Give it ten years and we'll see what happens

[Rawwr]

Why is it that some cars, even originating from the same manufacturer, wear completely timeless designs yet others age quicker than Hollywood wives outside the reach of a botox clinic? Although I'm not its greatest fan, the McLaren F1 still looks completely fresh thirteen years later and the Ferrari F40 still carries a magical appeal twenty years later. Yet the Ferrari Testarossa/512TR/512M look like vast, bulky dinosaurs in comparison and I believe the 512M - the last of the Testarossa shell designs - was in production until 1994.

Again, I think the Porsche 993 is standing the test of time better than the 996, though this might have something to do with the 997 carrying a more familiar shape. The Jaguar XJ220 still looks absolutely amazing, like a proper, hulking great supercar should. Is the Zonda, for example, going to age as well as the XJ220? Possibly, but possibly not.

Although rarer, it does occur lower down in the price and performance ranks. I still consider an unmolested Escort Cosworth to look sharp but an early Mondeo ST24? I don't think so. The same can be said of bikes, too. I could spend a long time admiring the delicate brutality of a Ducati 916, where I'd struggle not to be sick in my mouth when confronted with a 999.

Then there are cars today which, I predict, are going to get old very quickly. Cars which are just that little bit over the top which, given a few years, may turn into an embarrassment. It may be a controversial Marmitisté opinion but the Lamborghini Reventon might just slide into this category.

I realise that all of this is completely subjective. I realise that there are people who may find the looks of the F40, XJ220, F1 and 993 borderline nauseating and I realise that some people will get wood at the thought of having a Reventon on the driveway but I'm sure there are a core of timeless designs that the majority of us would agree on.

Any suggestions for cars more than 10 years old that still look fresh today? Any older cars that look better than their successors? Any predictions on cars that are going to age very, very quickly? I'd be interested to hear other peoples' opinions

[Rawwr]

75_Steve said:

Zad said:

One car that has already stood the test of time is the Focus (although I still don't like the high rear lights and big blank space on the hatch). As cars get blobbier with increasing amounts of safety regs, the original Focus is looking just as crisp and sharp as it did on day 1.

Have to disagree - the Focus looked odd on the day it was launched and still looks odd now. Only now it also looks too tall and narrow.

Never got the hype over the Focus - they're not actually that good to drive, the seating position is weird, the interior looks like it was designed by a child and was a badly assembled mix of shite quality materials.

Good to see that Ford still hadn't managed to sort out their rust protection properly, too.

I disagree about the Focus but I think the Puma still has it.

[Rawwr]

Alfa have an excellent record for timeless design. Obviously there are exceptions but relatively speaking, not that many. The 156, as well as being a bargain these days, looks great

[Rawwr]

Oh dear.

[Rawwr]

I just farted and a pea rolled out.