Trends

[bbowser]

I lament the fact that they all look the same now.  If seen from the side you can't tell a Chevy from a Kia from a Hyundai, Buick, Toyota, Nissan, et al.  Transportation appliances.  No wonder kids no longer care about getting their drivers license.  But I kinda like black rims😎

[Daddyfink]

3 minutes ago, bbowser said:

I lament the fact that they all look the same now.  If seen from the side you can't tell a Chevy from a Kia from a Hyundai, Buick, Toyota, Nissan, et al.  Transportation appliances.  No wonder kids no longer care about getting their drivers license.  But I kinda like black rims😎

Looks like a pack of Tic Tacs! 

[iamsuperdan]

Couple of recent trends I've noticed and dislike a great deal. So many trucks here doing this. Including half of the techs here at work.

 

1. windshield tint. people putting a tinted band at the bottom of their windshield and one at the top. Leaving a small band across the middle that is untinted. 

2. trucks will ridiculously wide wheels. Their wheel bearings must be loving it.

Here's a random internet pic that shows both.

[Mike C.]

46 minutes ago, Daddyfink said:

Looks like a pack of Tic Tacs! 

I had to do a double take. I first thought this was a picture of all the same cars! 

Brings the jellybean term to a whole new level.

[Mr. Metallic]

18 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

 

Re: "get off my lawn", etc.

Somebody want to explain to me why every thread where anyone voices their opinion that an ugly copycat design trend or some stupid modification based on technical ignorance (like the idiotic donk thing that destroys a vehicles handling and ride characteristics, or the equally stupid extreme camber that also ruins a cars handling and destroys tires rapidly to boot) ALWAYS devolves into bashing old guys?

If it wasn't for old guys, this hobby wouldn't still exist. We're the primary target demographic that model car manufacturers aim for in the US. We spend the most money supporting the hobby. And some of us have forgotten more than most of the "youngsters" will ever know.

So WHY does somebody invariably start in with the snide remarks about age? What's the deal? I'd really like to know.

Bill, to be fair, I made no mention of anyone's age. I have great respect for people that are older than me, that's how I was raised. And in general when I participate in anything model car related, whether in person or online, I am surrounded by people older than I. I just soak in all the knowledge that I can.

This is addressed to everyone who asked- Threads like this that include endless complaining and piling on about styles and trends, what's the point???  I can usually avoid them when the titles are better, but this one was vague and had a lot of participation so I thought maybe it would be useful. I'm all for first amendment rights, so for all those that want to participate, go right ahead. 

[imarriedawitch]

It would be a much better conversation if people would lower the temperature of their comments. If something isn't to your personal taste to agressively  label it as hideous, stupid and idiotic doesn't leave alot of room for someone to opine differently in a respectful manner. For the most part when you buy something it pretty much becomes yours to do with as you please, not what others deem acceptable. The contempt for and the offense  taken at something that really comes down to personal choice and taste really seems misplaced to me. The result is the usual dogpile of grievences that these topics devolve into. We build things here but all too often the urge to rip something apart seems to dominate.

Edited August 12, 2022 by imarriedawitch

[1972coronet]

6 hours ago, iamsuperdan said:

1. windshield tint. people putting a tinted band at the bottom of their windshield and one at the top. Leaving a small band across the middle that is untinted. 

2. trucks will ridiculously wide wheels. Their wheel bearings must be loving it.

That ridiculous tint-film-top-and-bottom trend was everywhere here in the 1980s! 
Ugly then, and even worse now.

I see your trucks-with-ridiculously-wide-wheels, and raise you low-profile "off road" tyres/20"+ alloy wheels.
Nothing quite says "durable" and "sturdy" like off road tyres with a 2"-3" sidewall profile wrapped-around wheels that would crack if they hit a curb.
Then there's the fake bead locks...

[Mike C.]

Will someone please explain to me what's going on with those wildly cambered wheels you see on these hoopties. There is no way this can be good for handling. And when is this nonsense going to stop.

 

[Tabbysdaddy]

40 minutes ago, Mike C. said:

Will someone please explain to me what's going on with those wildly cambered wheels you see on these hoopties. There is no way this can be good for handling. And when is this nonsense going to stop.

 

I heard it's so you can fit wider wheels and since they don't stick out past the fender lip at the top it doesn't fail inspection, for those that have inspections.

[Mike C.]

Are these morons even a little aware that uneven tire wear is not a good thing.

[Mike C.]

Not to mention, suspension component wear.

[Tabbysdaddy]

24 minutes ago, Mike C. said:

Are these morons even a little aware that uneven tire wear is not a good thing.

I didn't know that not wanting to be harassed by the police because your tires stick out an inch is moronic. They're following the letter of the motor vehicle code. Stop buying them tires if it bothers you so much.

[imarriedawitch]

52 minutes ago, Mike C. said:

Are these morons even a little aware that uneven tire wear is not a good thing.

Looking at the money tied up in these cars I'm guessing it's just the cost of having their car the way they want it. It's just parts and money. Would doing donuts and burnouts in a parking lot be more acceptable? The world is full of rational people doing irrational things.

Edited August 12, 2022 by imarriedawitch

[keyser]

You mean stupid just like a hi-boy with no fenders and no top so it can throw stones in your face, or hunching over a steering column in a T-bucket or chopped sled? Or driving an off-road tired truck on roads and commuting? Maybe cutting a hole in hood for a blower, and a tiny fuel cell so car useless for any moderate road trips is moronic too? 
Probably driving a restored 50-60’s car with a steering column that will punch right through your chest would be moronic as well. 
Wait, that’s a big chunk of a HOBBY. 
Sad you don’t approve. Most of us will only sleep 7-8hr/night worrying about it. 🤣🤦🏻‍♂️

[Brian Austin]

On 8/11/2022 at 2:59 AM, StevenGuthmiller said:

No accounting for taste I guess.

The real test will be to see how many 2020 Hyundai Elantras are being restored 50 years from now.

 

 

 

Steve

Not everyone thinks muscle cars are the greatest thing ever.  😛

Personally, '70s American cars don't do anything for me.  The complaints lobbed in this thread against today's cars would just as well apply to this particular era in my opinion.

And as far as the second comment goes, it's not up to us to determine what will be collectible far off into the future.  Hobbyists will decide when the time comes, speaking of trends.  There was a time station wagons and minivans were uncool, and Japanese imports were the butt of anti-import sentiment.  Times are changing.

These kinds of arguments are even echoed in the early days of the hobby.  Most at the time thought car collecting revolved around horseless carriages and the brass era, and that the modern cars seen in the parking lots at car shows would never garner the same interest.

The car hobby keeps evolving.

 

[Daddyfink]

The car hobby can be a giant and beautiful buffet of cars. And just like a buffet, there is stuff you  like and stuff you pass, but in the end, it is the same buffet. 

And now, more than ever, the hobby needs to stick together. The Environmental types are beginning to dictate what does and doesn't go with Gas cars, especially modified or vintage types. In California they have held the line to a certain point, but dark clouds are in the horizon. Some states are more free and loose, but here, we are under siege, and they don't care how cool or not your Gas car is. 

And to be honest, it gets boring seeing the same thing at certain shows or meets, It is good when something catches your eye, something different, good or bad. 

So it is ok not to like something, but just take it easy on the hate part. 

OK, I am done with this thread. 

I'm out! 

[StevenGuthmiller]

8 hours ago, Brian Austin said:

And as far as the second comment goes, it's not up to us to determine what will be collectible far off into the future.  Hobbyists will decide when the time comes, speaking of trends.  There was a time station wagons and minivans were uncool, and Japanese imports were the butt of anti-import sentiment.  Times are changing.

You're right about it not being up to us to determine, but my point is that not only is the styling of the vast majority of cars today, and stretching back all of the way to the late 70s, completely uninteresting and monotonous, but I can't imagine that the restoration of a modern car is going to be task that many are going to want to, or be able to undertake.

The tangle of electronic equipment, the overwhelming dominance of plastic parts, etc, is going to make the restoration of a lot of these cars a nightmare on earth.

In the end, my hunch is that 50 years from now, you're still going to see a lot of garages containing '69 Camaros, '67 Mustangs, '69 Roadrunners, '57 Chevies and '32 Fords, but you're probably not going to see many with shiny new, freshly restored Chevy Equinox's.

 

By the way, You're correct about the station wagons and minivans being uncool at one point, and while old examples of station wagons are becoming much more popular today, mini vans are still about as uncool as you're ever going to get.

I don't think you're going to see many people spending $40,000.00 to restore an '84 Dodge Caravan.......but I could be wrong.

People do a lot of stupid things.

 

It's my opinion that it's not so much the age of an item that determines how collectible it is, but more so the items individual appeal, or what it's time in history represents.

Some things will fascinate and carry value forever, and some will not.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

 

 

[stitchdup]

20 hours ago, Mike C. said:

Will someone please explain to me what's going on with those wildly cambered wheels you see on these hoopties. There is no way this can be good for handling. And when is this nonsense going to stop.

 

its on air ride, when its pumped up the wheels sit a bit squarer in the arches. Some have custom suspensions built to allow them to run with all the camber on full drop but they are mostly built in japan where the roads are much better than ours.

[von Zipper]

20 hours ago, Mike C. said:

Will someone please explain to me what's going on with those wildly cambered wheels you see on these hoopties. There is no way this can be good for handling. And when is this nonsense going to stop.

 

Rednecks have been doing this before it became popular

 

[keyser]

6 minutes ago, von Zipper said:

Rednecks have been doing this before it became popular

Inbreeding often has toe abnormalities.

🐷🪕

[1972coronet]

1 hour ago, von Zipper said:

And when is this ["Stanced"] nonsense going to stop.

Soon as their kidneys start passing blood.

[Ace-Garageguy]

In the end, it all comes down to personal taste.

                      

[Greg Myers]

Battleship gray, navy gray, all of a sudden every manufacturer has a color resembling the plain utilitarian gray the navy used.

[iamsuperdan]

On 8/12/2022 at 5:08 PM, imarriedawitch said:

The world is full of rational people doing irrational things.

You have just described the automotive scene. Regardless of the type of custom they're into.

🤪

[Metalbeast]

Black wheels look great.... on beaters. And fleet vehicles. I'm fine with large diameter wheels BUT the fake bead lock thing can go away any time.