Find Reviews by Make:
After my tirade about big fat luxury cars in the 24 Hours of LeMons, I got to thinking about all the once-boring luxury machines I’ve seen with brutal slam jobs. In so many cases— yes, even with a vintage Audi 100— dropping the Chairman of the Board’s luxury ride about a foot works wonders for its appearance.
For my money, Japanese luxury cars such as the Mitsubishi Debonair, Toyota Century, and Nissan President respond best to this treatment, as demonstrated by many wild-eyed Japanese customizers (though Detroit limos look great, too). How about you?
Toyota Century image from Minkara, via Speedhunters.
28 Comments on “Question: Which Stodgy Luxury Car Gets Most Transformed At Extremely Low Altitude?...”
Read all comments
The Toyota Century looks like the unholy love child of an ’82 Dodge Mirada and a ’66 Continental.
I feel sorry for the Cadillac. Save the Fleetwoods!
Err, you didn’t just call an Audi 100 a luxury car now did you? They were near-luxury at best. And not even that near.
hummm sorry Murilee! Maybe it’s ’cause I hail from a country where even standard cars are raised a few inches over the same car sold elsewhere in order to deal wirh our wonderful roads. So that’s why any and every lowered car looks bad to my eyes…
Same here! Even some rather low standard car would scrape its bottom now and then. Though sometimes I did saw massively lowered cars here, usually sporty young man’s car (Civics and the like). Maybe they put skid guard under, so they won’t have to worry about scraping the ground all the time?
I have so much irrational love for the Toyota Century.
how’s the LS400? Is this a teaser post for you to show us yours, now nicely lowered?
I’m not lowering my LS. Just putting better wheels and Celsior badging on it.
Go on, drop it just a bit…
My ’94 Caprice not only benefitted from the asthetic improvements of lowering it 2 inches, but also no longer howls the tires on freeway interchages at 80 mph. Double win!
If you’re going to lower a car, a change of wheels is sort of in order. That Toyota Century up there looks like it’s broken down on it’s factory wheels, but with a different set…
http://cdn.speedhunters.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/IMG_3362_copy.jpg
Much better.
2 words
El Camino
Yick! I think it looks idiotic, I don’t care which brand you talk about!
Ditto here. No love for lowriders at all. And I’m Hispanic…
I love a slammed Volvo coupe. No idea why.
My two favorites would have to be the MkIV Lincoln Continentals and W126 Mercedes S-Classes, especially the SELs.
Dammit…i wanted to say w126.
Function and form are important to me. Lower a car so much it cannot be rationally used and it looses form. I get an acute sense of discomfort looking at those cars. The ride must be horrific and I would think a speed hump could ruin your day!
Just incredibly stupid, and I don’t think it ever looks good. The only reason to lower a car like that is for racecars that are never used on anything but billiard table smooth race tracks.
They look like you should be able to vacuum with them.
Escalade? A 4-6″ drop does wonders for the current Silverado, which has enough room in the wheel wells for a whole other set of tires.
Agree. Boxy vehicles look good lowered. A vehicle that looks most excellent lowered (tastefully) is the Honda Element. Complete changes the character of the vehicle. A slight dip down low also helps the ugly Honda Ridgeline.
Most full size cars could use a 2-4″ drop, while trucks/SUVs can handle 4-6″ easy. Maybe its because I live in FL but almost all vehicles seemed to have oversized wheel wells and too much ground clearance. Are roads really that bad elsewhere?
Honestly I think the larger the vehicle the better it looks lowered, the best is an airbag suspension so you can adjust that altitude.
If I just had to pick ONE I would go with any Cadillac that is RWD and has the word “Fleetwood” on it somewhere.
How about a Hummer slammed into the weeds?
just sayin’
By a wrecking ball, perhaps?
I’d really like to see someone slam a ZIL, the kind of vaguely-menacing-box-on-wheels that Murilee’s avatar would have been driven around in during his later years.
– Audi A6 4.2 (C5- 1997-2004)
– Pontiac G8
– Cadillac CTS
– Mazda Millenia S
– 2009-2012 Acura TL
– 2009-2012 Acura TSX
– 2006-2012 Lexus IS
– 2003-2004 Infiniti M45 (Y34)
– 2001-2005 Lexus GS430
– 1991-1993 Acura Legend
68 Continental!
I really like the old cars dropped, somehow they jujust plain look better.
Maybe it’s the long low hood and trunk & upright greenhouse of 1960s cars that make it look better low.
’60s toyota corona, toyota crown
If you’re going to do the Century, I have to say the Mitsubishi Debonair of the same era is amazing lowered.
’60s Pontiac Star Chief
’60s Dodge Diplomat
Also, not your luxury vehicle (of the time) but early ’60s Suburbans look good down low too.
I like me a lowered Volvo 850 Wagon, especially if R.