What is the quintessential x0's car?

[the_yellow_dart]

This should raise some debate around here, and I am interested to see if we could come to any kind of concensus.

What do you think captivates the essence of a particular decade of design? Is there a particular model that comes to mind when you think of the '70s, for example?

I will submit the following picture of an '82 Cutlass coupe as my thought of a quintessential '80s design.

Let's hear those comments!

[bobo]

The Cutlass is a good take for early '80's design, when GM did it best. (By the way, based on the grille, that appears to be an '81.) But I would say the '86 Ford Taurus was probably best representative of the entire decade, when jellybean became the new standard.

The '70's were an odd time, with the gas crisis and smog controls. My pick is the '77 Chevrolet Caprice, the first major downsized full-sized vehicle and followed the squared-off styling introduced by the '76 Seville.

For the '90's, the '90 Ford Explorer, which was probably the most significant SUV ever. The design was clean and was a step up from prior SUV's (like the four-door '84 Jeep Cherokee) and made SUV's mainstream.

For the '00's, the Chrysler 300C. It makes a nice counterpoint to the bland Camries and Accords.

[NOS2006]

90s: sub-compact Dodge/Plymouth cars. 'Nuff said.

[Flybrian]

No doubt which one vehicle symbolizes the 1950s...

Seriously, obviously the...

In fact, I would say the 1959 Cadillac symbolizes the American auto industry all by itself. Big, a bit obnoxious, a bit overwrought, but beloved and timeless.

[FAPTurbo]

No explanation needed.

Edited September 18, 2006 by Captainbooyah

[Bimmer325]

The 80s and 90s were officially the dark age of automobiles.

[Croc]

90s:

[Croc]

The 80s and 90s were officially the dark ages of automobilia.

194683[/snapback]

Disagree. 80s gave us aerodynamics and sleeker styling, while the 90s rounded things out and gave us gentrified SUVs.

The 90s didn't suck with Olds Auroras, Chrysler 300Ms, Intrigues, 97 Grand Prixs, the best-looking Camaro design, etc etc...

The 80s was the decade interior packaging and computer technology was introduced. Minivans?

There were a lot of duds, but there were some that were good. I like the designs of the early W-bodies. I like the Taurus/Sable of the 80s. 80s Corvettes are hot looking.

[Croc]

Seriously, obviously the...

In fact, I would say the 1959 Cadillac symbolizes the American auto industry all by itself. Big, a bit obnoxious, a bit overwrought, but beloved and timeless.

194675[/snapback]

That or the Chevy Tri-5s.

[Flybrian]

What the 1980s and 90s may have lacked in design (as Croc stated, there are some standouts) it more than made up for in technological innovation.

[Variance]

Quintessential 80s:

Nothing screams "80s" more, IMO. Or at least 80s exotic.

[pow]

'90s...

(Released '95, '96, '97, '98 respectively)

Edited September 18, 2006 by empowah

[the_yellow_dart]

I agree with Variance.

The '86 Taurus is an interesting choice - but I almost see that more as a '90s design because mostly everyone else waited until the '90s to get designs this sleek.

The '50s through '70s, I can see us agreeing on fairly easily. Design languages seemed more cohesive during these times. The '80s and especially '90s, I think will be the tough ones.

[Croc]

I still stick with the Explorer for the 90s...America's favorite SUV, SUVs became huge in the 90s...and dammit it still looks good!

[mustang84]

Pretty 70s

Pretty 80s

Pretty 90s

[Cory Wolfe]

Disagree.  80s gave us aerodynamics and sleeker styling, while the 90s rounded things out and gave us gentrified SUVs.

The 90s didn't suck with Olds Auroras, Chrysler 300Ms, Intrigues, 97 Grand Prixs, the best-looking Camaro design, etc etc...

The 80s was the decade interior packaging and computer technology was introduced.  Minivans?

There were a lot of duds, but there were some that were good.  I like the designs of the early W-bodies.  I like the Taurus/Sable of the 80s.  80s Corvettes are hot looking.

194687[/snapback]

Agreed.

(Wow.. I think me and Croc have agree more than tonight than ever before! )

Anywho.. This is tough. I see vehicles like the Cherokee, Fiero, MC SS, Caprice Classic, F-bods, etc as quintessential 80's designs. Those like the F-bods again, Explorer, F150, Taurus, Neon, etc as quintessential 90's designs (some regretfully). The 70's? Man... I'd have to say the 77ish Thunderbird, Mopar sedans, and perhaps GM A bodies. The 60's? Easy. 64 GTO, Mustang, 65 Impala, F-bods, etc. The 50's? Another easy one. 59 Cadillacs, 57 Chevies, and 58 Pontiacs.

[Croc]

$h! I forgot the Cherokee as an 80s...and let's add the Wrangler to that list as every girl I know STILL loves the Wrangler.

BV, Take the F150 off the list and add the 94 Ram. I wouldn't add the 96 Taurus to that list either. Neon? Check. I would also add the New Beetle. I'd say the Dodge Caravan is a 90s quintessential as that was the minivan of choice among the soccer moms.

[Flybrian]

The Ranger occupies three decades.

[Hudson]

For the 1970s, I'd have to say the GM A-Cars. Bloated and excessive, they were the stereotype of the 1970s...cars and the decade as a whole.

As for the 1980s, I'd vote for the Ford Taurus. It was a decade of transition. From a time of isolationist US industry to the first true attempt to compete on a global scale...and the Taurus was the first move in this direction.

[Camino LS6]

It's tough to draw lines as there is so much overlap. The early '70's was nothing like the late '70's, for example. Even so, here are some candidates.

50's: Tri-5 Chevies, Ford Thunderbird,'59 Caddy, Chrysler letter cars

60's: VW bug, GM "A" bodies, Mopar Muscle,Ford Mustang

Early 70's: see 60's list. Late 70's: GM "A" bodies (collonade), Ford Granada, Ford Country Squire wagon, Early Honda Civic, Custom Vans, Pontiac Trans Am

Early 80's: Honda Accord, Mopar minivans, Oldsmobile Cutlass, 3rd gen. Camaro, C4 Corvette,Chrysler K cars, Compact pickups

Late 80's: Buick GN/GNX, Iroc Camaro, MC SS, 5.0 Mustang, Ford Taurus, S10 Blazer, Ford BroncoII/Explorer,Honda Accord, Ferrari Testarossa, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, '88 Chevy/GMC trucks

90's: Chevrolet Tahoe, Ford Explorer, Chrysler minivans, Dodge Ram, Dodge Viper, Corvette ZR-1, Toyota Camry, Acura, Infinti,Lexus, Mitsubishi Eclipse,BMW 3 series, Range Rover, SLP F-bodies, Saleen Mustangs

[Hudson]

It's tough to draw lines as there is so much overlap. The early '70's was nothing like the late '70's, for example....

I had a similar problem. The 1977 Chevrolet Caprice, to me, was not a good example of the 1970s because the decade wasn't about downsizing until the last few years.

But to take the decades on their themes, I stand by my choices for the 1970s ("Me" decade) and 1980s ("Reaganomics" decade). I like the choice of the Explorer for the 1990s.

[Camino LS6]

Hey Dart: I deleted the other topics rather than simply closing them.

[the_yellow_dart]

Thanks Camino.

[NOS2006]

Ya know, the Corvette has been iconic in each of the decades it's been a part of, too..

[the_yellow_dart]

Ya know, the Corvette has been iconic in each of the decades it's been a part of, too..

195265[/snapback]

I'd agree, with the possible exception of the '70s.

[z28luvr01]

It wasn't that great of a performer during the 70s, but it was still very, very popular.

[Robert Hall]

For this decade, either the Cadillac Escalade..the poster truck for the 'bling' decade....or the Toyota Prius for the environmentally conscious consumer aspect of the times..

[Petra]

When I think of "the" '90's car, I think of the Honda Civic.

[NOS2006]

When I think of "the" '90's car, I think of the Honda Civic.

195349[/snapback]

I think of Dodge/Plymouth Neon and Shadow/Sundance/Duster. But, yes, the Civic is a pretty '90s car.

[Brandon Lutz]

The 30's:

My uncle restored a car like this one a few years back. Won a lot of car show trophies with it too. He is now working on a 42 Chevy Coupe. Beautiful cars. I think the 30's and 40's produced some of the best looking cars and trucks ever.

[Nick]

'90s...

194746[/snapback]

Granted, that M-roadster first came about earliest in 98, and that 540 is a 2003 (not that there was much difference with other years other than some exterior changes for the most part).

Good choices, but the e39 is somewhat borderline. I'd say the pre-01 style is very 90's-late 90's, but the 01+ made a huge change.

[Sixty8panther]

What the 1980s and 90s may have lacked in design (as Croc stated, there are some standouts) it more than made up for in technological innovation.

194693[/snapback]

I highly dissagre!!!

No amount of technoogy makes up for such crimes against

humanity as the K-car, Toyota Camry & most Hondas.

Lack of design & original styling should never be excused

just because of technological advancement. Quite the

opposite, wiht technological innovation should come more

standout styling and original design.

[Guest YellowJacket894]

I post mine from the view of a want-to-be auto designer (it won't be too long until I go to college to get my degree. . .).

I'll also try to stick with GM and Detroit here. I know when I think of the Fifties, Sixties, and Seventies, I think mostly of GM products. It was during those three decades GM really was a design powerhouse.

1950s: Chevrolet Bel Air has to be the epitome of the Fifties. It brought Cadillac style and flair to mainstream car buyers. You could be a blue-collar schmoe or a Hollywood movie star and have a desire for a Bel Air in your driveway. In a way, it unified America. And, of course, Ford and others had to follow suit.

1960s: Here I usually think of the Ford Mustang, Chevy Impala, and Olds Toronado. The Mustang proved that good design could be used to make a (at the time) small car a hot product. The formula has been repeated dozens of times since, with the most recent example being the Pontiac Solstice.

The Impala was, in truth, the Bel Air of it's decade. The car offered style, power, and comfort to mainstream America along with even a small dose of luxury. The Impala has become, like the Bel Air, a piece of essential Americana.

As for the Toronado, it represented the future of American cars. I don't think anybody knew that at the time, though. However, you have to appreciate the car's brash, Cord-influenced design and the way GM made the front-drive layout available to mainstream buyers and not a novelty. (It's just too bad Detriot has run wild with it. Now a healthy dose of cars are front-drive and I, for one, am sick of it. The sooner we make rear-drive less of an exclusivity to automakers like BMW the better. Rear-drive still is a part of the American car.)

1970s: The Seventies should really be divided up into two sections: 1970 to 1972 and 1973 to 1979. Both parts of the decade really had radical changes in car design. But, when I think of the Seventies as a whole, I think of the GM A-Body (Pontiac LeMans/GTO, most years of Chevy's Chevelle). The early Seventies A-Body was so muscular, a real brute, and, to me, it represented the zenith of the evaporating muscle car genre. For the '73 redesign, the represented what was to come in the future: small on power, small on size, and sort of polarizing at first sight. (I know when I look at a '72 Chevelle next to a '73 Chevelle, the '73 really turns me off. Put the '73 by itself though, you begin to see it's really a understated, clean design.)

1980s: This is really a dark age for design. In the early part of the decade, cars looked like shoeboxes with the aerodynamics of a lead brick. Most of the essential "Grandma's Cars" were built during this time, one of them, to me, being the Olds Cutlass. However, this was also the decade of the sleeper, and, ironically, the Cutlass was one of them, used to make the limited-edition Hurst models. (The same applies for the Regal and it's sleeper sister the Grand National.)

When I bring the Eighties to mind, I usually think of the Olds Cutlass Supreme and Buick Regal for the early part of the decade. The K-Car makes the list, too -- you just can't forget a car that was such an insult to the car buyer and enthusiast alike.

For the later part of the decade, Ford's Taurus comes to mind. It represented what was to come in the Ninties (for proof, just look at a 1996 Lumina.) The Taurus was a design that rather aged well, too -- the car's shape was basically unchanged from 1986 to 1996, a span of ten years. (Same for the second-generation car, too.)

1990s: For the Ninties, I think of Chrysler's LH cars. The cars represented a big change for Chrysler and the press just drooled over these cars. The Eagle Vision was more favored among the press out of the three main LH cars, and it also represented the end of the Eagle name.

The cab-forward design was a bold idea, too, and it returned a huge trunk to the American car. Over the years, a slight cab-forward design influence would make their way to other cars.

Also, you can't ignore the Camry and Accord. As much as I hate the commonality of the cars and the pure arrogance of the companies that made/make them, these things really are the Bel Airs and Impalas of the Ninties due to their commonality. (But at least the Bel Air and Impala managed to put a nice design on the road.)

GM also had a few hits during this time, the revised Olds line and fourth-generation Camaro being among them.

Today: This is a hard time to choose from and the decade's not even over. There are plenty of good designs out there today -- the Solstice, the LX cars from DCX, the list goes on.

Let me know when 2011 is here and I'll get back to you.

Edited September 20, 2006 by YellowJacket894

[Jazzhead]

For the 50's , 1956 Chevy Nomad, with surfboards strapped to the roof.

For the 60's, the 1967 Pontiac GTO, the perfect musclecar.

For the 70's, the screaming chicken Smokey 'n the Bandit Pontiac Firebird

For the 80's, the 1983 T-Bird, which pioneered the "aero" look even before the Taurus did.

For the 90's, the 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited, a phenomenal sales success as the first mass market luxury SUV, and a prime example of nineties lower bodyside cladding.

[balthazar]

The '90s certainly made some fair technological strides, but that decade pales in comparison to the progress made during the 1950s.

[razoredge]

Ill have to disagree with Fly and Camino on the 50's. To me the 59's cant represent the 50's. They were some kind of transition car, while they may have been ground breaking they were really a clue of the early 60's.

So for the 50's Ill go with the 53 Century and 57 Eldorado and give Exner a nod with the Adventurer. Across the pond - all Ferraris, Aston Martins and Jaguars, it was a great decade for them as well.

60's All those perty GM A bodies, but ya know I love my Rivs and Toro's. Lets not forget the glassback Barracuda or Marlin. Ditto from across the pond, add Ford GT & everything Shelby

70's ? Does not split at 73 by any means, It splits and goes all to hell in 77 or 78 depending on the manufacturer & models. Ill give the 71-76 GM B/C bodies their well deserved vote. Let us not forget the Cuda and Charger, nor the Eldorado pimpmobiles, check out some cop movies from the 70's and there is bound to be some Cat in a pimped out Eldorado and a big white hat............ I love it ! When Cool was Cool !

80's VW Rabbit, two on every street corner, plus two Civics. The age of the gas conscience hatchback. However, for me once again, Ill give the GM H/C bodies the nod and you can take that fugly Taurus and shove it right into the crusher. To be realistic as Croc was about the 90's. For the 80's we have to remember it was also the age of mini..........Minivans, Minitrucks. The Toyota 4X4 and Nissan 4X4 were well loved and sought, The S10 Blazer started the SUV craze. Thats what went down in the 80's..........everyone wore cowboy hats................

90's ? Croc nailed that one but for me it was nearly dead. Ill give Lotus, Viper, C5 and Supercharged 38's the nod for any available excitement.

00's ? Still waiting ? I guess its still all about Suv's and Hondas and Toyotas. For me I got excited about C6, Solstice, Aston Martin, Mustang, G6C ............... ................. ............... uh ? Yea, otherwise about as exciting as the Suv 90's.

"Suv's" and "truckism" ruined the 90's & 00's and trucks as far as Im concerned, a truck should be a truck and never drivin by women or suburbanites..........

[Intrepidation]

Not Sure about the 70's...

But the 80's is a no-brainer

Chrysler kicked off the minivan segment, which revolutionized people hauling, and was a tough act to follow for years (I would say until the 2ng gen Oddessy)

(That's our `86 Caravan LE)

90's

Cab-forward design became very popular in the 90's as did the gentle lines and shapes, both techniques are stiull used today, though to a lesser extent.

00's

Anglular design and boxy shapes, as well as smaller greenhouses are all the rage now, and I'd say the 300C is the trendsetter.

--

didn't pick all Chrysler's cuz I'm a Dodge fan, but rather that they seemed to really set the trends in motion...I believe Chrysler has been at the forfront of trends for a while now.

[Satty]

I'd call the Camry the quintessential 90's car.

[Croc]

I think the Acura lineup of the early 90s should get a favorable mention too...Integra anyone?

[the_yellow_dart]

I agree with a lot from the last 3 posts.

Camry is very '90s. More than one generation in fact.

I agree that the Caravan, Intrepid and 300 are pretty important too. Although I can't think of the Intrepid without thinking of the Grand Prix, the two just go together in my mind.

Also the Integra was a sweet design at the time, and probably set off a lot of the "tuner" scene.

[Camino LS6]

Since the question asks for the one ,quintessential car from each decade, I'm going to give it a shot. Narrowing all of my nominees from each decade down to one most appropriate vehicle to show the flavor of the times is tough (especially for the 70's) , but here goes.

50's: 1957 Chevy Bel Air -easily the most iconic car ever.

60's: 1964 GTO - initiated the popularity of the musclecar and drove others to follow. By extension, all other domestic musclecars of the era share in this nomination. 2nd place honorable mention goes to Mustang.

70's: The Pontiac Trans Am (all years) This car symbolizes this decade more completely than anything else on 4 wheels. It spans both sub-eras (the early and latter parts of the decade) and remains a constant like no other car.

80's: The Chrysler minivans (all years). This concept changed the face of the American family car like none before or since. It saved Mopar's dying ass while killing the American icon that was the station wagon. Honorable mention goes to the K car: the less said, the better.

90's: The Ford Explorer - easily the lead representative of the largest market shift since the advent of the minivan.

Today? We are still too close to this to have any true perspective. However, the trend of increasing performance in cars of all segments is a strong one. This "Power to the People" movement might just best be exemplified by the Pontiac Solstice.

Stay tuned.

[FAPTurbo]

didn't pick all Chrysler's cuz I'm a Dodge fan, but rather that they seemed to really set the trends in motion...I believe Chrysler has been at the forfront of trends for a while now.

195712[/snapback]