| What’s Happening With Modern Car Design?
Friday morning, Acura released the new images of the nearly finalized Integra revival. “But wait, that’s not a BMW!” Bear with me here, we’re getting to that. However, the Integra reveal is what sparked this article. The release teased several months back sparked hope in the minds of enthusiasts, myself included. The new Acura, though, seems to disappoint across the board in its final form. This is a familiar feeling to us enthusiasts thanks to the Supra MK5, F8X M3/M4, Mustang Mach E, Lincoln Continental, and even the new WRX. Whether it’s an over-stylized body that’s too busy to pick any single design element or just a bloated crossover sporting a once-beloved name, cars have inarguably become weird in their design choices and somehow uniform across the board.
| | | My first car was a 94 DC1 Integra GS-R that I loved dearly, so I was naturally excited when Honda/Acura showed off the first images. They teased a modern interpretation of the now-iconic DC2 body style, with more angular lines, sharper definition radius bends, a low nose, and squared back, complete with the glass hatch and oversized spoiler. Finished in Honda’s famous Championship White, this car spoke to me. It was enough that I even chatted with Turner Weekly regular Esteban Valentín about potentially trading in my 996 for a new ITR if the renders were accurate. That was the caveat, though. If they were accurate.
| | | Even with the speculations that the new Integra would potentially be a Hybrid or all-electric, I was in love with the looks. It felt like a cyberpunk reimagining of the nearly 30-year-old body style that made me adore compact sports coupes. At the time, all I could do was hope that the renders would be true to reality. Unfortunately, as of this morning, I can only feel disappointed at what Acura plans to release. It’s a five-door liftback that looks bloated, blocky and only sports a few hints to its heritage.
Yes, there was a five-door version of the DC1, and yes, this is a base model Integra they’ve revealed, but still. It’s a Honda Accord Crosstour with the modern gigantic Acura grille and badge slapped on the front, a big INTEGRA graphic down the rockers, and a little cutout in the rear hatch that seems to be the closest throwback to the original design I can spot. Acura says they’ll offer it with a 6-speed manual, which is at least a step above many recent revivals that don’t offer the ‘enthusiast package’ in their reimagined models. But still, with a 1.5 turbo pumping out barely 200hp, this oversized ‘family activity vehicle’ already seems overshadowed by its predecessors.
| | | One thing that makes me more upset is likely why I’m not as disappointed with the new G80. The Integra name has been gone in the USA since 2001, though, it continued with the DC5 (RSX in America) through the mid-2000s. Globally, the market has been without an Integra for more than a decade, more than two here in the states. This length of time has seen exponential changes in both automotive design and technology, which makes the new Integra vastly different than the last of its name. Meanwhile, with the G8X, we’ve seen a more gradual change to this modern style, which has made it somewhat less jarring of a change.
Still, the G8X was jarring. The oversized grilles, squinty headlights, bulgy haunches, high beltline, and sharp angles seem to be BMW’s attempt to keep up with the trends. But BMW has always been about setting trends, not following them. So why now? Why are all modern cars turning into a design monoculture that is both visually extreme yet somehow boring thanks to the volume of similar styles inhabiting the road together?
| | | Something interesting I find about this is that the online community, enthusiasts and otherwise, ubiquitously voice their distaste for this automotive style. Yet, manufacturers keep cranking them out. All these shapeless pseudo-crossover styles with bulbous wheel arches and raked back roofs multiply like fruit flies over the pumpkin you forgot to toss out (you’re welcome for the reminder.) If they’re trying to make cars look futuristic and technologically advanced, it certainly isn’t working.
Firstly, for something to be futuristic, existing in the present at a high volume makes it contemporary. It can’t possibly be a vision for the future if it’s happening now. The designs are so striking, they will undoubtedly fall quickly out of favor for the next design, which almost makes them outdated the minute they’re released. We’re so used to seeing this uniformity of style that it’s become as worn out as a three-week-old meme that still works its way into your Facebook feed despite overstaying it's welcome long after it was funny.
| | | Maybe that’s a product of our time. With technology and manufacturing process improvements happening at breakneck speed, we have a reduced attention span. The life of ‘new and exciting’ has been truncated to hours rather than days or weeks. Hell, just thirty years ago, it was common for models to remain relatively unchanged for a decade or longer. Now, if a car isn’t facelifted every three or four years, it becomes as stale as all the other ‘in your face’ automotive options out there.
Secondly, it feels distinctly like ‘design by committee.’ Like a bunch of marketing guys around a table gathered all the parts that consumers seemed to like about the beautiful designs we saw in the 2010s and stitched them all together into a Frankenstein’s monster. It’s like every automotive design team took the Audi R8 LED strips, Mustang vertical sequential tail lights, stocky arches of the STI, 5-door layout of the Civic Touring Sport, Mercedes’ gigantic emblem, and slapped them all together in these hideous creations. It’s why nothing feels new; we’ve seen it all before.
Since these elements have all become standard, it’s like a face-swapping app. Just stick a different badge on any modern car and it would look right at home in whatever manufacturer’s lineup you want. This is where risky design choices are born. It’s my prediction that the next few years of automotive designs are going to be exponentially wilder. Some of these changes will stick, some will likely experience the same reception BMW’s G8X grilles did. Still, at least BMW has demonstrated their willingness to take those design risks and have simultaneously signaled the end of homologous design.
For that, I think we can all agree that the G8X deserves our thanks. While it may have a controversial appearance, it’s evidence that we can expect to see similar risks for individual design elements coming soon. It might be door mirrors, or tail lights, or center console designs that sport the next extremely bold choices, but something else is coming. I only hope they result in a return to classically ‘cool’ designs.
| | | Bring back the wedge shape, make it work with modern technology! Give us boxy, retro-futuristic designs. Nostalgia is all the rage, these vintage model redesigns are proof enough of that, but nostalgia requires at least some truthfulness to its tribute. You can’t just put a Walkman skin on your iPhone, but you can give us a Super Nintendo that’s aesthetically and functionally the same as it was in the 90s with modern internals and memory space to eliminate the need for old tech like cartridges. Replace the bits of technology and design that are outdated while retaining the spirit and soul of the original.
| | | Believe it or not, Hyundai recently did this with a modern take on their incredibly 80s Grandeur. However, it’s sort of too niche to ever be a thing. I think it’s beautiful, it’s the only Hyundai I’d ever look twice at, but it’s too true of a tribute. We need something that looks forward while holding onto the best parts of its past. Car designs that retain their soul and spirit while modernizing their delivery. I’m fine with the technology, the electrically driven accessories, infotainment systems, complex performance settings, dynamic safety features, all of it. Just deliver it in a package of familiarity or go so crazy bonkers that nothing else could ever resemble it. But don’t give us this halfhearted attempt to capitalize on specific features the market adores from one car or another. What I suppose I’m saying is, do your own thing, everyone! At least BMW took a wild swing with those G8X grilles. For that, I think we can praise BMW.
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| | With the G8X, I can’t say I’m too disappointed. It’s bold, it may not look like a classic M3, but it isn’t some long-dead revival. It’s been iterative and you can see that progression. We did this. We, the consumers, drove the changes. Now, we have to live with them until BMW decides to do something else, then we can all dog on that. Regardless, the Integra is a far cry from the G8X. Maybe with some modifications, it can improve. I know the G8X certainly benefits from better wheel fitment from our Turner Motorsport Flush Kit and can endure even the worst roads with our recently released G8X Aluminum Skid Plate. As more is released in the aftermarket world, we can tweak these designs to work to our benefit, both in the present by appealing to us more, and in the future by influencing BMW to create new models with our changes in mind. If we can do this with BMW, maybe other designers will follow suit and give us the crazy range of styles and designs the automotive world saw between the early 90s and mid-2000s.
If you’ve read this far, and you have a G8X, get excited: we have tons of stuff planned for this car to make it the BMW of your dreams. Check out our current catalog and stay tuned for future releases like our new G8X High Kick Carbon Fiber Rear Spoiler!
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