Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by janrinok on Sunday January 14 2018, @07:42AM   Printer-friendly
from the you-can't-handle-the-future dept.

Sure looks a lot like your father's Oldsmobile...

Electric cars were supposed to be the future – or at least look like it. So now they're here, why do they still look like ordinary petrol and diesel cars and not dazzling props from a science fiction film.

Before they hit the market and became relatively mainstream, many imagined (or at least, hoped) that electric cars would resemble the Light Runner from Tron: Legacy. After all, without the need for an internal combustion engine, an exhaust system and a fuel tank, electric car designers should have the creative freedom to rip up the rule book and create some truly eye-catching vehicles.

But this hasn't really happened. Park a Renault Zoe next to a Renault Clio, for example, and compare the two. While there are subtle differences and styling cues that suggest the Zoe is electric and the Clio isn't, the overall body form is strikingly similar. In fact, the Zoe is assembled on the same production line as the Clio and Nissan Micra.


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 5, Insightful) by damnbunni on Sunday January 14 2018, @10:36AM (10 children)

    by damnbunni (704) on Sunday January 14 2018, @10:36AM (#622150) Journal

    People just don't want cars that 'look like the future'. While there are exceptions, hybrids and electrics that look like normal cars sell better than weird-looking ones.

    Often a LOT better.

    People want cars that blend in with traffic. An odd-looking car, of any sort, means you'll spend a lot of time getting pointed at, stared at, and being asked questions. While that can be neat for a little while, it gets annoying pretty quickly. (Try driving a Ferrari for a while. Or a '52 Studebaker with flames and a blower. Or an Excalibur. The attention is fun when it's a weekend toy vehicle, not so much when it's a daily driver.)

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +3  
       Insightful=3, Total=3
    Extra 'Insightful' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   5  
  • (Score: 2) by richtopia on Sunday January 14 2018, @12:40PM (2 children)

    by richtopia (3160) on Sunday January 14 2018, @12:40PM (#622166) Homepage Journal

    Sorta. Yes marketing has come to similar conclusions: the Chevy Volt initial designs initially was very stylized: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Volt#/media/File:Chevy_Volt_Concept_NAIAS_2007_02.jpg [wikipedia.org]

    However; the Prius demonstrated that people want some identity to hybrid electric vehicles. Other hybrids of that era were converted from standard vehicles, and only had a badge to differentiate them. The Prius became a statement, and the uniqueness let people know you were driving a hybrid.

    • (Score: 2) by damnbunni on Sunday January 14 2018, @01:44PM

      by damnbunni (704) on Sunday January 14 2018, @01:44PM (#622173) Journal

      The first generation Prius was a very 'normal car' especially compared to the Honda Insight.

      The original Prius wasn't very distinctive-looking. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:DCA_Prius_1Gen_12_2011_3594.JPG [wikipedia.org]

    • (Score: 1) by toddestan on Sunday January 14 2018, @09:14PM

      by toddestan (4982) on Sunday January 14 2018, @09:14PM (#622270)

      The problem with that Volt concept is that you wouldn't be able to see out of it. So I would argue that it really never was intended to go to production like that. With that said, it does have a lot of similarities to the new retro-Camaro.

      The other interesting thing about the Volt is that like the Prius, the first generation did have a bit of a distinct look to it, even though I thought the large rear end was a bit ungainly. The redesigned second generation, however, is very generic and looks like it could have been made by anyone.

  • (Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Sunday January 14 2018, @02:53PM (6 children)

    by JoeMerchant (3937) on Sunday January 14 2018, @02:53PM (#622184)

    People want cars that blend in with traffic.

    Which can be "proven" just by looking at the color and paint scheme distribution of cars on the road. What's the percentage of "bland" vs "vivid / recognizable" in your town?

    It's not hard, or even very expensive, for people to make their cars brightly colored, or uniquely identifiable, even in a city of a million people - but, barely 1% choose to do so.

    --
    🌻🌻 [google.com]
    • (Score: 2) by tekk on Sunday January 14 2018, @06:19PM (4 children)

      by tekk (5704) Subscriber Badge on Sunday January 14 2018, @06:19PM (#622223)

      I may have heard wrong, but I was told that the reason for boring colors in cars was insurance. The color of your car isn't something that's on too many people's mind and your insurance isn't as expensive for a car that's silver or white (high visibility, but not a risk taker's color like yellow or red) as it is for other colors, and so all other things being equal, people go for the one with cheaper insurance.

      • (Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Sunday January 14 2018, @06:27PM

        by JoeMerchant (3937) on Sunday January 14 2018, @06:27PM (#622227)

        That's not how my insurance company works... I have heard stories about white cars being cheaper to insure than black with some companies, but that doesn't seem to reduce the black count very much.

        Then there's the old "arrest me red" legend, which... isn't all about the red. I've driven a sports car with two bold red racing stripes down the middle, and once in a while a cop will take notice and tail me, but after they determine that I'm under the speed limit and the white hair registers with them, they lose interest and drive away. When I was just a punk kid in a super-bland white Honda Civic, they'd still pull me over for looking like a punk kid, even if I was under the speed limit.

        --
        🌻🌻 [google.com]
      • (Score: 1) by toddestan on Sunday January 14 2018, @09:28PM (1 child)

        by toddestan (4982) on Sunday January 14 2018, @09:28PM (#622277)

        The problem is that many cars don't offer exciting colors anymore. If you look at new cars, you'll find they come in white, black, various shades of silver and grey, a beige or brown (less common now), and if you're lucky maybe a maroonish color. The exceptions are generally small/cheap cars, and fun/sporty cars. Interiors are even more drab, with most cars offering at most two colors, almost always a black and a lightish tan as your only two options.

        I think a lot of this has to do with the decline of special-ordering cars, and maybe a bit with people worried about resale. A dealer doesn't want to order a bright blue or green car for stock, as not everyone will want that color so they might get stuck with it for a while. Whereas most people are willing to settle for a silver/grey/beige vehicle out of dealer stock if the color they really want isn't available, so that's what the dealers order.

        Of course, you can always personalize your vehicle and have it repainted any color you want. However, that's expensive if you want it done right, and secondly it will pretty much destroy your resale value.

        • (Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Monday January 15 2018, @02:54AM

          by JoeMerchant (3937) on Monday January 15 2018, @02:54AM (#622382)

          I have the feeling that if the wild colors would sell, they would be offered for sale.

          We bought a bright yellow Dodge Caliber from the first year or two of production, I think they did that one to get attention for the model - but by the third year of production the brightest color on offer was a sort of dull burnt orange metallic... if people were buying the YELLOW they would have continued to offer it, I'm sure.

          We bought that car used when it was a year old, and it had been sitting on the lot for a couple of months... you may be right about the resale thing... didn't bother us at all, we drove it until it was only worth about $1500, at that price point color doesn't seem to be as big a deal.

          --
          🌻🌻 [google.com]
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 15 2018, @09:04AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 15 2018, @09:04AM (#622495)

        That doesn't explain it.

        The least stolen car color is pink. To make it even better from an insurance point of view, pick a highly visible pink, rather than the standard "same color as the fog" gray metallic.

    • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Monday January 15 2018, @06:15AM

      by bob_super (1357) on Monday January 15 2018, @06:15AM (#622455)

      Non-boring colors reduce resale value.