For a long, long, time subtlety was the order of the day for German performance cars. This was perhaps a manifestation of that cliché that a nation’s identity somehow trickles down into the cars it produces. In this instance, that Germans are excellent engineers but their cars lack a certain visual panache. Whilst this clichéContinue reading “Opinion | The Death of the Subtle German Performance Car”
Category Archives: Opinion
Opinion | The new BMW 5-Series and BMW’s current design crisis
Hey! The new BMW 5-Series has been revealed, let’s have a quick-look at it. Yes, the newest 5-Series has been revealed and it looks… not good. It seems at this point BMW has two or three different design philosophies competing against one another. Perhaps BMW, as a global brand, is becoming like Ford; where theyContinue reading “Opinion | The new BMW 5-Series and BMW’s current design crisis”
Opinion | Are GTP/LMDh/LMH sportscar fast enough?
Sportscar racing is in a very good place. Thanks to some cooperation between Europe’s ACO and America’s IMSA governing bodies; and the sister technical regulations born of that cooperation, we now have Porsche, BMW, Ferrari, Cadillac, Acura, Glickenhaus, Toyota and Peugeot competing at the highest level of international sportscar racing. Before this convergence, top-flight sportscarContinue reading “Opinion | Are GTP/LMDh/LMH sportscar fast enough?”
Opinion | When BMW considered taking on Porsche
Despite BMW having a bit of a bad rep here at Kerbside, we do like the brand. BMW has brought us some of the most well-engineered cars ever, and through their commitment to maintain a sort of minimum standard of dynamic competence across most models in their range, help set it apart from rivals AudiContinue reading “Opinion | When BMW considered taking on Porsche”
Opinion | Kia EV6 – out Aston Martin-ing Aston Martin
Nothing is certain with cars, which is exactly what makes the car industry so interesting. The car industry like many others is reliant on the demands of its consumers – that’s for certain. What differentiates the car industry is that no other competitive or materialistic industry is so subject to governmental legislation. Cars have toContinue reading “Opinion | Kia EV6 – out Aston Martin-ing Aston Martin”
Opinion | Twin Turbocharged V6s – I take it all back!
A while back I ranted about Turbocharged V6s losing their identity. In fact I said: “In becoming more widely adopted, turbo V6s have become sanitised, mainstream, and have lost their outsider status. With tightening regulations and the need for efficiency, it is doubtful if we’ll ever see a churning, quirky, roughshod performance V6 ever again.”Continue reading “Opinion | Twin Turbocharged V6s – I take it all back!”
Opinion | The Honda Civic is the most American car on sale in the UK
The Honda Civic is a Japanese car. ‘Wow Kerbsider, thanks for that,’ I presume you might think or say, but hopefully you can grant me some semblance of respite as I try and get to the bottom of my point. Yes the Honda Civic is Japanese. If so why does it give more of aContinue reading “Opinion | The Honda Civic is the most American car on sale in the UK”
Opinion | Is Drift Mode a Sham?
All-you-can-eat. Buy-one-get-one-free. Drift mode. These are all tangible, easily understood and tantalising concepts. But when scrutinised, each concept is perhaps only as glamourous as their initial meaning. All you can eat is a brilliant concept as it drills into the capitalist desire of a good deal, the culinary desire of gorging and the primal desireContinue reading “Opinion | Is Drift Mode a Sham?”
Maybe Modern Cars don’t Look So Bad | Mercedes C-Class Coupe
Design language is not for polyglots. It is a job for committees and clever people with rulers and clay. The trick of design language is to create a meaningful consistency that is present in all models and derivatives. The language needs to be easy to interpret and immediate – not everyone pays as much attentionContinue reading “Maybe Modern Cars don’t Look So Bad | Mercedes C-Class Coupe”
Opinion | Does Luxury Have to be Large?
If you ask someone, anyone, about what they consider to be the defining characteristic of a luxury car – whilst omitting the glib suggestion of ‘expensive’ – size would likely be the next most popular word. In recent decades, much attention and even more prose has been paid to the growing size of everyday cars.Continue reading “Opinion | Does Luxury Have to be Large?”
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