Frankfurt Auto Show cars mirror classics. And Volkswagen copies Edsel. Mercedes SLS AMG styled like 1950s SL.
Frankfurt Auto Show goers would be shocked if they saw a 1958 Edsel next to Volkswagen's new E-Up electric car that appears to have copied it. Like Mercedes, Bentley, Audi, Bugatti, Ferrari--Volkswagen is a European automaker pulling out all stops to create a buzz as it launches concept cars at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show. It's interesting to note that what goes around comes around when it comes to classic styling cues.
Mercedes new SLS points to a new styling direction for the German icon; the simpler, more muscular-looking new car shows less Japanese robot design influence than many late Mercedes. And, it has the 1950s SL's front end and gull wing doors to prove its ancestry. Volvo's refreshed C30 retains its classically-inspired glass hatch. Bugatti's new Galibier sedan makes an undeniable statement; its polished aluminum sides echo the two-tone paint on 1930s Bugatti Royales. You can read more about it here. And Volkswagen looks to Edsel for design inspiration.
Please enjoy the slide show below for more examples of classic design elements cropping up under the bright lights of Frankfurt.
Comments
I was hoping the VW would have a toilet seat grille and "Tele-Touch" shift!
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