Best aging car

AugustusMaximus

Mark I Focus for me.

Brought out in 1998 and yet the basic design still looks fresh. To me it is still better looking than the Mark II. The likes of Volkswagen et al only caught up with ride quality and handling with the Mark 5 Golf years later. Interior is still very good and really shows up well in comparison to other cars of the day.

Add in the other cars that were around when the Mark I came out. The Mark 4 Golf was just released. Peugeot had the 306. Opel had just released the old Opel Astra which today looks horribly dated. And the less said about the E110 Corolla the better.

colm_mcm

I think for early 90's cars the Audi 80 and Mitsubishi FTO deserve a mention.
For newer cars then the Volvo S60 and the late 90's Audi A6 still look modern today.






Although they divide opinion, I definitely think the original TT still looks relevant today.

meathstevie

I think the early to mid nineties version of the Audi 80 is a rather well ageing car as well. So's the mid nineties Honda Civic.

mondeo

97 upwards A6 aged very very well, could pass for a 06' design...

Juan Pablo

citroen DS. Designed in 1955, still looks the business.

AugustusMaximus

colm_mcm wrote: »

I think for early 90's cars the Audi 80 and Mitsubishi FTO deserve a mention.
For newer cars then the Volvo S60 and the late 90's Audi A6 still look modern today.

Must say that a lot of Audi's produced in the 1990's had a very futuristic and clean look to them. Something that IMO is missing in Audi's newest designs (excluding the R8).

The A5 is good looking but is a throwback to the coke bottle designs of the 1970s.

squod

Mercedes-Benz E Class W212. It's gonna be a future classic I reckon.

Midnight_EG

R34 GTR

Redisle

Pug 406 still looks relatively modern. Park a '96 406 next to something like a '96 astra and they're miles apart.

AugustusMaximus

Redisle wrote: »

Pug 406 still looks relatively modern. Park a '96 406 next to something like a '96 astra and they're miles apart.

Never liked the standard 406.

406 Coupe on the other hand was an instant classic. Still looks fantastic.

Midnight_EG

In all fairness, the Glanza V, dont mind the reputation, is a pretty slick looking car and still looks good lines-wise.
McLaren F1 will always look modern.
An EG Civic, although I'm a bit biased, still looks fairly good what with the round lines and shape.

AugustusMaximus

Very elegant Coupe. Didn't need the bells and whistles to look good either.

tommmy1979

93 mazda 626

Eoin

I think the Peugeot 206 has aged well for a car that came out in 1998. I have to agree with the 406 coupe and the Mitsubishi FTO.

The Express

Great thread.

Seems to be one common denominator across these great looking cars Focus/626/A6, etc.

A great swooping roofline...

zilog_jones

eoin wrote: »

I think the Peugeot 206 has aged well for a car that came out in 1998

I'd go a step further and say the 205 has aged very well for something that came out in 1983 - compared to the competition (Mk. II Fiesta, Mk. II Polo, KP60 Starlet, K10 Micra, Corsa A etc.) it looks well ahead of its time.

Similarly I find it hard to believe the NSU Ro 80 was launched in 1967:


I agree with the Mk. 1 Focus, 406 and the Audi 80.

squod wrote:

Mercedes-Benz E Class W212

But it's had no time to age! The W124 and most S-Classes have aged well though IMO, much moreso than the equivalent BMWs (E28 especially).

Also dare I say the Mk. I Skoda Octavia doesn't look too bad for something launched in 1996 (and still in production alongside the new one). I guess the conservativeness of the design helped in this case.

Biro

The Fiat Bravo looks good considering it's 1995. Compared to a Mk3 Golf, which is woeful now, or an Escort... *shudder*.
The 306 3dr looks good still. NSX -1989! Looks fantastic. The Corrado still looks OK.

kdevitt

Midnight_EG wrote: »

looks fairly good what with the round lines and shape.

Agreed - was the car I would have mentioned. Considering the very youngest ones are hitting 14 years of age, it still looks relatively modern, very reliable and quick by modern standards if you pick the right engine.

TWEEK1979

E34 anyone?

Stevie Dakota

Only one for me, 1988 launch and just look at it!

CR 7

Has to be the ferrari 355, still the best looking car ever.

TomMc

Graham_B18C

tommmy1979 wrote: »

93 mazda 626

My uncle drove a 92 one of those, (could of been a 93) same colour as that, exact same car as that actually, spoiler and all, I honestly thought it was the nicest car in the world!

TomMc

Volvo P1800ES

Graham_B18C

TomMc wrote: »

Volvo P1800ES

THAT looks modern?!

Typewriter

Grahamo999 wrote: »

THAT looks modern?!

Wertz

AugustusMaximus wrote: »

Very elegant Coupe. Didn't need the bells and whistles to look good either.

The OEM front bumper looks much better than the one in that pic though (IMO).
...and no chrome strips on the radiator grille either.

mantaraver

green_jesus wrote: »

Nice one green_jesus. Way to illustrate a point. You can clearly see the design influence there...

VolvoMan

E39 5 Series, especially the facelift model.

In relation to the NSU above, Klaus Luthe clearly was a wonderful designer when you look at that and all his BMW creations. The last car he designed, the BMW 8 Series, still looks wonderful today I think:



Can you believe this was launched in 1989?

Wertz

mantaraver wrote: »

Nice one green_jesus. Way to illustrate a point. You can clearly see the design influence there...

Your handle just reminded me, I was parked up beside a beautiful white Manta the other day, think it was an '85, well looked after and waxed up. If it was launched next month it would still look somewaht contemporary...certainly not much else like it on the roads currently...

rohatch

Wertz wrote: »

Your handle just reminded me, I was parked up beside a beautiful white Manta the other day, think it was an '85, well looked after and waxed up. If it was launched next month it would still look somewaht contemporary...certainly not much else like it on the roads currently...

I had a 79 manta in red/orange. Nicer shape than the twin headlights.

For me there is only one classic, I wanted one since I was 10. A friend of mine owns one here and I have asked to buy it off him at least 4 or 5 times.

TomMc

Grahamo999 wrote: »

THAT looks modern?!

OP's Quest "The Best Ageing Car" not "Most Modern Looking (still)", after all a Citroen DS, NSU Ro80 or Volvo P1800ES aren't just modern, they are timeless. Fashion is transient, style is more permanent. Older pioneering designs or styling cues influence future (modern) production. Many of which are perceived as all new or fresh, when they are in fact evolutions of old design, without been retro.

alastair

TomMc wrote: »

Volvo P1800ES

I've one of them, but I wouldn't say it looks contemporary - it was already looking a bit long in the tooth when it was introduced in '72 (being based on the nearly ten year old P1800). It's more a case of the C30 being intentionally retro, rather than the 1800ES looking fresh. Still a lovely car though.

My vote goes to this timeless beauty:


The original Lotus Esprit design holds water better than the later styling revisions imo, and despite it's 70's wedge shape, wouldn't look out of place coming off a production line today - not bad for a car that was designed about the same time as the 1800ES above.

TomMc

Even the 480 which came out in 1986 still looks fresh in an uncharacteristic Volvo sort of way. You can see the link between the P1800ES, 480 and the current C30.

triple-M

my trusty old 97 passat tdi,which i have as a spare car now is the business,i prefer it over the newer one i have now aswell

sleepysniper

I have to say the MR2 isnt holding up too badly

TomMc

alastair wrote: »

I've one of them, but I wouldn't say it looks contemporary - it was already looking a bit long in the tooth when it was introduced in '72 (being based on the nearly ten year old P1800). It's more a case of the C30 being intentionally retro, rather than the 1800ES looking fresh. Still a lovely car though.

Exactly what I was trying to put across. The new design (C30) is a modern interpretation of an old styling cue (P1800ES rear window), without been overly retro. The new C30 isn't an all new 100% "fresh" design, but harks back to the past.

The Renault 16 was no beauty but is was still the inspiration for a future generation of family hatchbacks.

Lex Luthor

AugustusMaximus wrote: »

Mark I Focus for me.

+1

Alfa 156 close 2nd

Eoin

Lex Luthor wrote: »

Alfa 156 close 2nd

Can't believe I forgot that - also a 1998 car and still looks great.

TomMc

The E30 M3 would be my pick of late 80's & early 90's cars that still look the biz today.

AugustusMaximus

TomMc wrote: »

OP's Quest "The Best Ageing Car" not "Most Modern Looking (still)", after all a Citroen DS, NSU Ro80 or Volvo P1800ES aren't just modern, they are timeless. Fashion is transient, style is more permanent. Older pioneering designs or styling cues influence future (modern) production. Many of which are perceived as all new or fresh, when they are in fact evolutions of old design, without been retro.

Was thinking more than just looks. Was thinking the whole design of the car really.

The Mark I Focus still prob beats some similar new cars in terms of handling and ride for instance.

unkel

406 coupe was my first thought too

How about the W126? I can't believe it is over 30 years old now:



Lancia Hyena (20 years old):

bazz26

Alfa GTV/Spider:



Not bad for a car designed 13 years ago.