People see faces in the front grills of cars -- and prefer cars that display powerful facial features.A group of design experts asked 20 males and 20 females to rate different models of cars on traits people generally infer from human faces, such as maturity, sex, attitudes, emotions and personality. They found that most of the participants saw human faces in cars, and that they generally agreed on what traits these faces represented.
The participants also rated cars that appear angry, masculine and dominant as the ones they'd most like to own.
Unfortunately, we completely overlooked face when we bought our Kia, which we we now realize throws out a little grimace that's somewhere between hapless and innocuous.
Can you see faces in the cheapest cars in the world?
Cheap Cars Around The World
A joint venture with Toyota the Citroen C1 is a popular city car, and the priciest on our list. It has a low carbon footprint and is perfect for bombing around Paris.
Price: $15,000
wintonsworld.com
As of January 2008, the only car legal in America that you could park inside somebody else's mini van. The Smart ForTwo is as popular as the mini dog in Paris Hilton's purse. Just don't take it on the highway.
Price: $12,000
about.com
An affordable sedan with room for 5, the Chevy Aveo gets you 34 MPG on the highway and was made originally by Daewoo. It certainly looks better than the mail truck you've been considering. And it's street legal, unlike many of the cars to come.
Price: $11,000
chevrolet.com
The 5-person Hyundai Getz hatchback has become popular in India, although a hybrid version is available in South Korea and there are plans for an electric version in New Zealand.
Price: $9400
zcars.com.au
The Fiat Palio travels the globe before it hits the road, made in Brazil and sold in India. Models that stay in Brazil are multifuel, so you could probably fill them up with local rum. The Weekend, shown above, is wagon. The standard Palio is a hatchback.
Price: $9200
Fiat-india.com
Hyundai i10
Hyundai is India's third largest car company and hopes the i10 will steal some of the glory of the Tata Nano.
Price: $9100
wikimedia.org
It started out as the first car from India but the Tata Indica has been exported to Europe as well. Like most of the subcompacts in this list, the Indica is a hatchback with a manual transmission. Tata completely eclipsed the success of the Indica with the Nano.
Price: $8500
namastecitytour.com
Just like the country where it was made, the Yugo no longer exists. It was introduced to the United States in the 80's for a mind-blowing $2K, which would cost about $6800 now, far less than anything new you could get Stateside. On the minus side, the 1985 GV was rated as one of Time Magazine's Worst Cars of All Time.
chartertn.net
The Renault Logan is Renault's love child with Romanian firm Dacia and can be had for cheap. Romanian labor unions have recently shut down production because of low wages, so this one might start costing as much as the French equivalent.
Price $6100
renault-dacia-logan.com
Based on an 80's Daihatsu, the ChineseGeely HQ gets a solid 36 MGP and goes the blistering speed of 52 MPH. Unlike the other subcompacts it has a little extra room for cargo, so it stands as China's equivalent to the SUV.
Price: $5800
vicky.in
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Comments:
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Wednesday 08 October
By Paul
This doesnt account for the success of the Neon (Hi!),or the old VW Beetle (50 year success story),whose "faces" both smiled at you.
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By Jim Jarman
My wife and I have commented for years about the angry look of the rear of cars. We thought it was to keep drivers back so there would be fewer rear enders.
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By alumcantandthd
,,,,mmmmmmm let's see,,,,, angry looking cars. '59 Dodge, '46,7,8,9,'50 and especailly the '60 Buick, '51, 2 Plymouth . Some say "Christine" '58 Plymouth Belvedere/Fury (depending on movie, or book) was 'angry'
I 'spose a '52 Henry J could be the 'sad' looking car
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By Lottmommy
Mean looking...by far the new Dodge Chargers..cops drive em here in Texas...need I say more?
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By G.L.
Personally, I hate cars that look angry. I don't like the angry stare of a human or an animal. So why should an automobile be any different? I like a car that says " I'm cool, good looking, and easy going."
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By lisa
I've always thought the tail lights of the 2003 Chevy Impala looked like eyes, which creeped me out anytime I got behind one. Never realized how many other cars had views that looked like faces!
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By lisa
I've always thought the tail lights of the 2003 Chevy Impala looked like eyes, which creeped me out anytime I got behind one. Never realized how many other cars had views that lookedl ike faces!
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By angellynes
There is nothing scarier than looking at a Countach in the eyes. That car (lights pop up) looks like it is hunched over and ready to run you over. Look at it straight on and listen to its howl!
From the back, a good Diablo 5.7 looks overly mechanical and functional, like it is meant to win (which it does).
To me, the ugliest face is an old F.O.R.D. taurus witht those quad headlights. The ugliest rear are those BMW's with the bumpers that stick out and up.
Reply
Wednesday 08 October
By kevin
I'd like to add to the list the new mitsubishi lancer. I also think that cars are starting to look like sharks. Since BMW redisgned there models since 2003 I think more and more cars look like sharks mercedes followed soon after and so on.
Reply