CNET On Cars - Reasons why cars look the same

Ever worry about falling asleep at the wheel? Maybe you're bored because all the cars on the road look the same. Modern auto engineering has produced a standard look, and here are the top reasons explained.

[cbi]

I miss fins, chrome bumpers, long low straight lines, white wall tires, two tone paint, the 58 Lincoln, the 60 buick, the 60-71 Chrysler imperial, the 62 Cadillac, 57 thunderbird, 57 corvette

[Glace]

Only #2 bothers me. The main thing that bothers me these days is that the shape and aesthetics of cars in general all look like the same futuristic bubbles.

[TheeAbstractHero]

I never noticed any of these things until I saw the Evo X for the first time. Not saying it was the first car to add these things, but that was the first time I noticed it.

[jasonarmstrong]

Oh how I miss the wedge shaped cars of the 80's.

[olEbeserker]

Great video! My father and I have been having this conversation for the past year or so two. I'm glad that you shed some light on this topic and explained it, thanks Cooley

[Nycholas]

Somehow Subaru figured out how to have safe cars and big windows.

[ScottaHemi]

so we can blame all this on pedestrians who aren't smart enough to dodge...

figures...

[KyCuJe]

"The Realities of technology and engineering are very much part of the reason." >Goes on to point out that it was always the fault of government regulations. lol

[Elmo_oml]

When the number of views gets to about 301, YouTube stops the view count and checks to make sure these are legit views and not that of a bot. Once YouTube is happy the views are coming from actual users, it returns the view number to normal, and carries on displaying the actual view count.
Interestingly, YouTube was suppose to freeze it at 300, but a programmer messed up the code
Likes and dislikes do not got through this process, as these do not make any difference to the video or YouTube.

[gloomy]

I always tell people that even if I strike rich someday I'm sticking to old cars for that exact reason most new cars all round bulky and boring to look at

[Robjohnson]

Brain, you make me laugh, one of the best reviewers of tech and cars out there.

[rogere]

Excellent video. I've often thought that the pedestrian standards in Europe were responsible for the ugliness that is now gripping cars. Some do a nice job of hiding the boxy fronts -Audi, Ford, the Koreans - but Mercedes' and Lexus' front ends and the resultant side cuts are just brutal IMO.

[JamaicanMeCrazy]

he's probably the best host on youtube. And i personally think he's better than most on television. In my opinion and almost every one else's

[mizzorian]

Finally my doubt was cleared with the last point. I hate new cars looks because the huge rear, which disrupts rear visibility when reversing, which makes rear cameras a must

[SanDiegoInnOut]

I was just pointing out an example. Of course, all the ones you've mentioned I've also noticed.

Since when were tall square rears aerodynamic? Isn't the teardrop shape most aerodynamic?

[vicjagsingh]

Dude you're right. That's why I miss cars like the Nissan 240SX it was low, small and rear wheel drive wow what a car that little beast was. I regret everyday I got raid of it.

[jsjoblo]

So funny and entertaining. Keep it coming. Not sure he wrote all those funny lines but don't care. His delivery is great and he made me laugh after a long day, while saying something useful.

[mandalayla]

This is funny. Now I know why cars look the same these days.

[eazybeetee]

#2 and the decreased visibility that results is an issue. But modern tech mostly alleviates that once drivers learn how to use and trust it. Blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic monitoring should make up for the lack of rearward visibility, if it's implemented properly.