Why new cars look like the 1980s again

New cars designs are throwing it back to the 1980s lately—sharp lines and boxy silhouettes. But are these retro-futuristic models feeling like empty calories to anyone else?

Because cars are everywhere, the way they look has a strong influence on how we think of a decade’s particular aesthetic. Since the late 1990s, automakers have experimented with retro designs that pull on nostalgia instead of presenting a bold new future. It was huge in the mid-2000s: the New Beetle, the Ford Mustang, the Chevy SSR, the Toyota FJ Cruiser, and many other models were styled to emulate cars from the 1940s, ‘50s, and ‘60s.

There were many reasons for this, not least because those were the decades that meant something to the people with money to buy new cars. The Great Recession kinda washed all that out—but now it’s happening again, and this time, we’re going back to the 1980s.

You’ll notice that electric vehicles are really leaning into it. That’s because when you don’t have a true legacy or enthusiast-pleasing technology to ride, retrofuturism is a shortcut to making a new car mean something to people. We're just not sure that's enough.

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0:00 The '80s are back!
1:11 Where retrofuturism began
2:46 The mid-2000s boom
5:16 EVs go retro
7:51 What happens now?
10:00 The next big wave

[djangokill]

Mark Fisher was right. "In our capitalist societies, as technology advances, our culture deteriorates and we increasingly lose our sense of time and progress, becoming amnesiac consumers stuck in an endlessly recycled and rebooted past."

[ricepony]

Bring back small manual RWD sedans and wagons.

[lavafish]

just bring back small cars, I'm tired of these massive vehicles everywhere

[mattpipes]

Cars of the 80’s needed to be utilitarian, efficient and useful… if that’s a trend, good.

[thisisbubblegumx]

I want buttons and dials and fewer screens

[arthurbertram]

New cars look nothing like cars from the 80s. I wish they did.

[Trypticon]

I genuinely don’t think these modern designs capture the 1980s style. They just look like 2000s SUVs with slight creases added to the body panels, and funky tail lights.

Where’s my 2nd Gen CR-X? The CR-Z was crap. Where’s my Toyota Celica? Volvo 740 wagon? What if I want a brand new boxy Grand National? An angular MR-2?

I want pop-up headlights, genuine boxiness, louvres, and while we’re at it, let’s bring back physical buttons on the dash. I hate having to wait until I’m stopped at a light to do anything.

[EmperorEdwardXIII]

Remember that Cyberpunk was born in the 80s and this is the future...

[SteelPorcupine]

In Europe, I’d dare say the 80s was our peak (or the start of our peak) automotive era. Audi was starting its Quattro era, Saabs were showing how to do mass market turbos, BMWs were literally the ultimate driving machine and Volvo and Mercedes were building rock solid cars.

The mass market brands were also doing brilliant work with the rise of the hot hatch, turbo diesels and cool quirky graphics. Even your average small cars were pretty good. Think fiat panda, Peugeot 205, Ford Fiesta or fiat UNO. Simple, well-designed, fun, easy to live with cars.

You also had some pretty iconic marketing such as Grace Jones’ Citroen CX advertisements, Audis Vorsprung durch Technik and BMWs ultimate driving machine, so culturally it is an era we can hark back to where we were meeting and exceeding the competition.

[blakecampbell-taylor]

I saw a mint condition 1980 Cadillac Coupe DeVille today and I was stunned by how refined and elegant it looked compared to what Cadillac has been putting out in recent decades. It made me realize how much I would love to see a retro early 80s Cadillac EV.

[PresidentHotdog]

Americans want manual gearboxes now because in their films, changing gear seems to give massive acceleration boosts.

[rob_does_stuff]

Could we just get back to 1980's pricing, please?

[sentiencepsn]

The retro styling is aimed at older generations for a reason. They can afford it. What’s the point of styling something for younger buyers if the average new car cost nearly $50k? Besides, manufacturers originally tried the futurist design language already for EVs.

[simonbone]

2:30 The New Beetle flopped in Germany, where the original was seen more as the family car from poorer times, rather than the first car you used to drive to the beach as a teenager.

[trublgrl]

I just saw an 80's Toyota Corolla on the road, the same model I drove back in the day, and it made me feel so happy and nostalgic.
It's kind of weird how cars evoke emotion.

[gcanyon]

I miss the old Toyota and Nissan pickups from the early 1990s, especially the regular cab 2wd models. Those were all you needed, and the simple designs were very satisfying.

[DerpEye]

All this is useless. New cars are slowly becoming unaffordable for the average person, and are just unreliable smartphones on wheels.

[antonioarroyas]

A retro Civic hatch would kill it these days.

[quantumphaser]

Enough with crossovers and giant grills.

[teamtetris]

None of these modern cars look good but the old cars they're meant to look like look good