So when did it become a trend to make your (insert really nice car here) look like a honda

I came up on this car and was not paying much attention thinking it was just another accord that some had done a little custom work to. Then I noticed what it really was and I was just blown away that some one would actually take a very nice car that I would consider to be a step above an accord and make it look like an accord. Mind you that this was in a rather upscale part MA just west of Boston proper.

I have photo shopped the emblem out so you will see what I saw the first time I saw it (not really paying attention) I even thought for a moment that it was an accord that some one had put the emblem from the other car on to it but that was not the case.

Is this a new trend? Making nice cars look like Accords?

Maybe people that if it looks like an Accord, it'll be as dependable as an Accord.

Pretty sure it's an unintentional side-effect of the "murdering out."

Is that a Mercedes C230? They're available for less than a Honda Accord on the used market. Think of the buyer and their mindset, inexpensive modifications...

because Wisconsin or Connecticut Ave.

Looks like a Mercedes with painted taillights. The tail end of those things seemed pretty similar to a '92-'96 Accord to start with.

OTOH, I've seen enough cases of someone trying to make a Civic look like a BMW that it would be absolutely hilarious to disguise a 3 series BMW as a Civic.

This was actually a CLK. From the front I was all MB but from the back and even the side (if you squinted a bit) it was a "faux Honda"

So you're blaming the driver for Mercedes using a posterior design that bears a passing resemblance to that of a Honda? I also don't see how simply tinting the tail lights constitutes an attempt to make any given car "look like an Accord", beyond the afore mentioned factory styling.

I've thought many times that my E92 looks a lot like a civic coupe.

Driven5 wrote: So you're blaming the driver for Mercedes using a posterior design that bears a passing resemblance to that of a Honda? I also don't see how simply tinting the tail lights constitutes an attempt to make any given car "look like an Accord", beyond the afore mentioned factory styling.

You sound like you are offended by my comments about Honda's and or that style selection that the MB owner decided to go for.

I am wondering why some one would take a MB and do it up to look like a Honda. And that is MUCH more than a passing resemblance. I am not sure you could do more to make it look like a Honda if you tried unless you swapped body's. If you left the MB it alone there is enough difference between the two to easily tell them apart. There was a lot more than tinting of the tail lights. There was the mat black paint and the shaved emblems and shaving of some of the other trim and chrome for starters. A fair amount of work went in to that MB. Mind you it was very well done it was not a hack job. I bet several if not many thousands of $$$$ were spent to get that look.

I could have asked the question of why would you take a nice car and make it look cheap?

And why would I blame anyone? Relax, breath in, out, in, out. Ok? What does blame have to do with anything? It is a simple stylistic choice that some one made and I am wondering why they would do it. Is it a trend?

Ohya and while I am at it get off my lawn.

That does not look like a Honda.

Fixed the Honda, gave it RWD

In reply to dean1484:

Why would I be offended by the fact that even with flat/matte black paint, tinted tails, and removal of trim/badges, I have absolutely no difficulty in differentiating a Mercedes (or BMW, Audi, Lamborghini, etc) from a Honda?

If what you were having difficulty articulating is simply that "murdering out" any type of more expensive car generally makes it look cheaper in your personal opinion, then yes that has been 'a thing' for a while now. Although it's actually more of a higher-end car trend, with a number of prestigious manufacturers basically even offering it direct from the factory on certain special editions. Personally, I've definitely seen far more expensive cars, mostly from the brands noted above, with that treatment than common/affordable cars like late model Accords.

ProDarwin wrote: That does not look like a Honda.

Agreed.

I try to make my Honda not look like a Honda.

I bet i could make your silver honda look like a turbo red Miata pretty easy. Imagine the epic joke you could play on your friends!

Forever.

You in?

I don't see how tinting the tail lights makes it look like a Honda....the new Accords look pretty great though. Better than some MB offerings. I'm a total Honda fan boi though. I have two brand new Subaru's and felt something missing in m life so I bought a $200 Accord for chump car, that I will make look like a Mercedes just for you :)

It appeared to be an older generic blob car. I can't tell without an emblem anymore, I'm afraid. The new slash/angle/tall dorkmobiles are even harder.

GameboyRMH wrote: Pretty sure it's an unintentional side-effect of the "murdering out."

Never heard that term before. Seems like a half step away from Stance. Which I didn't know about until this year either.

I guess if it makes you happy to have an all matte, tinted, shaved trim car then enjoy.

In this case it does reduce the car to looking like those Ford Contours or something. Like an accord.

In reply to Advan046:

"Murdered out" is the blacking out of the car. Kinda like AMG in the 80's, but a step or two further.

Lexus made it's full size name by copying the MB models of the day, and it goes in cycles. It's gotten to the point that I have a hard time distinguishing some of the 4 door appliance profiles anymore.

my 22 year old cousin got an old body style black 2014 Impala last summer- i honestly thought it was a nice '06 or so model the first time i saw it.... the first thing she did was get some cheesy looking "projector" headlights and darkened LED tail lights for it... it looks like a big Honda to me, but she thinks it looks badass and that 3.9 V6 under the hood moves it pretty damn good, so the ricer lighting can be overlooked..

In reply to Driven5:

I had never heard of the term Murdering out a car before. I mean we did kill a couple over the years but that usually involved big trees or very bad things happening to the motor or other parts of the driveline.

I actually thought it was a Honda. And paid it little or no attention I really like the CLK Merc's Drove a CLK 500 a while back and I would not mind one of those in my driveway!!!

Just think it is kind of weird that you take a really nice car and do that to it. Yes it made it look cheap. Kind of reminded me of the Justin Bieber Cadi that I saw on TV a while back but that still looked like a cadi and that did not look cheep. I actually thaught how they made the doors open was cool on that car.

Sometimes I wonder how car guys, on car forums, never hear these common car terms. And how car guys, on car forums or in the real world, never see these common car trends. And how car guys, who know cars, ever confuse one pretty much stock car for another, completely different, car.

Chris_V wrote: Sometimes I wonder how car guys, on car forums, never hear these common car terms. And how car guys, on car forums or in the real world, never see these common car trends. And how car guys, who know cars, ever confuse one pretty much stock car for another, completely different, car.

i can speak to the last item on your list: all new cars look like a Civic or Corolla these days.. sometimes they add superfluous body lines or something to set themselves out from the other boring jelly bean shaped commuter cars that they share the road with, but ultimately they all look alike in passing. it's just a sad fact of life.

or maybe i just don't give a crap about any new cars enough to even bother to try to figure out whether i'm looking at a new Civic or a new Mercedes...

Wait what? I'm missing how that black Mercedes looks like an Accord.

Chris_V wrote: Sometimes I wonder how car guys, on car forums, never hear these common car terms. And how car guys, on car forums or in the real world, never see these common car trends. And how car guys, who know cars, ever confuse one pretty much stock car for another, completely different, car.

QFT