The American automobile takes on a different appearance
A more contemporary look
A "clean slate" new styling
Aerodynamics, a major factor
Some manufacturers jumped on the bandwagon sooner than others, and some stuck with their old, outdated body shapes as long as they could. These are some of the highlights of various designs that came and went during the 1980s:
Cadillac Eldorado
Mercury Cougar
Pontiac Firebird
The 1980 model year for the Pontiac Firebird was a carry-over from the year prior, which introduced a new front end that featured a "grille-less" appearance and four "ported" slots for the rectangular headlights. Pontiac tried to keep the car looking fresh with these styling changes, even though the general body shape was largely the same since the 1970 model year. Pictured is the Formula model with Turbo V8 and W50 Appearance Package.
Buick Regal
A carry-over from two model years prior, the 1980 Buick Regal ran on a 108-inch wheelbase and continued with the bodysides that emphasized the wheel arches and an upright rear window. This body was given a facelift in 1981 and with that came a raked front end and wraparound taillamps.
Cadillac Seville
Somehow or another, the designers of the 1981 Seville from Cadillac thought it was a grand idea to slap a "bustle back" retro rear end on the car.
Chrysler Cordoba
This 1981 Chrysler Cordoba rode on the J-body platform, cousin car was the Dodge Mirada, and had a formal appearance with a single recessed grille. It was still a big car 209.8-inch wheelbase and the pictured Cordoba LS in Pearl White had the optional "Cabriolet Roof Package" which was a simulated convertible top, and quite convincing even though it was a fixed roof that was never going to be lowered! The front clip on the LS model featured an aerodynamic nose with a crosshair grille and circular insignia, which was circled with red, white, and blue, as used in the past Chrysler 300 models. A very rare '80s Mopar!
Chrysler Imperial
Chrysler did the same treatment to add a "bustle back" retro rear end on their 1981 Imperial model.
Pontiac Firebird
Pontiac's third-generation Firebird debuted in 1982 and it was high time to restyle, and rejuvenate the body shape. First thing was to give it a 62-degree windshield, that's about three degrees more sloped than anything GM ever produced before, and the use of a low-slung front end with hidden headlamps and flush mounted glass using all the tricks they learned in the wind-tunnel testing. A regular Firebird had a drag coefficient of 0.33, the skirting of the Trans-Am lowered it to 0.32.
Lincoln Continental
Lincoln followed with the same "bustle back" retro rear styling for their 1982 Continental.
Cadillac Coupe De Ville
The 1983 Cadillac Coupe De Ville was still a big car, 221 inches in overall length. 1984 was the final year of the rear-wheel-drives. Wire wheel covers and large white sidewalls add to the old-fashioned look, and are one of the hallmarks of these fifth-generation Cadillacs. The first Coupe De Villes without the fitting of rear fender skirts, made them slightly less stogy.
Buick Rivera
A very special version of the Buick Rivera came in 1982 with the introduction of a convertible, and shown here is a virtually identical 1983 model. This droptop was not a "factory" built version in technical terms, as it was converted by American Sun Roof in Lansing, MI., done in cooperation with Buick. The 1979-1985 Rivera's were the sixth generation versions and the rare convertibles are today highly sought after by collectors.
Chevrolet Citation
For the 1980 model year, Chevrolet replaced their tired, old and outdated rear-wheel-drive Nova with their new ground-up "X-body" Citation. A replacement that was a modernized, front drive that offered clean and simple and basic looks. The two-door body style was a one-year-only thing, as sales figures indicated that the buying public preferred four-door configurations for their compacts.
Lincoln Town Car
Downsized for 1981, the Lincoln Town Car, 1983 Cartier Designer Series shown, measured some 219.2 inches long and rode on a 117.3-inch wheelbase. Featuring a distinctive "Rolls-Royce" type grille and traditional Lincoln straight body lines, and now with large, round wheel openings. This body shape was used until the 1989 model year, built as 2-and 4-door sedans.
Ford Thunderbird
The completely redesigned 1983 Ford Thunderbird was called the "Brave New Bird" by Motor Trend Magazine and summarized it with this: "The new car's combination of shape, style, handling and luxury is more than enough to erase the humdrum record of the Bird it replaces." As opposed to the body model it replaced, the new T-Bird had a curvy shape, sloping hood, tapered fenders and quarter panels, raked windshield and concealed drip moldings, all contributing to a striking aerodynamic shape.
Mercury Cougar
Like the Thunderbird, Mercury's 1983 Cougar received extensive reshaping to give it a different flavor, the roof was given a formal notchback treatment, with vertical upright backlight glass and upswept quarter-windows, plus a different grille design. The changes made the Mercury version not quite as slippery in the air as the Thunderbird, but it was very distinctive looking from all angles.
Chevrolet Corvette
There was no such thing as a 1983 Corvette, and the 1984 car was a huge change from the previous 1968-1982 versions. The "C4" Corvette, the fourth generation car, featured a "clamshell" hood that tilted forward for servicing the engine, and a sleek shape that retained the overall Corvette styling cues, was completely fresh in appearance. A full-perimeter rub strip gave the C4 a distinctive look. The new C4 was some 23.7 percent more slippery in the wind tunnel than the C3 it replaced.
Ford Taurus
Often likened to looking like a "jellybean", the introduction of the 1986 Ford Taurus, and Mercury sister car Sable, changed the way car bodies were designed. A totally new breed of car, these cars were called "the shape of tomorrow" when released in late 1985 and they were so futuristic in shape, that movie producers incorporated them into their work, Back to the Future Part II and RoboCop in particular. The aerodynamic shell aided in fuel efficiency and help Ford meet the more stringent Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards. Unfortunately, the new "designed in the wind tunnel" vehicles like this caused automobiles to lose their individual shapes and unique body characteristics. As an example, flush headlight covers were now the norm across all the different makes.
Buick Reatta
In 1988 Buick's Reatta was considered one of America's most desired vehicles, it being a two-passenger "grand tourer" luxury car with front-wheel-drive built with a transverse 3.8L V6 on a 98.5-inch wheelbase. Considered its flagship model, the sleek and stylish Reatta was priced well below the Cadillac Allante, and for the 1990 model year, a convertible version was made available. These are rare and considered very special Buicks!
Ford Probe
"Form following function" is how Ford described their new 1989 Probe model, styled in an aerodynamic shape and it was based on the Mazda G-platform with unique sheet metal and different interior. Ford shaped the body so that it slipped through the wind with a low 0.309 drag co-efficient rating. A sloped front end, blended-in outside mirrors and lack of protruding door handles that contributed to the slipperiness. The car was built as a joint venture with then-partner Mazda.
At the beginning for the 1980s as compared to the end of the 1980s, the American automobile had taken on a completely different appearance, with aerodynamics being the major factor.
