Friday, April 26, 2002 |
11:10 - Seems the G-Class is here.
http://www.mercedes-benz.com/e/cars/g-class/default.htm
|
(top) |
On the way to work this morning, I passed two car-carriers headed to Mercedes dealerships. In both of their loads were new G-Class SUVs.
Now that even Jeep has gone yuppie and bulbous, I suppose it's good that at least somebody has taken up the torch of the "timeless-look" vehicle-- one that looks like it could have been built new in the 70s, 80s, 40s, or today.
One thing I noticed about the motorcycle world is that aside from the Gold Wings and the sportbikes with the ultra-involved fairings, motorcycle makers seem fairly immune to the styling trends of the automotive world. A new Honda Nighthawk looks pretty much the same today as it did in 1983. Harleys-- well, it goes without saying that they look the same as they ever did. But in the sportbike world, it's awfully hard to place the era of a bike's design.
This is nice in a way. It means bike design isn't susceptible to the wild swings of stylistic overcompensation that gives us our periodic infatuations with "retro" cars, and it means the makers are more free to concentrate on performance and quality than on style. But you know, I do like style. It's my primary field of interest, in fact, in things with wheels. So I do sort of find myself miffed at that lack of emphasis.
Ah well. There will always be car designs to comment upon.
|
|