"Hey wait, Japans buying these things."

That's pretty much what Ford's design department did with the 2010.

Yeah that's why I put in "talk". I'm just thinking out loud.

Please feel free to....discuss.

It is very obvious in the design of the rear and front ends many nods to Japanese auto design are present. The drift community in Japan LOVES the Mustang as well. And supports a fairly large culture of it over it there.

I am wondering if this is a trend in design that will continue? How do fellow Mustang owners feel about this new phase in design?

The one big thing the S197 had going for it was it's bold, out there retro blend. A style that said, "yeah I know I am not the most technically advanced machine on the road but I don't need to be." The retro look told everyone, "I am a Detroit muscle car" and "I eat tires and road for breakfast." It's like the Mustang got a pass on everything else because of this.

Then we get that early Italian concept which started worrying everyone. And now that I am seeing the resulting 2010s on the road....the front fascia, the rear-end, those LED tail lights...it's just too obvious that it looks like the Mustang is trying to "fit in". To toss off it's muscle car roots. At least in style and this is just the beginning, potentially.

Problem is as soon as you start moving away from that bold retro appearance you start to fall back in to the "noise" of everything else out there. Which then will bring inevitable if not completely unjustified comparos.

Why not build on maintaining a heritage look but improve things internally? Hell Porsche has had the same basic shape since inception for a reason, it works. It's a trademark. Mustang design definitely had it's dominant era of design in the late 60s and even early 70s. The S197 took its cue from that era for a reason, it works.

Do we really need to cycle through another 10 years of completely different styles that diffuse the Mustang trademark?

If you could build a time machine and go back to 1967, grab a Mustang owner and then bring them to today...they'd say, "oh cool, looks evolved, I recognize it." Take that same person and dump them off in 1995 through 2004, I think they'd have a heart attack.

The front facsia of the Mustang has strong associations with the Mistsubishi EVOX. The rear end is from the Camary/Accord club. I call it the, "took a dump in my diaper" look.

The tail lights SCREAM cheap-part-Pep-Boys-Ricer-Special. There are many ways to utilize LED lights in a far, far better styled way. The lens design they used does not keep with a retro look and comes off as gawdy. Mercedes and BMW have handled the transition to LED tail lights much better, especially recently.

The Challengers tail light design is gorgeous. A perfect nod to the classic.

And yes I prefer the normal tail lights and halogen headlights on our cars. I don't mind the HIDS too much but the more white the choice in bulb temp the better.

The FOX is a nice design but it's far too cookie cutter 80's themed for me. I'd prefer to stay in the late 60s to early 70s. The cars just had more "style" more "presense". Just dance around that era.

As I said, 911s have kept the same basic shape for an eternity and they still sell like hot cakes. FYI I think the 911 is an ugly duck.