I don't know what happened at BMW lately, did they replace all their designers with kindergarden students, because I must say IMO that their newer cars look hideous.

An example, the 745i/iL. I first thought well maybe the looks will grow on me, but even now it hasn't. The back looks bad, but most cars seems to have better looking fronts then backs, then the front must look good. Well, no. All they retained is the BMW kidney grille. What happened to the round headlights in the nice plastic covers, like in the new 3 series? They were replaced with some incoherently looking plastic covers with a yellow stripe beneath them. Yuck! At first I saw one, if it wasn't for the perfect paint I thought the 7 was involved in a minor collision. The side profile looks ok though.

Another example would be the Z4 roadster that replaces the Z3. They even took out the circular headlights for this one, all that remains is the kidney grille that is positioned 1 inch below the line that coincides with the line formed by the headlights. Talk about messy. The back looks like it came from the Honda S2000, and I thought European styling influenced the Japanese, but I guess it's the other way around now. I thought European design was praised, well not anymore. The side profile is the best or should I say the least crappiest styled aspect of the car. I can never figure out how those edges can look aesthetically pleasing. I think more aggresive front and rear fenders would looks much better. But then that might hurt the aerodynamics of the car.....

Which leads to my next point is I know cars are styled not only for aesthetic but for functional purposes. One of the reasons the Enzo Ferrari looks worse than other Ferraris IMO. But most of the aerodynamics efficiency of a car can be improved without making it looks like crap. Examples include the Porsche 911, Lamborghini Murcielago, McLaren F1 etc. Besides I think the aerodynamic efficiency gained by the new BMW 740iL was due to a rear diffuser and plastic panels underlying the car for smoother airflow creating both a lower cD figure and higher stability at high speeds.


The above regarding the styling of cars is just my opinion.

I'm going to go outside to steer at the P5 now, and
admire that I think is automotive beauty.

 

The words BMW and crap should not be used in the same sentence.

 

that is one thing that i agree with

but I also agree with leungwingkei about the Z4

i haven't seen the 7 series, and i ain't really a fan of it either

the 3 series and the 5 series are wonderful if you ask me.....and the m5 is an automotive dream

 

3-series(M) 5-series (reg and M) are nice...7series has grown on me "some"...Z4 is the ugliest thing ever and will NEVER be liked by me.

 

The M3 is my "achievable, down to earth" dream car. I'm a BMW fan for life.

 

I never said BMW is crap. It's their newer car's styling.

 

I would have to agree about the 7 series, can't stand it and it ain't growing on me.

However I personally like the Z4 and much prefer it's design over the Z3 design, that I never liked. There is something about the Z3 that makes me wanna kick it.

 

I like the Z4 a lot more than the Z3. I always thought it looked too phallic or something

 

hey hey hey, www.maxbimmer.com member on board...lololol just kidding....

anyways, i actually like the new styles...the z4 is amazing and the 7 series is ALRIGHT, but not the best, i must admit...

 

I don't like the new Z4 or the 7 series design. BMW has always had timeless car design, but I think they tried to get too 'creative'. Not that being creative is a bad thing, but personally I don't like it too much. I had an idea of what the Z4 reminded me of, but I haven't seen a pic or commercial since yesterday.

 

Well a friend of mine bought a new 316Compact and after a couple of months and several visits to a dealer they had to change a new cylinder head to that car. Lucky he still had warranty But if I had money I'd buy a Z3 any time, it's a beauty.

 

persoanlly, i am very impresseda t teh new designs coming out of BMW. every time i see a Z4, it looks like a different car. and really, the only thing i don't like about the 7-series, is the I-Drive system. (take too much of the driver away from the road) i feel the new styling adds old time style to new automotive sleekness. one of my pet peeves about the majority of new cars being introduced is the lack of style and grace. i think the new BMW's are bringing style back into the automotive world. and to those that don't care for BMW's new styling will be sorely disappointed when the new 5 series is released. it is going to look like a scaled down 7.

 

I'm a quasi bimmer-freak and, at first, I hated the new 7... until I saw one in person. Now its grown on me tremendously. Its really quite a progressive styling satement. The Z4, again, I didn't like until I saw it in person. Though I think there are too many design themes playing against eachother, I still think it very good looking... and much more masculine than the Z3.

But BMW's magic happens behind the wheel. If the magazine reviews are to be believed, that hasn't yet changed even though the styling isn't as instantly gratifying.

 

from what i've heard, the new 5-series is being held back for design tweaking based on the negative feedback garnered by the new 7-series design.

i kinda like the Z4.

i drool on 330xi's right now.

 

The 7 is ok, it's better in person that in the pictures you see. I like the Z4, except for the damn tail lights! They make the styling very edgy with many creases, then they slap on some fugly round tail lights