That’s obviously an exaggeration, but why don’t manufacturers of basic cars just put a fancy-looking exterior onto them? Aren’t you mainly paying for the engine and electrics and upholstery and sound system with fancy cars? Why is it (seemingly) only Lamborghini and Ferrari that look like Lamborghini and Ferrari? Is chassis manufacturing more difficult than it seems to a numbnut like me? I assume it’s just pressing sheets of metal into a mould, so I’m probably way off the mark.
It’s like when you see a computer mouse that’s named something like GamerStealth eXtreme Zero Pro, and it’s the worst piece of shit you’ve ever used but looks like it came from Area 51. Same for PC cases, actually. Alienware rigs look a million percent better than they actually are. Why is this not also the case for cars?
Full disclosure: I know nothing about cars. I just know that when I see a fancy car, and check the make, it’s BMW or something high end, and when I see a pygmy hippo lookin’ motherfucker, it’s made by one of those “buy one, get one free” type manufacturers that appeal to meth head soccer moms. And by “fancy” I don’t even mean “luxury”, just obviously high quality. Most BMWs and Rolls-Royce don’t look like spaceships, but they nevertheless look really impressive. Again, I need to stress that I know nothing about cars.
Cheers!
Look at the 1950 American cars. They’re wild.
One reason for the perception that cars look fancy or not is that you become accustomed to a design when you see it all the time.
Supercars are wildly impractical, and slapping that body on a Corolla chassis would make a Corolla that only seats 2 and has no space for bags, but somehow takes up a lot more space than a Corolla. Also, downforce is bad for fuel efficiency.
Your note at the bottom is interesting. The perceived luxury of a car is not related to the quality of the vehicle. As a car guy with a penchant for German cars, I do have to admit that while they’re wonderful in many ways, a beige Corolla or Civic will stand far more abuse.
Supercars are quite small. They have very low roofs and are often quite wide, so your sense of scale is thrown off.
2025 corolla: 182"L x 70"W x 56"H
2000 corolla: 174" x 67" x 55"
2025 camry: 194 x 72 x 57
2000 camry: 189 x 70 x 55
2004 murcielago: 180" x 80" x 44"
2006 gallardo: 169 x 75 x 46
2018 huracan: 176 x 76 x 46 2024 296 gtb: 180 x 77 x 47
2016 chiron: 179 x 80 x 47
1987 F40: 172 x 78 x 44
1995 F50: 176 x 78 x 44 Even the veyron, a sweaty potato on wheels: 176 x 79 x 47
Totally agree on the perception point. BMW looks nice because it looks like a BMW which is nice. They’ve carried a fairly consistent design language from year to year. Design overhaul in these brands are somewhat rare, but they’ll carry it across the lineup. Look at Jaguar when they phased from 80s drug lord to whatever the XF look is called. (edit: Ian Callum designs?)
The only thing I could say specifically to OP’s observation is it sounds like they’re always picking out the brands with squared bodies and condescending headlights. Mercedes might be pushing it with their jewel eyes, but there’s still a consistent air of importance around the bodies (please don’t mention the CLA). No nonsense, no happy eyes, defined body lines, chrome blended flat into the panels, stout wheels, and sportier rooflines (please don’t mention the 5 series GT).
Thanks for including the 2000 Corolla. I forget how big they’ve gotten.
Bad example on BMW; their recent design language with the beaver tooth grills is terrible
Like the Aztek, I bet it’ll normalize and seem less obnoxious in a few years as the cars become more commonplace and other manufacturers follow the trend.
Yeah, it felt disingenuous as I built out my sample list when I realized my knowledge of supercars drops off around 2010. New corolla, old corolla, let the reader be the judge. Gonna go back and add some camrys.
I suppose I could have also included weights.
25 corolla is around 3000lbs, 2000 around 2400.
05 Murcie is 3600 while a 2018 Huracan is 3100.
Chiron is 4400, veyron is 4200
F40 is 2400, F50 is 2700
Ferr 360 is 3000, while 296 gtb 3200
In fairness, the 10th gen Civics (in Europe at least) looked absolutely badass compared to pretty much any other family hatchback when they released. They were a lot pointier and aggressive looking than their boring counterparts.
Plus it would surprise me little if an economy motor had a hard time pushing a supercar frame and body.
It depends on the frame and the ideals of the manufacturer. You can make a sports car with essentially an economy motor from the same brand (Miata, MR2) or maybe a reliable engine from another (Lotus with Toyota engines), but largely it comes down to if the brand wants to spend money to do it.
What do you define as a super car? The things that make a car great at high speed are mostly the same things that make for a fuel efficient car at lower speeds. Downforce is one of the exceptions, but until you get to the fastest highways not much downforce is needed. Which is to say replace a super car engine with an economy engine and the resulting car will likely get better fuel mileage than either, but it wouldn’t go nearly as fast. The Corvette is often the most fuel efficient car in GM’s line up because the advantages of a light aerodynamic body are far more than the cost of a massive engine.