Uglier: Dodge Durango or 745i's trunk?

[QUOTE=NicFromLA;802921]The 745's truck leaves something to be desired, but the redesigned 750 trunk is gorgeous![/QUOTE]
No, it still won't do.

[QUOTE=Ferrer;802923]No, it still won't do.[/QUOTE]

I like that too.

the 745 engine is amazing.....
BMW is so amazing, they can do whatever they want and in the end it'll be accepted!
IF the bangle butt was so ugly then why did Merc use it with the S550?

yes, merc being the pinnacle of attractive design...

[QUOTE=LandQuail;802904]Come again?[/QUOTE]

I'm not a fan of the way they drive. It felt like I was driving a giant bag of air, couldn't feel anything the car was up to, and even though it was a convertible I still couldn't hear either the exhaust or the engine. It was absolutely perfect if you like a smooth ride and all, but I like knowing what the car is up to, whether or not I can push it farther or if I am pushing it at all. With the 650, and probably the whole line-up of similar cars BMW offers, you can't do that. (The fact that the seat is definitely not built for someone of my build doesn't help :p)

I have always maintained - as a student of design - that the BMW 7 series trunk is an unacceptable resolution of the car. the eye is lead in three different ways - along the flat top of the bootlid, the cutline between the lid itself and the rear 1/4 panel, and along the line of the light.

The 7 series started life as a controversial car that would have to stand the test of time in order to be considered a successful experiment in design, but the slab sides look unfinished, the front looks obese and the interior.....well, the "Saharan" theme might work in a trendy nightclub in downtown munich, and I applaud the choice of a different school of interior design for a luxury car....but it's got to actually function properly.

The Durango might be ugly now....and will likely be ugly in the future, but you can at least call it a resolved design - every panel is as ugly as the last, and it almost lends itself to an endearing character. It's ugly with a purpose and can almost be excused - as 'quail said - because it's such a hybrid of a car - it's like an SUV designed by committee.

The 7 had such purity of purpose when it was designed.....It was meant to be ugly. and that to me is bluntly unacceptable.

Who designed the last generation of BMWs anyway? Why'd he have to leave and have Bangle replace him.

BTW, if you guys are going to bash Bangle, someone else designs it now, but it's Bangle's protege, so it's still Bangle's fault.

The 7 is the onlhy car that carries Bangle's lines with any dignity or semblance of good looks. In fact, I have always kind of liked the 7's Banglization, from every angle except the interior (yuck). The 5-series and Z4 look particularly awkward with Bangle's bungle touches, though.

Having said that, the Durango, while not a pretty vehicle, is really a good vehicle. Extremely comfy for an SUV (you really can't tell its ride from a car), transports 7 (if the last two hide from the cops in the back - not that I would know how that works or anything), and can still do full towing duty. My GF's dad towed their 22' bowrider with no problems whatsoever, and that with the little bitty 4.7l. And, despite needing that ridiculous ATF+4 trans fluid, you don't have to have a proprietarily trained technician to service it (ahem - BMW...).

Now, if only you could get the Chrysler Aspen's body at Durango prices...

I like the modern, big BMWs, particularly the 5 series. I saw an Alpina B7 while I was in Kyoto and it looked amazing to me.

[QUOTE=jcp]Now, if only you could get the Chrysler Aspen's body at Durango prices.[/QUOTE]So just replace the stupid crosshair grill with something plainer and bam, you've practically got an Aspen. Nothing makes vehicles of those proportions attractive...unless you have a penchant for excessive gold jewelry.

Naw...it's more than just the grille. The roofline is similar if not identical, but some cargo rack rails on the Aspen hide it better, and the fender flairs and taillights are much more squared off. Where the Durango looks kind of spacey like something out of a B-movie, the Aspen's tauter styling makes it look both more muscular and more modern. The aforementioned shared roofline still bothers me though.

And yes, I do like largely proportioned vehicles...though I usually like the large to be in length (a la Cadillac) rather than height (a la SUV's).

I quite like the rear of the 7-series, it's different, quirky and interesting.
As for the Durango, I do agree that the current shape is very ugly, the last version, released, I think, in 2004 was sooo much nicer. Did it really need a bad nip-tuck?