As a boomer, I went through a period of quasi-burn out on the music, cars and other icons of the 60s and 70s. Hearing great songs like Gimme Some Lovin' used for retirement planning commercials was quite depressing, so I attempted to escape. Then a wise friend told me not to abandon the past but to embrace it. So I changed my attitude and it has been for the better.
Now Mrs. Bear and I drive a 2006 Volkswagen New Beetle (Bug) in 1967 beige, listen to 60s-era music on XM Channel 6, and - as made clear by this site - I've also returned to listening to 70s music in heavy rotation.
Anyway, a major magazine's current issue makes the point that there's been a difference - at least in car design - between true retro and overly cute. Fortunately, they cite the VW New Beetle (whew!) and the Ford Mustang as current examples of retro truly inspired by the original 60s cars. Then they provide some bad examples, the chief one pictured here. This they felt was "retro cute," a car designed to imititate the new retros rather than the original Ford Thunderbird. Agreed. To my eyes, this car looked nothing like the old Bird.
This car is no longer around because, of course, it did not sell well. Was it the design or the engineering? It could have been either, as the New Bird was said to suffer from extreme cowl shake, meaning the car felt like it was falling apart when you drove it over a railroad track. Details, details...
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