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Tesla proved that eco-minded cars didn't need to be ugly, yet ALL other manufacturers continue to produce only ugly cars (they don't get points for bootstrappin

Tesla proved that eco-minded cars didn't need to be ugly, yet ALL other manufacturers continue to produce only ugly cars (they don't get points for bootstrapping hybrid models of existing cars). I am amazed none of the other purveyors of electric cars have managed to figure this out. Even the BMW offering ranks high on the "God what the hell" scale in terms of its design. The Prius started this stupid trend of cars friendly to the polar bears looking like hot garbage and I have never once understood this logic.

5ilv3r 10y ago
Most companies try to keep their high end products as profitable as possible.
codeulike 10y ago
The Nissan Leaf looks about the same as other Nissan cars - check out the Note or Juke. And I think the Bolt looks fine. You just have a weird fear of hatchbacks in the USA.
- photogrammetry 10y ago
  The LEAF looks way better than the Juke.
  - elsonrodriguez 10y ago
    I think the Juke was invented to fill the void the Aztek left.
- kevin_thibedeau 10y ago
  Except when they're converted to XUVs with jacked suspensions and 18in wheels.
rl3 10y ago
I sometimes wonder what the industrial designers on these things are smoking. Are they really that bad, or does someone above their pay grade just have no taste at all?
- wmf 10y ago
  Or they're told to design N tiers of cars that can be built on the same platform and the lower-end ones have to look noticeably low-end to leave breathing room for the more expensive models.
woofyman 10y ago
It's marketing.
acchow 10y ago
I can't understand the chain of events that happened in BMW to arrive at the i3 design.
- threeseed 10y ago
  They deliberately wanted something to look different from any of their other cars.
  - freehunter 10y ago
    So they settled on a giant rock with dinner plates at each corner.
threeseed 10y ago
Tesla also has the worst interior of any premium car company. It has the unique combination of feeling cheap: unappealing leather, plastic finishes as well as tacky: the giant computer screen. It's all fine if Tesla is competing with Mazda but they aren't. And frankly they need to do much better in the future to go against the likes of Mercedes, BMW, Range Rover etc.
- jaimex2 10y ago
  First I've heard of them having bad interiors.
  - Spooky23 10y ago
    Sit in a similar price point Mercedes.
  - kalleboo 10y ago
    Really? I hear about it in every comments section and YouTube review
- FussyZeus 10y ago
  I've sat in my bosses a number of times, it IS plastic, yes, which is a ding, but it at least gives the passing appearance of being made of much better plastic than say, my 300.
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
eip 10y ago
>yet ALL other manufacturers continue to produce only ugly cars It's like they are having a competition to make the ugliest car ever.
- FussyZeus 10y ago
  That's long over. The Nissan Juke. I don't think it's possible for a car to look less appealing and still function.
  - eip 10y ago
    I would probably take a Juke-R over a Tesla.
Spooky23 10y ago
Hybrid sedans like Accords and Fusions don't sell as well. Part of the allure of these is to say "Hey, look at me, I care!"
MrRadar 10y ago
> Tesla proved that eco-minded cars didn't need to be ugly, yet ALL other manufacturers continue to produce only ugly cars (they don't get points for bootstrapping hybrid models of existing cars). Part of the reason is that Tesla's are electric-only. You know it's electric just from the badge. For other manufacturers you would actually need know which specific models are electric. Because of the Prius (which was designed for aerodynamics over styling in its iconic second generation) people have been taught that "eco" cars are "ugly" (at least compared to "normal" gas cars) so the other manufacturers play off that association and make their "eco" cars "ugly" to call attention to their eco-friendliness, reinforcing the association.

5ilv3r 10y ago

Most companies try to keep their high end products as profitable as possible.

codeulike 10y ago

The Nissan Leaf looks about the same as other Nissan cars - check out the Note or Juke. And I think the Bolt looks fine. You just have a weird fear of hatchbacks in the USA.

photogrammetry 10y ago
The LEAF looks way better than the Juke.
- elsonrodriguez 10y ago
  I think the Juke was invented to fill the void the Aztek left.
kevin_thibedeau 10y ago
Except when they're converted to XUVs with jacked suspensions and 18in wheels.

rl3 10y ago

I sometimes wonder what the industrial designers on these things are smoking. Are they really that bad, or does someone above their pay grade just have no taste at all?

wmf 10y ago
Or they're told to design N tiers of cars that can be built on the same platform and the lower-end ones have to look noticeably low-end to leave breathing room for the more expensive models.

woofyman 10y ago

It's marketing.

acchow 10y ago

I can't understand the chain of events that happened in BMW to arrive at the i3 design.

threeseed 10y ago
They deliberately wanted something to look different from any of their other cars.
- freehunter 10y ago
  So they settled on a giant rock with dinner plates at each corner.

threeseed 10y ago

Tesla also has the worst interior of any premium car company. It has the unique combination of feeling cheap: unappealing leather, plastic finishes as well as tacky: the giant computer screen. It's all fine if Tesla is competing with Mazda but they aren't. And frankly they need to do much better in the future to go against the likes of Mercedes, BMW, Range Rover etc.

jaimex2 10y ago
First I've heard of them having bad interiors.
- Spooky23 10y ago
  Sit in a similar price point Mercedes.
- kalleboo 10y ago
  Really? I hear about it in every comments section and YouTube review
FussyZeus 10y ago
I've sat in my bosses a number of times, it IS plastic, yes, which is a ding, but it at least gives the passing appearance of being made of much better plastic than say, my 300.

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

eip 10y ago

>yet ALL other manufacturers continue to produce only ugly cars It's like they are having a competition to make the ugliest car ever.

FussyZeus 10y ago
That's long over. The Nissan Juke. I don't think it's possible for a car to look less appealing and still function.
- eip 10y ago
  I would probably take a Juke-R over a Tesla.

Spooky23 10y ago

Hybrid sedans like Accords and Fusions don't sell as well. Part of the allure of these is to say "Hey, look at me, I care!"

MrRadar 10y ago

> Tesla proved that eco-minded cars didn't need to be ugly, yet ALL other manufacturers continue to produce only ugly cars (they don't get points for bootstrapping hybrid models of existing cars). Part of the reason is that Tesla's are electric-only. You know it's electric just from the badge. For other manufacturers you would actually need know which specific models are electric. Because of the Prius (which was designed for aerodynamics over styling in its iconic second generation) people have been taught that "eco" cars are "ugly" (at least compared to "normal" gas cars) so the other manufacturers play off that association and make their "eco" cars "ugly" to call attention to their eco-friendliness, reinforcing the association.