Op Ed What was, what is, and what should never be

[Chief Brody]

I wanted to bring this over from the thread on the ugliest car ever made...which now seems to have settled on the 2014 Jeep Cherokee...
then this comment was made which got me thinking:

I think car companies should be making aerodynamic cars of the future. The cars of the past will always be cars of the past, but for 99% of the cherokees market the new one is a wayyyy better car. The 1% that wants a straight axle cherokee to off road can still go buy one. They made like a bajillion of them.

This got me thinking about "cars of the past" and the golden age of cars and in our cases, the 4x4 utility vehicles. After all, we here are all stuck on "cars of the past". Trucks that will never be made again by the major manufacturers, big square bodies without much thought of aerodynamics...
We happen to be living in a very sweet spot in history where we can go and still lay hands on these "dinosaurs" in the fields, the bone-yards, and some driveways.

The car companies will continue to work on aerodynamics, making cars smaller and trying to squeeze as much mpg as they can get (but to the detriment of style and grandeur in my opinion).

Take the new 2014 Cherokee....not many would start customizing that for off-road...I'm not sure you could...(some on this forum could, but would you want to?)

But, I submit to you that the true future of cars and trucks is not aerodynamics and fuel economy...it is doing away with humans driving at all...it is technology...laying out a tech grid on all highways and having software programs that interface with "dumb cars"...like a taxi you will open the door and sit in it, tell it where you want to go and it will take you there at a set rate of speed (mandated by the government) and the grid will control all the traffic.

This will of course never work unless every "human driven" vehicle is removed from the streets...the two won't mix. The computerized transit will get you where you want to go without crashes...you won't care about your car....you won't spend your weekends washing and polishing it and beaming when you are done. It will become a bucket with a seat that you get to work in...one that you grow to hate...just like ski-lifts at a resort...or maybe, just maybe they take the individual car away and it only becomes a mass transit system using "bus" cars.

I believe we are living in a time when future generations will look back and wonder what the heck it was like to actually get in a car and drive...free...to modify engines and be able accelerate to high rates of speed because it was fun...

But, maybe I stepped ahead a little too far....for here and now, I actually like the technology advances in cars / trucks...I just don't like the styles...aerodynamics dictate a rounded edge...almost egg-like look....
I say, to heck with being so focused on stupid CAFE standards and lets use the new technology but lets design our cars with style...let's get back to leading the world in American dominance and yes, even excess when it comes to our vehicles. The world loved a Cadillac...why...because it was aerodynamic? No....because it was big...and comfortable...and had a power plant in it...a symbol of success...

With SUV's....big square Blazers....there is no need for us to feel guilty because we love big vehicles. I am also one of those who believes that we are being played when it comes to oil supplies...

So what if GM follows the Jeep lead and next year your Yukon looks like Rav-4?

 

[paratrooper307]

Car evolution is not only bending to the often onerous requirements of increasing regulation, but also to a population that increasingly sees cars as just a means to get from point A to point B. An appliance if you will, not something to stir the soul.

In their infancy, cars were merely toys for the rich and eccentric. As time goes on, we become more and more detached from the spirit of motoring. As cars grow more complex, fewer people work on them. The relationship between the man and machine wanes. As manufacturers shrink their product lines, differentiation between automakers and vehicles becomes less pronounced. As the pace of life becomes more hectic, fewer people have time to drive just for enjoyment, instead insisting on a car with Wi-Fi and a USB port so they can take their office on the road.

Yet there are still exciting cars made. Cars that remind people that driving can be fun, that cars exist for more than just transportation. These are the cars that get people into the showrooms. They say to hell with political correctness. Even if that person is there to buy yet another beige minivan, they imagine some familial connection. I am not opposed to boring, aerodynamic, cookie-cutter cars. They are important to ensure that people who appreciate driving and smile at the thought of the past are still able to purchase a car that at some level allows them to do so.