January 5: Look alikes

Wow! What a great way to start my car blog for 2018. Does this indicate a new direction for the Car Guy or what? Those of you with raging hormones can relax or move on to another site, as this pic is just a way to illustrate today's topic. So you'll know, this is a look alike mother and daughter. They can't help the way they look, as they were born this way. Cars on the other hand are different, as they are designed and made. Which brings me to my point. The other day, I read that Audi will in the future differentiate the look of the various models of their cars, which today are hard to tell apart. Check this out.........

See what that Audi designer meant, when he said they needed to give the cars a family resemblance, but not have them so similar that a $35k A3 looks exactly like a $75k A6. Gee, it's about time someone got the message. Have the designers do something more than photocopy the design, simply making them longer or shorter. Family resemblance doesn't have to mean identical, but in various sizes. Blame Audi for its current designs, but they are not the only ones. Case in point with these examples from Mercedes.......

Used to be that the Benz models looked quite different, but with that classic grille, nobody would mistake them for anything else on the road. Now they are morphing into very similar designs. Which is the C Class and which is the E Class? Check the price tags.

Another offender is BMW (why are all the German brands the prime suspects?)........

Different years, but more to my point that they are very, very similar and coming towards you, I defy anyone to know whether they are seeing a 3 Series or a 5. Or a 5 Series or a 7. I'm getting a headache.

Those pesky Germans. But wait, let's not curse them out before looking in our own backyard and these two Lincolns.........

Or these Cadillacs.......

And so it goes on and on. One company after another tries to have every car or suv in the line look so similar, that the poor customer has to check the window sticker in order to see which is which. Some ideas are not worth copying and this is one of them. So, back to those comments from Audi about differentiating the designs of the various models, while still retaining a strong family resemblance. Smart move and one I'll look forward to seeing over the next few years. Let's hope those other guys also get the message.

Until next time.......