What happened to elegance?

By Jacques du Toit,

What happened to elegance? No I am not referring to the Mercedes Benz spec-line called 'Elegance', I am referring to elegance such as in good, tasteful and slender sleekness. These days there are very few, if any, cars I would describe as elegant. Up to the late seventies, even early eighties there were many elegant designs; cars with a certain sleek slenderness and panache. Long gone are those days. These days all cars try to look like bulky sports cars. Car companies that used to produce very elegant models now sport, excuse the pun, a very different style. The Mercedes Benz S Class is certainly an excellent example. The late sixties model above, the w108/9, was a most elegant looking saloon car. This elegance carried on with at least the two subsequent models, i.e. the w116 and w126.

However, for me as a Mercedes enthusiast, to admit that it all went wrong, is about as painful as for an alcoholic having to admit his affliction. Since the w126 it went pear shaped with the W140, which will be best remembered as the shapeless mammoth in which Princess Diana departed this world. That the car is about as boring looking as a coffin, is merely a very unfortunate coincidence. Then followed that over designed blob of bubblegum (W220), that was left in a wind tunnel for too long and came out looking like a sports car with a growth hormone problem. Now we have the bulky W221 (also above), with its bucket style fenders, which is an attempt to bring its oversized body into proportion to its wheels. Of course, part of the new ‘sporty’ feel of big sedans is how the design emphasises the wheels. It will surely appeal to the lovers of monster trucks like Big Foot. This new obsession with ‘the wheel’ tries to project a butch sporty look not becoming of the elegant style one would traditionally expect from a vehicle meant for those who enjoy the finer things in life. OK, even I have to admit the W221 is a 'pretty' car, but still, long gone are the days of the elegant S Class. Other manufacturers are creating even worse designs in their drive towards sporty looking saloon cars. My eyes are yearning for the styles of old.