Chrysler's New 1976 "Compacts" Look A Lot Like The Previous Ones

This post deals with yet another seeming instance of a new design retaining elements of the superseded design, Chrysler Corporation's 1976 compact entries, the Plymouth Volaré and Dodge Aspen (Wikipedia entry here).

Setting the scene, Chrysler was in marketing and financial trouble as the 1970s got underway.  The hemmings.com article "What In The Heck Was Going On With Chrysler in the 1970s?" covers many aspects of Chrysler's trouble during that time.  Regarding the Aspen and Volaré:

"Designed to replace the A-body line and to entice B-body buyers who were ready to downsize, the F-body Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volaré lines were introduced in mid-1976 as the A-bodies took their final bow.  Chrysler had been busy since the “Aspen/Vail” project was green-lit in 1971 and the company had put in large efforts to ensure that their compact replacements would be winners.  The company wind-tunnel tested the F-car extensively for many reasons, including crosswind stability and wind noise reduction as well as for fuel economy purposes.  The glass area was increased to leave interiors feeling vibrant.  A new front suspension system using transverse-mounted torsion bars, was employed.  Weight was shed.  Chrysler made a genuine effort making the F-bodies as good as they could be and when early cars hit the market, it initially seemed like the company scored a hit."

Sales were good in model years 1976 and 1977.  But during that period a number of quality issues developed, resulting in extra expenses and a down turn in sales as the quality problem word spread.

"By early 1978, Chrysler had spent nearly $200 million recalling and fixing Aspens and Volarés.  The durable, economical and fun compact reputation that the A-body (Dart/Duster) had was lost as irritated customers found themselves in the unenviable position as Chrysler’s beta testers."

Interesting, all that engineering effort.  But what about styling effort?  I can't think of a strong reason to design replacement models that look pretty similar to what was being replaced.  Were I in management, I would have opted for a fresh design with only a few hints of continuity with the previous models.

In the Gallery below, pre- and post- redesign four-door Plymouth sedans and sporty coupes are compared via side views.  Dodge equivalents would have been similar, so are omitted.

Gallery

1968 Plymouth Valiant 4-door sedan - car-for sale photo
This is an example of the third-generation (1967-1973) Valiant design.

1974 Plymouth Valiant 4-foor sedan - car-for sale photo
The fourth generation (1974-1976) mainly had a longer (by 3 inches, 76mm) wheelbase.  Note the relationship of the rear door's aft cutline and the rear wheel opening on each design.  The lower side character line sculpting and rear wheel opening's profile are different.  The C-pillar is a bit wider here, and its aft edge straightened.  Otherwise, these side views seem essentially the same.

1976 Plymouth Volaré 4-door sedan - Raleigh Classic Car Auctions photo
The redesign.  Sedan wheelbase is 1.7 inches (43 mm) longer.  Fenderline and passenger compartment greenhouse nearly match.  Wheel openings and side sculpting/decoration differ, but these are less noticeable than the features just mentioned.

1971 Plymouth Duster - car-for sale photo
The sporty Duster coupe first appeared for the 1970 model year.

1976 Plymouth Volaré Road Runner Coupe - car-for sale photo
Duster's replacement.  Wheelbase grew only 0.7 inches (18mm).  Greater styling difference from the earlier coupe, but the proportions are similar.  The sense of the fenderline is preserved, which is okay.  The bold B-pillar is due to government rollover safety regulation.  This car's design is closer than the sedan's to being fresh, along with those carryover details.

The Redesigned 1942 Cadillac Sixty Special

Cadillac introduced its Sixty Special model for the 1938 model year.  Styling was by the young Bill Mitchell, who later became General Motors' Design Vice President.  It was a sporty sedan based on Cadillac's entry-level Series 60, but with a 2-inch (50.8 mm) longer wheelbase.

For 1938, it was Cadillac's best-selling model.  And again for 1939 and 1940.  Model year 1941 saw the addition of Series 61 to the line as the entry series.  It was basically a merger of Cadillac's now-defunct LaSalle companion brand.  Some of its models and the Deluxe Series 62 sedan out-sold the Sixty Special.  I posted about 1938-1942 Sixty Specials here.

Because Sixty Specials were priced higher than any Cadillac series 61, 62 and 63 cars and because it still sold well, the model was continued for 1942 (and for decades beyond that).

Today's post ccompares the 1942 Sixty Special to its 1941 forerunner that I wrote about here in a Walkaround post.  The 1942 design was a variation of the heavily facelifted C-body Series 62 sedan with a 4-inch (101.6  mm) longer wheelbase.  Its price remained higher than series 61, 62 and 63 Cadillac models.

Images of the 1942 Sixty Special are via RM Sotheby's, as are the quarter views of the 1941 version.  The 1941 side view is from the Driehaus Collection web site.

Gallery

1941 Cadillac Sixty Special
The basic body is from 1938.  It never used the original 1940-41 C-body, so the 1942 Sixty Special featured here is nearly two body generations removed from the original.  The 1941 car shown here has a different frontal design than the earlier versions.  Unlike all other 1941 Cadillacs, its front fenders extended onto the front passenger door -- a feature then used on many 1942 GM cars.

1942 Cadillac Sixty Special
Based on the facelifted C-body.  Its grille is the standard '42 Cadillac design.

Side view.  From the start, Sixty Specials featured windows with rounded profiles at the B-pillar.

That rounding was more pronounced for the 1942 version, which was based on a more rounded body than before.  The longer wheelbase is manifested in the longer hood / forward body.  Otherwise, the Sixty Special identity is in all those chrome hash marks on the fenders and C-pillar.

1942 Cadillac 62 - BaT Auctions photo
The Series 62 sedan that was the Sixty Special's basis.  Note the B-pillar profile and the lack of hash marks.

From this perspective, the '41 Sixty Special has sort of a formal, British look.

The main carryover is the three-segment backlight window, a 1934-1952 Cadillac feature that I wrote about here.

Volvo 144 and 244: Same Body for 27 Model Years

Long gone are the late 1930s and circa-1950s, along with the occasional Detroit practice in those times of keeping a design in production for only two model years.  European carmakers tended to keep models in production a lot longer.  And Volkswagen's Beetle success in the USA helped influence American firms to retain designs beyond even the typical four-year span.

All the while, European carmakers have continued long production runs.  Today's subject is an example.  It's Volvos's 140 and slightly facelifted 240 series, specifically 144 and 244 four-door sedans.  Those models were marketed model years 1967-1993: 27 years.

I selected these Volvos because my mother bought a '67 144 and I bought a '68 142 (the two-door version).  The sudden, high demand for 140 series Volvos seems to have forced the firm to push production levels to the point where quality control slipped.  My Mom's car was okay (so far as I know; she lived in Seattle, and I was in grad school in Philadelphia).  The Volvo I had twice broke down due to a loosened part of its distributer rotor.  But that was Bosch's fault, not Volvo's.  Two of my grad school buddies also bought 1968 Volvos.  The Volvo 122 Amazon owner had to have its engine replaced.  I was riding in Philly's Main Line one day with the guy who also had a '68 142.  Its engine compartment started smoking, but he switched off the motor before it actually caught fire.  Sweet days, those.

The images in the Gallery reveal little change in the main body over all those years.  There were interior changes and mechanical changes, but this styling blog focuses on exterior design.

Volvo 244s were slightly longer, having a wheelbase of 104.3 inches (2649 mm), compared to 102.5 inches (2604 mm) on 144s.

Styling was by Jan Wilsgaard.
Gallery

1967 Volvo 144 - Bilweb Auctions photos
A simple design, decent proportions.  In those days Volvos were more lower-midlevel.  My 142's floor mats were rubber, not fabric.  Its gearshift lever was floor-mounted, hence tall.  The grille seen here is inexpensively stamped metal, not really sculpted.  Those fender-mounted mirrors are not standard, so far as I know.

1990 Volvo 244 - Bilweb photos
The design as it appeared near the end of the long production run.  The front face and hood are what's changed.  The grille is more expensive to make, and Volvos had moved higher up the price/prestige ladder.

Only a single chrome strip for side decoration.

The added length is between the firewall and front wheel opening.  Passenger compartment greenhouse seems unchanged, the side chrome strip nearly so.  A non-metal rocker panel has been added.

Rear quarter view.

Revised trunk and rear end.  The gradual rear facelifting process began in the late 1960s and eventually evolved to what is seen here.

1973 Volvo 144 - unknown photo source
An intermediate frontal design.  The characteristic Volvo diagonal slash has been added.

1979 Volvo 244 - unknown photo source
The grille shape is narrower, more classical, and the hood altered to match it.  Headlight fixtures varied over time, influenced partly by fashion and mostly by regulation of various governments.

Pontiac Bonneville Hardtop Coupe Generations 1958-1971

Now for another look at General Motors' styling evolution from the mid 1950s to the early 1970s, when federal government regulations began to seriously dictate American automobile product planning and styling.  Today's example is Pontiac's Bonneville model.

Wikipedia's Pontiac Bonneville entry is here.  It notes that Bonneville became a separate Pontiac model for 1958 and classes later generations as follows: Second, 1959-1960; Third, 1961-64; Fourth, 1965-1970; Fifth, 1971-76.  Ten generations are listed, but the present post only deals with those noted here.

During the period covered, Bonnevilles  were built on Pontiac's longest wheelbase and generally were the most expensive models.  Presumably, therefore, they should have been given plenty attention and care by marketers and stylists.

Gallery

1957 Pontiac Star Chief Catalina - Mecum Auctions photo
Wheelbase: 124 inches (3150 mm).  Original Bonnevilles were only convertible Star Chiefs, but I enclose this image to illustrate what a '57 hardtop coupe Bonneville might have looked like.  This GM A-body dates from the 1955 model year.  1957 Pontiacs were given considerable facelifts, front and rear.

1958 Pontiac Bonneville - Barrett-Jackson Auctions photo
Wheelbase: 122 inches (3099 mm).  This was a one-year-only body design.  The basic shape wasn't bad, though the roof was too rounded compared to the flatter roofs on the stylish new 1957 Chrysler Corporation models that prompted a crash GM redesign effort for 1959.  What's seriously wrong with this Bonneville's styling is the garish, rocket-theme side trim.  Those horizontal items abaft of the front wheel opening add to the visual clutter.

1959 Pontiac Bonneville - Mecum
Wheelbase: 124 inches (3150 mm).  For 1959-60, body types were shared across all of GM's brands.  This Bonneville has less applied decoration than the one in the previous photo, but the body sculpting is greater, especially the then almost-obligatory tail fins.

1961 Pontiac Bonneville - car-for-sale photo
Wheelbase: 123 inches (3124 mm).  The so-called 'bubble top" passenger compartment greenhouse design is retained aside from the windshield in what I and others thought was a redesign.  Lately, I'm thinking that parts of the 1959 body were retained, so what we have might be considered a massive facelift.  Side trim is bold, but better related to the body design than the trim seen in 1958.

1965 Pontiac Bonneville - car-for-sale photo
Wheelbase: 124 inches (3150 mm).  Here side trim is nearly absent, replaced by voluptuous, simplified shaping.  I find the body/fender abaft of the door to be too ponderous.  One result is making the greenhouse seem too small.  Clean isn't always better.

1971 Pontiac Bonneville - car-for-sale photo
Wheelbase: 125 inches (3175 mm).  The next redesign resulted in tidy appearance with no major flaws.  And little to excite the viewer.

Update: A knowledgeable reader noticed that I overlooked the 1962-64 Bonneville roofline (see comments).  Here's an image.

Whither Toyota's RAV4?

When I was 30 or 45 years old, I would have been astounded to learn that, in the future, I would be buying three Toyotas.  Especially ones with bodies having station wagon features.  Not the sleek and sexy sort of car that I preferred (but couldn't afford) in those younger days.

But when I retired, Toyota RAV4 SUVs made sense.  A handy configuration for hauling the occasional large objects.  From a firm with a strong reputation for reliability.  Large production numbers implying plenty of replacement parts.  A large dealer network for servicing.  And so on.

The RAV4 Wikipedia entry is here.  Scroll down to "Sixth generation (XA60; 2025)" for background on today's subject RAV.

By the way, early in 2019 I posted critical thoughts regarding the fifth generation version.  I wrote: "Now that the 2019s are here, I'm not at all sure I want to buy a new RAV4.  That's because of the styling."  Well, a few months later I bought one anyway.  It's a fine car from a driver's and user's perspective.  Though I still don't like the exterior styling

Would I buy a sixth generation version?  No.  Why?  Because no purely internal combustion powered models are available in the USA -- only hybrids and plug-in electric versions.  Big mistake on Toyota's part.  Pure EV sales are down due to lack of government subsidy and several negative characteristics such a recharging time and the risk of battery fires.  Nearly half of the high-production Gen-5 RAVs sales in recent years are hybrids, but if American buyers shun EVs and PHEVs, this implies a serious cap on potential RAV sales: those recent hybrid numbers.  RAV4s for China have conventional motors, so I won't be surprised if 2028 RAVs for the USA have them as well.  It's too large a market for even Toyota to lose.

All that said, the present post deals with styling.  Unlike previous RAV4 generations that each got distinctive designs, the 6th-Gen RAV is essentially a facelift.  Possibly a financial consideration to offset high development costs of EV powered cars.

Images below are all via Toyota publicity.  The 2026 model's photos were of a Belgian-licensed car.

Gallery

2019 fifth-generation Toyota RAV4
Too much going on here.  Plenty of angles, but inconsistent.  Note the bumper shape that doesn't quite match the nearby upper grille frame.

2026 sixth-generation Toyota RAV4
Recent styling of electric vehicles has been simpler than the fussiness seen on many conventional cars over the last decade or longer.  The Gen-6 facelift detailing is simpler than Gen-5 here and there.  The frontal design here is more coherent than that in the previous image.  But the grille zone on this likely PHEV car is too industrial-looking for me, though functional-purist observers might disagree.

The rear has similar angle problems to those up front.

Simpler, more coherent.

The facelist can be seen most clearly in these two side images.

Aside from side sheet metal sculpting, extreme front and rear transition detailing, and the shape of the rear side window, all else seems the same.  Note the car's profile, the wheel openings, door cut lines and main side window shapes.

1948 Oldsmobile Convertibles: 68 and 98 Compared

General Motors' model year 1948 Oldsmobile brand is interesting because its various model lines each used one of GM's three basic body platforms.  Entry level Olds 60-series cars were on A-bodies (aside perhaps from fastbacks), 70-series cars used B-bodies, and line-topping Ninety-Eights got GM's redesigned for '48 C-bodies that 1948 Cadillacs also used.

Oldsmobile styling for 1948 was attractively restrained.  In my post "General Motors' Best-Looking 1948 Car," the winner was the 1948 Olds 98 convertible coupe.

Just for fun, today's post compares that C-body convertible to Oldsmobile's 68 A-body convertible that used a design dating from 1940 and massively facelifted for 1941.  Given that the 68 had a pre- World War 2 design and the 98 was a new design, I suppose the greatest styling interest in such a comparison is how the designers dealt with visual brand identity.

Gallery

1948 Oldsmobile 68 Convertible Coupe - BaT Auctions photos
My post "Oldsmobile Grille Evolution: 1946-1957" shows that the grille design seen here first appeared in model year 1946.  The style of upper grille framing continued through 1954.  This was in contrast to the elaborate 1942 grille.  Headlights placed inboard from fender outer edges was an Oldsmobile-only feature for General Motors over much of the 1940s.

1948 Oldsmobile 98 Convertible Coupe - Mecum Auctions photos
Besides the grille theme, similarities with the 68 car include the crest and word "OLDSMOBILE" on the front of the hood.

Side view comparison.

Wheelbase is 125 inches (3175 mm), 6 inches (152 mm) longer than the 68's.  This car is lower than the 68, part of an industry trend.  Both cars have bold chrome strips abaft of the front wheel openings and rock guards on the lower forward faces of the rear fenders.  The larger rear wheel opening on the 68 made a horizontal chrome strip on its rear fender impractical.

Rear quarter perspective.

Tail light assemblies seem to be the same despite the different bodies.  Rear ends of cars in those days were still simple, decorations given little attention by stylists.  That changed during the 1950s and later.

The 68s dashboard was largely the same as those on 1941 Oldsmobiles.

A new design with a new dashboard.

1939 Bentley Corniche Prototype

A unique and specially honored Bentley is the prototype 1939 Corniche design.  Its body was designed and  built in France on a chassis supplied by Rolls-Royce's Bentley subsidiary.  Perhaps even more unusual was its total lack of an identifying Bentley grille.

The Bentley Motors Limited web site about the car is here.  It stated:

"The ‘Embiricos’ Bentley 4¼ Litre of 1938 inspired Bentley to create an aerodynamic Mark V called the Corniche.  Although the original body was destroyed in the war, it was the precursor to the iconic R Type Continental of 1952.  To celebrate Bentley’s 2019 centenary, the Corniche was recreated using a combination of original Mark V parts and the specialist fabrication skills of Mulliner, Bentley’s in-house bespoke and coachbuilding division.

"In the late 1930s the ‘Embiricos’ Bentley, designed by Georges Paulin and bodied by Pourtout, had shown the value of aerodynamics for fast road and track driving.  Its success inspired Bentley to commission a one-off 4-door Mark V in a similar ‘streamlined’ style.  A Mark V prototype chassis (14BV) was sent to France, where Bentley designer Ivan Evernden worked jointly with Paulin at the Paris workshops of Carosserie Vanvooren.  The car, named ‘Corniche’, was intended to be shown at the 1939 London Motor Show alongside other coachbuilders’ offerings for the Mark V chassis."

Unfortunately, the car was destroyed in an August, 1939 crash.  The recreation was part of Bentley's 2019 Centennial celebrations.

Photos below are via Bentley unless noted otherwise.

Gallery

First, three black-and-white photos of the original car.  The concept was an aerodynamic (in the late 1930s sense) four-door saloon.  In those days, bodies with "streamlining" features tended to be coupés.

An earlier Bentley saloon with aerodynamic pretentions (keeping in mind that Bentley did not offer "factory" bodies before World War 2).  It's a 1936 4 1/4 Litre Airflow Saloon by Gurney Nutting - R.M. Sotheby's photo.  Standard wheelbase for this series was 126 inches (3200 mm).  Compare its proportions to those of the Corniche in the image below.

Mark V Bentleys such as the Corniche had 124 inch (3150 mm) wheelbases.  This car's passenger compartment is placed farther forward than that of the Airflow.  And its proportions are more sensible and attractive.

The odd styling feature is the frontal composition that will be examined in more detail below.

Right profile of the replica.  The strong falling-off of the beltline abaft of the A-pillar is a French feature, but usually found in less-exaggerated form on English saloons.

No doubt Paulin gave plan-view feature shaping considerable thought.

Looking down on the front end - image via Classic & Sports Car magazine.  Teardrop shapes aplenty here.   Unusual is the prow lacking a grille.  Suggestive of pre-1930 Renaults.  It's flanked by actual grilles that seem rather small for providing cooling air to the radiator.

Head-on frontal view.  Not at all Bentley-like.  The advent of World War 2 shortly after the original Corniche was destroyed ended any chance of production.  Given the lack of factory bodies, it's possible that Corniche buyers would have retained Paulin's frontal design.  Or maybe Bentley might have provided a front end or even a hood-grille unit that was more Bentley-like, though not necessarily as seen below.

An example of a 1939-vintage Bentley front end.  The car is a 1938 4 1/4 Litre Sports Saloon by Mulliner - Bonham's photo.