Ford Capri to BMW 02: More and more new electric models are inspired by the design of old classics

Music from the 1960s was playing, the colors were as pop and colorful as a chewing gum machine: When Ford presented its new electric car in London a few weeks ago, the guests were sent on a journey into the past. With the model that will be launched at the turn of the year, a classic is revived – at least in name. The Ford Capri was a coupé designed specifically for the European market, of which the car manufacturer sold over 1.8 million units in just under 20 years from 1969, making it the brand’s bestseller at the time. As a sporty car that was also considered family-friendly, it is the perfect model for an electric car that boasts the same features – even if the new coupé has four doors instead of two, as is common today.

The new Capri is not intended to be a copy of the classic, but rather to be inspired by it. “We want to capture the mood and style and transfer both into the present,” explains head of design Amko Leenarts. In this way – analogous to the legendary Ford Mustang and its electric successor Mach-E – the flat muscle car has become a powerful SUV that ultimately only has design details in common with the original. The black blindfold at the front, for example, is reminiscent of the “dog bone” that many people saw on the face of the Capri back then, there are similar letterings that have been elaborately embossed into the surfaces, and inside the seats are covered with fabrics in the style of the 1960s and 1970s, whose vertical lines are reminiscent of rally stripes. A detail on the steering wheel shows how much love for the spirit of the times Ford’s design department put into the new model: just like in the past, they milled a few holes into the steering wheel spokes to save weight – which of course doesn’t help much when the car weighs more than two tons and isn’t really necessary when it has up to 340 hp.

Although e-mobility is supposedly the future, Ford is looking back to past decades with the Capri – and is not alone in this strategy. Many manufacturers are conjuring up memories of old successful models with their new electric models. However, this is not because the designers are no longer coming up with anything new, especially since they have much more design freedom with the electric car with its skateboard architecture, in which all the technology is in the car floor, than with a conventional vehicle. The trend to honor one’s own heritage is based on two strategic considerations that sometimes appear more and sometimes less strongly in the design. “On the one hand, many customers are still unsettled by the upheaval in the world of drive systems,” explains Leenarts. “Proven and popular models can create a certain amount of trust and cause them a few worries.” On the other hand, there is also an attempt to differentiate themselves from the newcomers from the Far East. After all, new brands are emerging from China every quarter, attracting attention with ever new electric models.

The Chinese may be faster in development, they have good or sometimes even better technology, often attractive prices and now also a completely unique design. “But what sets us apart from all the new brands is our heritage, our tradition, our history,” says Damagoj Dukec. He is chief designer at BMW and has also been to the museum several times in recent years. Because when his employer ignites the next stage of the electric revolution next year with a completely new vehicle architecture for the “New Class”, two important models from the past will be cited. The radical development approach, the importance for the company and of course the name refer to the New Class from the early 1960s, which saved BMW from ruin and laid the foundation for today’s proverbial driving pleasure.

And the clear design, which is noticeably more subdued than the current models, with a slim, accentuated front and a kidney grille that quickly becomes filigree and is made entirely of light, is reminiscent of the legendary 02 models from 1966, with which the Munich-based company became the business punks of the 70s and the dream of all sporty family fathers. So far, there have only been so-called show cars of the new “New Class”, the first of which was shown as a Vision DEE two years ago at the CES in Las Vegas, the second was at the IAA in Munich six months later and the third – then as an SUV – was shown this spring at the manufacturer’s annual press conference. “But with each evolutionary stage, we have come closer to the series model and have become even clearer,” says Dukec. And the less playful the showpieces are, the less exaggerated, the clearer the parallels become. “Now you just have to imagine a few different rims and remove a bit of decoration, and then you have the final vehicle,” adds the head of design, referring to the SUV of the New Class, which is due to open the series next year.

Ford and BMW are not the first car manufacturers to seek salvation in their own past. Hyundai, of all companies, got this trend rolling – itself a relatively young brand in this circle. But the Koreans also have a history, and they remembered it when they embarked on the electric age. As the first electric car, the Ioniq5 is inspired by the pony with which the Koreans ventured into the world almost 50 years ago. It’s just a shame that hardly anyone other than Hyundai itself has any idea of ​​this car – even though it has been built several million times since 1975.

Things are a little different with the Fiat Panda. After all, the small car has helped shape the street scene in Europe for over six decades – and is still sold today. Now the Italians are sending it into the electric future and, like so many others, are riding the retro wave – but staying even closer to the original. Where Ford has only adopted a few striking design elements in addition to the pleasant-sounding name, the New Class and 02 series of yesteryear were only an inspiration for BMW, and the Opel Manta, another hero of the 70s and 80s, will probably come back as an SUV or new-fangled crossover, if it really is reborn as an electric car, the Panda as a small car remains true to its familiar appearance. Yes, it too is jacked up a little because the battery in the floor simply needs space, and it goes a little out of place, so Fiat simply calls the 3.99-meter-long five-door “Grande Panda”. But apart from that, the design is a very concrete, linear continuation of what Giorgetto Giugiaro put on paper in 1980. And this goes all the way down to details such as the LED pixels, which are intended to be reminiscent of the old striped grille, the name embossed into the sheet metal in the style of the old Sisley lettering or the new 3D logo on the C-pillar, which, depending on the viewing angle, shows the old Fiat logo or a panda lettering.

The king of the electric revenants, however, is a small car from France. After almost 30 years, the charming R5 is celebrating its return as an electric car this autumn. The French are relying on blissful memories, but are not falling into the nostalgia trap. Although the dimensions are similar and many details such as the taillights are largely taken from the original, the new R5 also looks new and is a thoroughly modern car. It also appeals to those generations who only got their driver’s license long after the original died of rust. This is not least due to the crisp proportions of the 3.92 meter long revenant, its friendly face and its cheeky backside.

The space is rather modest: while the front row still has plenty of space, the 2.54-meter wheelbase means you have to pull your knees up a little in the back. But just like the new Ford Capri, the R5 is now a four-door car and replaces orthopedic origami for the back seat passengers. And at least the trunk is OK for a small car at 326 liters.

For design chief Laurens van den Acker, the R5 is more than just a strategic expansion of the Renault portfolio, even if, with a base price of around 25,000 euros, it could lead the pack of affordable electric cars from Europe and become the brand’s new electric car. For the designer, the R5 is a real matter of the heart, he says: “Of course it’s also a burden, because you better not make a mistake when you’re reborning such a legend,” he admits. “But above all, it’s a huge opportunity that you only get once in your career.”

Van den Acker may be right about the first, but he is wrong about the latter. After Renault has already received a lot of praise and approval for its long preliminary talk about the R5 for two years, the French have already announced the next reincarnation of a classic – and want to bring back the R4 one year after the R5.