2019 Lexus ES 350 versus Toyota Camry XLE comparison The Toyota Camry got a new platform in 2018 and it appears that the coming new Lexus gets the same one in 2019. IMHO, the Lexus looks just slightly better of the two. Profiles are nearly identical.
Hard for me to admit this, but the Lexus front end looks better than the Camry. And I’m NOT a fan of the Design language for Lexus front ends.. The interior of the Camry looks like they lost all self control. It’s come to this......
I have to admit the Lexus spindle grill is starting to grow on me after 4 years. IMO, it looks best in black mesh and on a low front profile car like the RC. However, on a vehicle with a lot of frontal height such as an SUV and using shiny filler, it reminds me of moiré pattern and makes me dizzy. RS Image Unavailable, Please Login LX Image Unavailable, Please Login And getting back to Toyota, the 2019 Avalon grill looks like a guppy fish at feeding time and makes the Camry look good! Image Unavailable, Please Login The Toyota guys are trying too hard!
True this^^^^ I actually like the side profile and rear styling of the Camry and Lexus ES. Still . . . . that grille . . . yikes.
Somebody needs to hunt down whoever is responsible for this madness at Toyota and make sure they never get near a keyboard or telephone again.
Epiphany! Car design today is just like pop-music today. In music, they insert random bits wherever they feel like, in car design, they insert random lines, curves, scoops, etc, and for the same reason. It all makes sense now!
That front end makes you want to put a registration plate on it just to break up the monotony of that front grill!
38 states still require front license plates. Part of designing the front end is providing a place for a front plate.
Question for you design guys. What consideration do designers give for the size of their potential drivers? For example, at 6' 2" and long waisted, I have NEVER fit into any Lambo. No big deal. But I have also never fit in any modern Jaguar sports car. The steep rake on the windshield means my eyes look at the top of the windshield. (It should also be said, I sit straight up. I can't stand the Lazy Boy recliner position.) Hell, I've had the same thing happen with the Lexus hot rod. Although, thinking about it, I recall the first time I sat a Lexus at a car show. It was a bit tight getting in and out, and there were two Japanese guys in lab coats just hammering me with questions. PS The F360 was the first eight cylinder Ferrari that fit. I absolutely cannot stand to drive any of the previous 3X8 cars for any length of time.
Yes, there is a package layout that uses the standard percentile man for large and then a standard percentile woman for the small. 95% and 5% were typical. But then the specialty cars might take liberties with this. I remember being told that the 65 Mustang fastback used a 5 year old kid for the back seat. What you are pointing to for your problems of fitting in the specialty cars is not too uncommon. Cheating the package to get a better roof line or some other design attribute is more prevalent. That you want to sit in a position that is different from the package is also going to be a problem to achieve the maximum comfort. There have historically been country differences too - Italian cars were regularly referred to as long arms with short legs driving positions. As for the 308 being uncomfortable for you - I can understand that as an owner of one. Compared to a 360 and later it is a very small car by today's standards. Remember the stories that for Magnum PI they could not have the roof on as Tom Sellack head protruded out of the car. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login As Jeff pointed out, rule of thumb was using the 95th or 98th percentile male and the 5th percentile female for most programs. Certain liberties are taken with those dimensions with regards to the type of vehicle being designed. A Ferrari/Lamborghini would probably cheat the 95th percentile, whereas a minivan would provide ample space for all but the extremes. But you can't fit the whole population without making compromises. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Heard that the reason for the 'humpback' roof on the Panamera I was so that a giant German sausage could sit upright in the rear seat.. Tom Selleck in Magnum; they not only left the roof off the car, but took out the seat bottom... put the pad right on the floor. He's about 6'-4
The 308 is the perfect size for a sport car! Especially if it has the 'shorty' Euro bumpers. The new stuff is like trying to parallel park an aircraft carrier... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
My other rant is knee wells. It is a rare car today that doesn't whack my right knee. Why do they have to build these coffins to put your legs in?
Saw one of these today at our local Supercar Saturday. Very much a C3 Corvette style to it in the nose. What a Beast!! Not sure what the VW in the background was doing there. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I'm not done yet. I have never ridden in a Porsche I didn't fit. Even a 365. But I have sat in Cadillacs I refused to even try to drive. The only Mercedes I didn't fit in was an E Cab because the windshield was so slanted. It's sad when only the Germans understand me.
I had a sad day on Saturday. My friend Steve Anderson, who worked for a long time at GM's burbank studio and who had recently moved to Audi's new California studio, had often talked of us working together but it had never happened. Last Thursday he asked if I could work at Audi over the weekend on a crunch project deadline. It was agreed that I would be at Audi's studio at 8am on Saturday, meet with Steve and his two colleagues and work the day there. So Saturday morning at about 7:15, I am driving to the studio when I get a call from Steve's colleague who informs me that Steve has passed away! Steve was an awesome talent and a truely nice guy to be around. I have known him for years and we meet up every year for camping at the Monterey Historics and our kids play on the grass hills of the golf course at Concourso Italiano. Many people on Ferrarichat are familier with Steve's work, as he is the talent behind S A Illustrations, having done a lot of work for special features in Forza magazine, many Porsche publications (he was really a Porsche guy) along with custom commissioned work. I have lost a good friend and the design community has lost a real talent. He will be missed.
Sad indeed. I never knew Steve even though he worked in the GM California Studio. May he Rest In Peace.
