Motoring in 2000-2009 - why there's so little to be remembered from that decade

In the previous post I talked about the cars from the passing decade that people will remember in 20 to 30 years. However, maybe more interesting than these memorable cars from the 2000 to 2009 decade is the very long list of cars that will be forgotten and why that’s the case.

If you have read my other list you will have missed a number of cars that you may have expected, for example certain models from BMW, Ferrari, Mercedes or Audi.
The Audi R8 didn’t make it onto the list, because while Audi being brave entering a new category with a new car, the R8 wasn’t really that innovative. BMW didn’t really present any remarkable model during and after the Bangle period. The Mercedes SLS is somewhat interesting, but will only really arrive in 2010 and even then it is somewhat of a Dinosaur. The Ferrari 458 Italia could have made it onto the list, but didn’t because it’s only shipped in 2010. However it’s an impressive and beautiful car offering Ferrari Enzo performance at half the price. The Alfa-Romeo 8C is probably the best repackaging gig, but is almost more of a showcar than a real production car. And what about the other manufacturers? Where is Lamborghini, Rolls-Royce, Porsche, Bentley or Honda? None of these really brought something new and exciting that will be remembered in 20-30 years.

I even wonder whether people in 2030 or 2040 will remember any car of the passing decade. In all the decades before there were some really mind boggling cars, for example the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing in the 50ties, the Jaguar E-Type and the Lamborghini Miura in the 60ties, the Lamborghini Countach in the 70ties, the Ferrari F40 in the 80ties or the McLaren F1 in the 90ies.
Super and hypercar manufacturers totally missed the point in the 2000-2009 decade really. Where is the sub-1000kg 400+ HP rocket that could have made the difference combining performance AND efficiency? It is possible from an engineering point of view, it’s just a lack of imagination and passion hindering us to go there!

What we will remember though from the 200x years are the massive failures, such as Saab going down the drain, GM, Chrysler and Ford going after governmental help, BMW dropping models in in-existent niches, besides many other events.