing. Nobody liked it, including Mitchell. And so at lunchtime I drove to the Plymouth plant a few miles away, and I'm looking through the fence and all I could see were fins, fins, fins. And I thought, wow! So I got Mitchell and a group together, and we looked through the fence. And that afternoon we started a second design, while Earl was away on a trip. Mitchell had guts. After we finished the design, Harley Earl came in, looked around, and walked out. Didn't say a word. A couple of days later, Mitchell told us that Earl had decided to support the second design.

Read more: http://www.motortrend.com/classic/c12_0601_chuck_jordan_interview/losing_the_edge.html#ixzz0aFetbnL5

You guys need to do a little more research. The same guy (Bryan Nesbitt) designed the PT Crapper and the HHR and then the same guy designed the Ascari and the MP4-12C (can't remember his name, but he's penned a bunch of supercars).

And before anybody posts the KIA Forte Koup/Honda Civic, the Koup looks eleventy bazillion times better!!

P71 wrote: You guys need to do a little more research. The same guy (Bryan Nesbitt) designed the PT Crapper and the HHR

Yeah, that's why I said what I said. I knew Bryan went from DCX to GM.

cwh wrote: How about the Hyundai/ Mercedes clone. Had the headlight pretty well down.

That one always cracked me up. It was pretty good from 200'...

On a broader note with the same these, I thought Lexus did a great job ripping off Bangle's BMW catastrophes making them coherent and very handsome.

Seems like every luxury car these days is going for a blend of Benz and Lexus.

Hell, look at the new Buick Lacrosse--does this say Buick?!

That said--it looks like a great car and I'm thrilled an American manufacturer is putting out a car like this.

If it takes all the good stuff about the previous generation Lacrosse and firms up the suspension a bit so it isn't so "floaty" and improves a few interior finishes, then they've got a massive home run on their hands.

To me the current US Honda Accord looks to likes a Chris Bangle BMW 5 series with a big "H" logo where the BMW nostrils normally reside.

P71 wrote: You guys need to do a little more research. The same guy (Bryan Nesbitt) designed the PT Crapper and the HHR and then the same guy designed the Ascari and the MP4-12C (can't remember his name, but he's penned a bunch of supercars).

And both of them are apparently one-trick ponies. Where's Giovanni Michelotti when you need him?

The new LaCrosse looks a lot like the current Mazda 6 to me. Also, the previous generation Hyundai Sonata looked a lot like an Accord.

Then again, now that so much of the styling is dictated by the CFD software, you'd sort of expect them all to look the same.

It's understandable from a marketing perspective because you've gotta sell cars and people are more likely to buy a car that looks "upscale" than one that looks like nothing else on the market.

Look at how hated the Prius, Smart Car, Insight, and other "non-traditional" cars are. People don't like the looks because they EXPECT them to look like something else.

At the same time, people mitch and boan about how cars look TOO similar to another.

Me personally? I'd take a Hyundia Gensis sedan over a more expensive BMW or Lexus.

The back of that buick looks like the new acura tl.

I think mercedes was copying the sportback bmw which probably copied the vw corrado. The corrado is a car cool enough to be copied though, modern derivation are worse. The windtunnel is forcing all the cars to look alike.

benzbaron wrote: The back of that buick looks like the new acura tl. I think mercedes was copying the sportback bmw which probably copied the vw corrado. The corrado is a car cool enough to be copied though, modern derivation are worse. The windtunnel is forcing all the cars to look alike.

x7,210,947

I still get people in new Jettas walking up to the black Corrado at the gas station (after they notice the VW badge) and wondering out loud why their dealer didn't have one on the lot..

Oh man! is that a cool looking car!

The Corrado has aged nicely. Looked pretty modern for '88. Would make an interesting rally car...

You know, I wouldn't be surprised if Noble just used the same taillights Hyundaii does. Happens all the time. Just look at the Hummer H1. Or the Esprit; those taillights on the Stevens redesign were from the AE86 Corolla, until 2002.

How about this one the new suzuki somethingorother looks just a bit like the VW Jetta

Then there was the ford Passat....I mean 500

There are only so many ways to style a car.

nderwater wrote: There are only so many ways to style a car.

One of each, please!

gamby wrote: Seems like every luxury car these days is going for a blend of Benz and Lexus. Hell, look at the new Buick Lacrosse--does this say Buick?! That said--it looks like a great car and I'm thrilled an American manufacturer is putting out a car like this. If it takes all the good stuff about the previous generation Lacrosse and firms up the suspension a bit so it isn't so "floaty" and improves a few interior finishes, then they've got a massive home run on their hands.

If the lacrosse does turn out to be a home run, GM will have no choice but to KILL IT IMMEDIATELY!!!

At least this way, they won't have to waste several years turning a promising car into what it should have been to begin with... And then KILLING IT!!!

In reply to nderwater:

Hey that's a pretty cool picture! Did you compile that? It sort of reminds me of the Terror Alert levels. Today's Terror Alert level is Evora.