Anecdotes on an Anachronism
I went to my 20th high school reunion a few years ago. I hadn't had so much fun since, well, high school. I have to admit
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| While appearing the same now as twenty years ago might sound like an enticing prospect for people, it's usually not ideal in the car industry. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, Canadian Auto Press) |
that part of the enjoyment factor was due to everyone saying how much I hadn't changed a bit, sometimes associated with looks of envy. What these peers don't remember is the fact that during my high school years I paid dearly for looking so young. Few girls my age would date a guy who looked more like a 14 year old than the 18 I was at graduation. To make matters worse my senior high only included grades 11 through 12, forcing me to look elsewhere for female attention.
While appearing the same now as twenty years ago might sound like an enticing prospect for people, it's not ideal in the car
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| The G500 is beautifully equipped and rides like a limousine, but has an extremely utilitarian exterior appearance. (Photo: Shawn Pisio, Canadian Auto Press) |
industry. Eastern Europe was the brunt of many jokes during the cold war because of its inability to keep up with style and innovation, with cars such as Russia's Lada and East Germany's Trabant about as old school as anything that portrayed itself to be new. Such Western European carmakers as Audi, BMW or Mercedes-Benz would never allow such an anachronistic dinosaur to leave their factory lines, or so I thought. That was before accepting the keys to a "brand new" Mercedes-Benz G500. What a throwback to ancient civilization. Oh, don't get me wrong, it's beautifully equipped and rides like a limousine, but it's so utilitarian it's become a modern industrial art statement all on its own. Really, it's so boxy that when parked next to a
Land Rover Discovery it made the Disco look positively sleek.
