Ugly cars..................why do people buy them?

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:08
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

I've noticed there are lots of Peugeot 3008s about. yet to my eyes it's one of the most dumpy/ugly vehicles on sale. It only seems to have one aesthetic saving grace................the dashboard, which I think looks quite stylish.

Ugliest convertible award goes to the Peugeot 308cc or Renault Megane cc. Forunately VW has seen the error of its ways by re-introducing a proper convertible to the MK6 Golf range.

Best retro car - Audi A1 - for recreating the Austin Allegro

Ugliest supermini size car - Ford Fusion. Dumpy - Ford Ka

Ugliest Focus size car goes to the Toyota Auris/Peugeot 308

Ugliest Mondeo size family car..................Renault Laguna hatch/estate or Subaru Legacy estate.

Ugliest small 4 x 4 - BMW X1

Ugliest 4 x 4 Ssangyong Rodius

No offence intended to anyone that happens to own one of these cars. After all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:16
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - ChannelZ

If you're inside the car, driving it, you can't see how ugly it is.

Other people don't care what the car looks like, as long as it takes them and their crap from A to B and back.

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:29
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - jamie745

You're not seriously telling me somebodies actually bought a Ssanyong Rodius?

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:29
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder - I'm always attracted to "classic" styled cars but in reality I buy on function not style anyway.

I really don't understand anyone who buys a car "because it looks good".

My Subaru Outback (2003-2009) was my best looking car despite the OP's disparaging of it's sibling the Subaru Legacy.

Edited by RT on 05/01/2012 at 21:31

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:39
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RicardoB

I actually laughed out loud re Audi A1 and Allegro!

I wonder how many of the badge obsessed drivers of A1s will even have heard of the Allegro?

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:59
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Bobbin Threadbare

I actually laughed out loud re Audi A1 and Allegro!

I wonder how many of the badge obsessed drivers of A1s will even have heard of the Allegro?

As did I!! A superb comparison!

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:37
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Avant

Of course these things are subjective - but surely the Fiat Doblo and Toyota Yaris Verso must earn a place in the Ugly Hall of Fame.

There are some Japanese oddballs whare someone, it seems, has tried to make their creation as ugly as possible - Kia Soul, Daihatsu Materia and the stupendously ugly Toyota Will-VI (not on sale here but a few were imported - if you haven't seen one, Google Toyota Will VI).

There are times when you wonder what a stylist is trying to achieve: why did Peugeot replace the pretty 205 and 306 with the (to my eyes) hideous 206/207 and 307/308? The worst feature of these is the 'reverse rake' window of the rear doors - rather like a late-50s Hillman Minx, but the Hillman at last had a wrap-round rear window to avoid the blind spot which the Peugeots suffer from..

Edited by Avant on 05/01/2012 at 21:41

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:49
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Auristocrat

People buy them because they rate other qualities higher than looks, and people have different needs/wants.

Alternative ugly cars: Ugliest city car - Chevrolet Spark; Ugliest supermini - Peugeot 207 and 208; Ugliest compact - Chevrolet Cruze and Mazda 3 (2009); Ugliest MPV - Fiat Doblo (2010) and Mazda 5 (2010).

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 21:59
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - unthrottled

Skoda Roomster?

To be fair, a lot of these cars make great use of their floorplan, placing function over form. Doesn't make them any less appealing though.

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 22:03
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Bobbin Threadbare

Fiat Multipla. Just....eeew.

Mid-2000s Nissan Micra convertible, also the Ford Ka of that ilk.

Add for me, a BMW 1-series back-end......one is driving up behind me on the m'way, I think 'ooh a lovely BMW' and then have a distinct sense of disappointment if it overtakes me and I see the rear of it.

Also we've b****ed about the Evoque before. Its melted grotesquery stands!

Edited by Bobbin Threadbare on 05/01/2012 at 22:06

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 22:08
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - unthrottled

How could we forget the Evoque, Bobbin?!

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 22:10
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - jamie745

I might get an Evoque just to see unthrottled's head explode.

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 22:26
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Sofa Spud

Here's my ugly list:

New Fiat 500 - the original wasn't that pretty either.

Previous Nissan Micra, the one that's just gone out of production

Citroen DS3 - could have been nice but too many fussy styling touches.

Morgan Aero 8 - why make a retropastiche when you still make the original as well?

Mercedes Benz - Are their latest cars designed with lots of random styling lines so people don't notice any dents?

Edited by Sofa Spud on 05/01/2012 at 22:27

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Thu 5 Jan 2012 23:08
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - tony g
Fiat multipla,
The original one looked like two frogs fornicating.especially in green.
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Thu 5 Jan 2012 23:48
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - 2.0Tsi
Nissan Juke

My 10yo boy even pointed at one and laughed !

Nissan Cube

why?

Suzuki X90

?

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 00:43
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - JonestHon

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.. or so I thought till I saw the Nissan Joke. Sad he

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 03:51
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - primeradriver

The Korean stuff has the virtue that it's cheap and usually reliable. Many 'ugly' Asian cars are simply imports from other areas whose tastes differ from Western ones -- and it is frankly arrogant to try to claim some sort of taste superiority in this case. Although it must be said that the Ssangyong is actually a British design.

The likes of the Juke though are much more difficult to explain. Designed and built in this country, it really is a strange little thing. Most of the Nissans produced since the Renault takeover have had a little of the ugly stick about them.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 03:58
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Falkirk Bairn

A son bought an X6 18 mths ago.

His brother got a calendar printed with the titled 12 x UGLIEST car pictures............with 12 x different pictures of an X6.

Unperturbed the Calendar is on the wall at his office.......he is adamant it's a good car and would buy another

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 07:53
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

RT,

My Subaru Outback (2003-2009) was my best looking car despite the OP's disparaging of it's sibling the Subaru Legacy.

You've assumed something I didn't say.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 08:04
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

Original c.2000 Multipla was inspired by the world's most beautiful mammal. :)

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:20
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - tony g
Trilogy,
Would that mammal be a frog.
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Fri 6 Jan 2012 21:50
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Bromptonaut
Fiat multipla, The original one looked like two frogs fornicating.especially in green.

One of those arrived on a French campsite during my hols a few yrs ago. It disgorged a family of six, a tent the size of a bungalow and all the associated kit.

Wider than my Xantia but possibly a bit shorter.

I wanted one.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 08:41
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT

Ugliest Mondeo size family car..................Renault Laguna hatch/estate or Subaru Legacy estate.

Trilogy - I'm sure you posted that.

Edited by RT on 06/01/2012 at 08:41

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 09:11
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - ChannelZ

Remember when Ford replaced the Cortina with the Sierra? Everyone was "WTF is that?". Same with the Mk1 Focus. Both considered butt-ugly on release, now they're considered groundbreaking.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 09:45
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT

Remember when Ford replaced the Cortina with the Sierra? Everyone was "WTF is that?". Same with the Mk1 Focus. Both considered butt-ugly on release, now they're considered groundbreaking.

Nah - the Sierra was ugly throughout it's life and beyond.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 09:51
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - unthrottled

The Legacy estate is a great lookingh car-classic stationwagon design instead of the insipid, metrosexual MPV look.

How do ford always manage to make each generation of Mondeo look cheap-even when if they aren't?

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:16
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

RT, N.B. I didn't say your car or even its sibling. Even copying and pasting what I wrote doesn't make it your car! :)

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:22
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

Focus saloon and the first Mercedes CLS can be added to the list. Actually Focus saloon is more ungainly than ugly.

Avant, Yaris Verso is a good one. I'm surprised how many young people drive them. It's a cheap to run car for small families. Talking of small, it makes me think of hea***...................for small people.

The gaping fish mouth Scorpio at last killed off tthe Granada. At the time Ford saif there wasn't a market for that size of car. That's clearly changed, as the current Mondeo is larger than the Scorpio!

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:30
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT

The gaping fish mouth Scorpio at last killed off tthe Granada. At the time Ford saif there wasn't a market for that size of car. That's clearly changed, as the current Mondeo is larger than the Scorpio!

The Scorpio was built on the Sierra platform which had it's size limitations - I'm not sure which was ugliest, the Scorpio's front end or it's back end (on the saloon)

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:34
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

RT, equally as ugly.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:39
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - unthrottled

I doubt he's that bad! [tish]

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:45
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT

I doubt he's that bad! [tish]

I was built for function not style - like my cars!

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:47
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - sirionman

Beauty is only skin deep. But ugliness goes right to the bone.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 10:54
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

RT, time to put you out of your misery. :)

One of these is ugly, I'm sure you know which one, while one is my all time favourite Legacy Estate. There are glimpses if Range Rover in it, from the rear. If I could afford one, I'd happily have one..................for me, I don't think there's a better estate for my needs. (Make mine beige leather inside, I'm not into relentless black which manufacturers insist in forcing us to buy.) And, they go on for ever like a W124 estate. Way back in the 90s I read about one, owned by a bank, which had done over 300,000 miles.

www.honestjohn.co.uk/imagecache/file/fit/700x700//...0(1).jpg

/

www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/20113741515...p

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 12:02
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT

RT, time to put you out of your misery. :)

I don't think the current Legacy looks nice whether as saloon, estate or Outback - the previous generation Outback (2003-2009) was timelessly elegant IMO.

That's why I bought a 2006 Outback and didn't replace it with a 2011 model when it was written off.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 12:28
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Bobbin Threadbare

My husband isn't keen on the Peugeot RCZ, with it's TT-like styling. He laughed his head off at the sort of 'bum' it has for a back window.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 12:43
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

I don't think the current Legacy looks nice whether as saloon, estate or Outback - the previous generation Outback (2003-2009) was timelessly elegant IMO.

Indeed, luckily the saloon isn't sold here. A shame the Subaru Legacy hasn't done better in the UK, it's a much underrated car. Lots more in NZ/Oz than here.

That's why I bought a 2006 Outback and didn't replace it with a 2011 model when it was written off.

Apparently they are very strong. I like your choice of a Santa Fe as a replacement, An excellent vehicle without snob appeal.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 12:56
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT
That's why I bought a 2006 Outback and didn't replace it with a 2011 model when it was written off.

Apparently they are very strong.

Yes - it was very strong, thank goodness.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 12:57
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - unthrottled

A lot of ugly cars are ugly because they are dedicated to maximising space, or light or access. But that leaves us with the horrible Focus saloon. Not only is it an eyesore, but it is less utilitarian than the hatch or th estate. Why would anyone buy one??

Apparently saloons (even small ones) are very popular in South America where they have more kudos than hatchbacks.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 13:14
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

A lot of ugly cars are ugly because they are dedicated to maximising space, or light or access. But that leaves us with the horrible Focus saloon. Not only is it an eyesore, but it is less utilitarian than the hatch or th estate. Why would anyone buy one??

A 3008 doesn't need to be ugly.

At least not many people have bought a Focus saloon in the UK.

Volvo 740/760 saloon was targetted at the US market, hence the near vertical back window. Forunately the coupe was a very good looking car.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 13:34
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - TeeCee

Apparently saloons (even small ones) are very popular in South America where they have more kudos than hatchbacks.

Don't forget the Germans. "Executive" cars are either saloon or combi (estate), they've been foisting this blinkered thinking on the European car market for years. Rover bucked the trend with the SD1 and sold 'em as fast as they could physically screw 'em together, proving that a market for common sense over Teutonic pigheadedness does exist. Skoda have now given us the Superb, although Skoda's German masters managed to get their pound of flesh with that fiendishly complex "boot or hatch depending on which button you press" arrangement. Very clever that, but I can't help thinking it's pointless.....

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 15:11
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - RT

What is the point of hatchbacks? If you want practical, buy an estate.

Saloons/sedans are more popular than hatchbacks almost everywhere except the UK - although I've had a couple of Fiesta/Nova hatchbacks I've always chosen between saloons and estates depending on needs at the time - the last saloon I had was the Astra mk4 which looked more balanced than it's hatchback sibling and had more luggage space!

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 13:26
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - TeeCee

Er, the Rodius is an MPV and 2wd apart from the top-spec one.

Therefore:

Ugliest MPV - Ssangyong Rodius

Ugliest 4x4 - BMW X6. I can't believe you even considered another contender there, it makes the Rodius look good.

We need to find a category for the Kia Soul. A car where seeing the unpleasant front styling in no way prepares you for the full vomit-inducing horror at the other end.

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 13:57
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Trilogy

TeeCee, I couldn't remember all the ugly cars. That's where everyone else comes in. Thanks for pointing out my Rodius faux pas. :)

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 13:59
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - madf

Why do people buy ugly cars?

So they don't feel out of place besides them?

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 14:30
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - Roly93

I suppose for the same reason as why not everyone dates beautiful women ?

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Fri 6 Jan 2012 23:13
Ugly cars..................why do people buy them? - a900ss
I've been driving one of these ugly cars today!!!!

I have a previous shape Legacy diesel that I think looks great. It went in for a service today and they gave me a new shape Legacy for the day.

UGLY, UGLY, UGLY.

And IMHO not a mechanical improvement on the older car either. It may be bigger externally but it's actually not that much bigger inside where it counts. More rear legroom but that's about it.
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