I thought the " Grumpy Old Men " statement was amusing . Me be one . Sometimes what is written on forums does not relate as it would in a personal conversation.
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An interesting factoid about the Model Tās black paint is that, for the first 5 years or so of its production, the T was available in several colors. Then, when production was ramped-up, black ONLY was the color choice because black enamel dried faster. When T sales began to lag, several colors again became available during the last two years of its production.
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Nope. I hate the way cars look today. My dad had pictures of his old cars. They all looked different and had style. Now itās like some teenager is designing all of them maybe to look European? I had always liked the old Camry but itās been years of gaping open catfish mouth grilles that to me are just Ugly! I want to buy a new car; but the expansive grilles are a real turnoff. Ugh!
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I feel driving one of those absolutely too large plastic grilles that if I hit something the whole ugly thing would crack apart and just crumble to the ground. Who designs this ugliness?
Grille size is irrelevant in a wreck. If you hit something with the front of the car hard enough to do damage, the bumper coverās gonna have to be replaced no matter how large the grille is. 
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Well, Iād think one of those big, complex grilles would be more expensive to replace than a simple bumper cover.
Now weāre into bumper cover size, not grille because the larger cover integrates the grille whereas in the old days the grille and the bumper were two separate things. And for that, the blame goes toward following pedestrian safety rules that require the front of the car be higher than in the past. That requires a whole different design language which isnāt as attractive as older cars and also requires a larger cover.
Like my 1971 Mustang Mach 1. A large rear window laying so flat it looks like a bunker slit in the rear view mirror.
I really miss Raul Julia.
Mr. Mountainbike is no longer with us . May he rest in peace and not have to endure the pain and discomfort that plagued him for years. He definitely was one of the good guys .
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Iām sorry to hear that. Thank you for letting me know.
Yes, he was one of the good guys and is very much missed.
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I assume that too. But how do we know heās diseased?
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OP: Am I the only person (besides my wife) who dislikes the trend toward giant grilles on cars?
Not at all. Some of the new grilles/front ends look like animal faces. Enough to stop me from buying the car.
Meanwhile:
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I always like the small body-colored grill on my ES:
Lexus was a lot more elegant back then. I had to think twice about getting my ES. It was between that and an Acura TLX. Went with the ES because the ride was better, and so was the interior. But that Predator-mouth grilleā¦ Man.
Iām still toying with ideas on how to cover up some of the border chrome.
The early model VW Bugs did not need a grill or have a grill. The Corvair just had an emblemā¦Not a really a grill.