"There are countless horrible things happening all over the world and horrible people prospering, but we must never allow them to disturb our equanimity or deflect us from our sacred duty to sabotage and annoy them whenever possible." -Auberon Waugh
By 1940 standards, that is. Have you ever wondered why it is that automotive styling evolves over time the way it does? I mean, what is the reason that automotive stylists of 1940 styled the 1940 Ford to look the way it did, and not how the 1980 Ford looked? And why do new designs look fresh and interesting when they are new, but only a relatively few years later seem to look old and out-of-date?
In high school, I drove a 1948 Nash that my dad bought for $50. Big, ugly black hump of an automobile that started with a key and a push button. The original upholstery was gone, so I sat on the wool cloth underlining, and there was something wrong with the electrical system because the headlights kept going out, which is why I couldn't drive it at night. My dad said he always knew when I was in school because when he drove by, he could see it sticking up over all the other cars. He eventually sold it, I don't know for how much, but I wish I still had that car. I'd be rich today.
Good question R-man, often wondered the same thing.
Maybe it's not the design itself - because some new cars return to old curves - but the small details we half-consciously pick up on like hub caps or windshields (which changed to become safer with different glass).
"There's style and beauty unequaled..."
ReplyDeleteBy 1940 standards, that is. Have you ever wondered why it is that automotive styling evolves over time the way it does? I mean, what is the reason that automotive stylists of 1940 styled the 1940 Ford to look the way it did, and not how the 1980 Ford looked? And why do new designs look fresh and interesting when they are new, but only a relatively few years later seem to look old and out-of-date?
Weird.
In high school, I drove a 1948 Nash that my dad bought for $50. Big, ugly black hump of an automobile that started with a key and a push button. The original upholstery was gone, so I sat on the wool cloth underlining, and there was something wrong with the electrical system because the headlights kept going out, which is why I couldn't drive it at night. My dad said he always knew when I was in school because when he drove by, he could see it sticking up over all the other cars. He eventually sold it, I don't know for how much, but I wish I still had that car. I'd be rich today.
ReplyDelete1948 Nash? Sweet! - Paco
DeleteIncidentally, when I went away to college, I got my grandmother's 1954 blue and white Ford. That's another one I wish I still had.
ReplyDeleteGood question R-man, often wondered the same thing.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's not the design itself - because some new cars return to old curves - but the small details we half-consciously pick up on like hub caps or windshields (which changed to become safer with different glass).