QOTD: Automotive Facelifts Done Right?
In last Wednesday’s Question of the Day post, we discussed vehicles ruined by the facelifts foisted upon them by their manufacturers. This week we will flip the question around and consider the most successful examples of automotive nip/tucks; the ones subtle enough to look great, yet noticeable enough to catch a second glance.
One facelift in particular has always stood out to yours truly as a good example of how to do vehicular revision properly. Have a look:
This is, of course, the original Ford Flex, a model which met its end this year. What started out in 2010 as a new wagon-type crossover replacement for the outgoing Taurus X was modernized in 2013. New headlamps and a new grill accompanied restyled bumpers and new dark trim and wheel options. Changes took place on the inside too, with a new dashboard and steering wheel. As it aged, the Flex matured into a better-looking vehicle. It certainly stood in stark contrast to its Lincoln brother, the utterly horrible-looking MKT.
The Flex is a great example of how you can alter a car’s design without spending too many development dollars, resulting in a vehicle that’s better looking and more modern than the outgoing version. Let’s hear your selections for those automotive facelifts done right.
[Images: Ford]
Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Started writing articles for TTAC in late 2016, when my first posts were QOTDs. From there I started a few new series like Rare Rides, Buy/Drive/Burn, Abandoned History, and most recently Rare Rides Icons. Operating from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio, a relative auto journalist dead zone. Many of my articles are prompted by something I'll see on social media that sparks my interest and causes me to research. Finding articles and information from the early days of the internet and beyond that covers the little details lost to time: trim packages, color and wheel choices, interior fabrics. Beyond those, I'm fascinated by automotive industry experiments, both failures and successes. Lately I've taken an interest in AI, and generating "what if" type images for car models long dead. Reincarnating a modern Toyota Paseo, Lincoln Mark IX, or Isuzu Trooper through a text prompt is fun. Fun to post them on Twitter too, and watch people overreact. To that end, the social media I use most is Twitter, @CoreyLewis86. I also contribute pieces for Forbes Wheels and Forbes Home.
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Jaguar XJS. I thought the 93-96 cars looked much more modern and cleaner, yet the changes were relatively cheap and minor - bumpers and taillights. The interior was revised too, nicer gauges and seats.
Previous gen Explorer. The 2011 generation had a very soft and busy front end and no cohesiveness with the tailights, while the 2016 refresh brought a more SUV-like handsome front end and matched better with the profile and back. Also the 2017 Escape refresh was a nice one. As a former owner of a 2008 I was so pissed when I saw that tall Focus unveiled as a 2013 Escape. Both the front and and tailights where hideous but corrected in 2017