QOTD: What Comes Next?

For years now, we’ve watched as the average car/crossover grille has expanded faster than that aunt you got divorced in her 20s and never settled down (the same can be said for a man; don’t send us letters.)

Now, as vehicle grilles — once declared nearly extinct in the Taurus/Sable/Intrepid/Crown Vic era ⁠— reach their zenith, the mind turns to an obvious question: What comes next? You’ve watched on these pages as Toyota and Lexus attempted to swallow galaxies with their gaping front openings. Now, BMW is eager to swallow what’s left.

Like tailfins in the late ’50s and cab-forward/androgynous-fascia’d automobiles from the late ’80s and early ’90s, styling trends come and go. Right now we’re in the golden years of the Big Grille, and frankly, having lived though the smooth-front era, I’m okay with it. However, all trends eventually pass by the wayside. What’s next?

With only so many external flourishes to be had, the list of options is limited. Tailfins aren’t coming back; certainly not on crossovers (though the Lexus UX tried its best). Coupe-ified SUVs is a thing we’re knee-deep in right now. Faux fender vents are stayin’ alive like John Travolta, helped along by the gaudy Nissan Armada and Infiniti QX80. And big grilles, well, those are just the flavour of the decade. Increasing electrification will put an end to those eventually. Maybe.

Predicting trends is difficult stuff, but it can prove lucrative to those whose crystal ball is firing on all cylinders. Once the giant, world-inhaling grilles tone themselves down, what design feature do you see taking center stage?

[Image: BMW]