Mid-Engined Super/Sports Cars and Unimaginative Styling

[xRIEx]

Why do so many of these cars have such a similar face? Is it only me that sees these similarities, or are some designers lazy? Don't get me wrong, I think all these cars are beautiful, but the look is just too close to each other, it makes them seem run of the mill - not exactly what a super/sports car is supposed to be.

[Mastodon2]

I certainly don't think the Saleen or the Koenigseggs really fit there.

[Vitorio]

I think it is mainly due to usability constraints and aerodynamics. You want to put two seats in your sportscar, so you need a basic width, which you want to make narrower at the top since the human body allows for that shape. Then the front, you dont have to fit an engine, so just wheels and steering, and some pro-forma luggage space . Then aerodynamics come into play again to give a general shape to the nose.

There is some wiggle room for different headlights, but once again, it shouldnt be wildly impractical to make and contain the basic light fixtures, then do something which fits into the general design of the car, and you end up with your basic F430 headlights.

Same goes for the rest of the grill/nose, you can give your car a bit of its own face, but dont want to ruin the overall lines of the car or screw up the aerodynamics (which will hurt top speed, which is important for these cars)

I guess it is somewhat similar to the honda insight looking similar to the prius, similar usecases and technology constraints, and aerodynamics dictates the overall shape/line, add badges/slightly different headlights/grill and presto.

[tbc]

all about aerodynamics and air flow

improved airflow equals less drag and better power efficiency making for a very quick car

car design is more complciated than people think

So I think it has something to do with designers looking at the competition and using them as a template

So many supercars look the same apart from the odd line or curve

[xRIEx]

I was thinking it was something to do with overall packaging, but the Veyron manages an individual style (while still incorporating a classic Bugatti grill) and still makes for a very aerodynamic shape (it's ironic that I'm citing the Veyron, a car I don't like the look of, to back up my point against cars I do like the look of). That's why I think some designers are being lazy. Lamborghini manage to build very fast cars that don't look like anything else; the 458 makes enough of a departure from the basic formula above to look original.

All those above have a (slight) echo from the F1 which is 20ish years old.