Thanks to Jim’s Antti’s Mitsubishi-themed weekend, I was reacquainted with the Cordia, a car I though was quite handsome as a young college student soldier. But I never realized back in the day how odd and obvious the black plastic filler was in the corners of the rear quarter windows. It is a styling technique we’ve seen many times over the years. Sometimes it’s done for engineering reasons (stronger roof pillars, or allowing door windows to go down completely) and sometimes it’s done strictly for looks (“Let’s make this window odd and awkward!”). For whatever reason they exist, your job today is to list all the cars that have used this little styling trick.
Just to be clear, this is NOT a Hofmeister kink, which clips off the corner of both the window and the window frame to match it. We need to see cars whose body shell is shaped to make it look like the window opening was originally larger than the glass is, and the extra bit has been filled in with a trim piece (sometimes chrome, usually matte black if the car is less than 25 years old.)
DIFFICULTY: Roughly equivalent to being “it” in a game of hide-and-seek. On the Bonneville salt flats.
Read the comments first and don’t post duplicates. Images are always a nice touch.*
*thanks to the wonder of Disqus, I no longer have to admonish you about HTML and/or image width settings!
Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Window Corner Fillers
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67 responses to “Encyclopedia Hoonatica: Window Corner Fillers”
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MkI Focus 3 door has it:
http://www.examiner.com/images/blog/replicate/EXID1017/images/2001_ford_focus_zx3_8.jpg
The 5 door does not:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/02-04_Ford_Focus_ZX5.jpg-
but the foucs does have it, look at the rear passenger window!
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Those aren’t window fillers, those are awesomeness indicators.
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Interestingly enough, the car pictured is not a real Impala SS, but a Caprice with window fillers made to make a Caprice look like an Impala SS, because in the early years Caprice didn’t not have the kink and Impala did, then in 96 they both had it.
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That is a ’94 SS. They updated body had the kink in ’95 across the line.
The appliqué really just did cover a hole but it was a separate part as shown.
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I was behind one of these on my street when I was coming home from work today. Still a handsome car after 20+ years.
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While square-ish already, the rear windows on the first gen Mercury Topaz required a bit of filler.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/1st-Mercury-Topaz-Sedan.jpg -
The Opel Kadett E has some of the biggest window corner fillers… In the world!
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It’s especially awkward on the 3-door.
http://images.thetruthaboutcars.com/2010/11/lemans.jpg-
The current version, the UzDaewoo Nexia of Uzbekistan, is only available as a five door. It has discarded the filler in favour of better visibility. Now that’s a handful of solid progress!
http://www.uzdaewoo.ru/uploads/auto/377_1_big.jpg-
Actually the booted versions always had the five window treatment, as demonstrated by this Asüna SE:
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7325/12546917755_07261d0f7e.jpg -
You are right and wrong at the same time!
Speaking of the 5-door, but picturing the 4-door…
The Opel Kadett sedan always had that window too…
But the Daewoo Nexia 5-door actually did get rid of that thing!
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Older Kadett had similar look.
http://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3178/2898887238_2985d805fb.jpg
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I find the Chevy Cruze to be kind of a mess, and the awkward filler is part of that.
http://www.chevrolet.com/content/dam/Chevrolet/northamerica/usa/nscwebsite/en/Home/Vehicles/Cars/2015_Cruze/Model_Overview/01_images/2015-chevrolet-cruze-baseball-card-648×271.png -
http://cnet1.cbsistatic.com/hub/i/r/2010/08/03/74eaf7ac-67c4-11e3-a665-14feb5ca9861/thumbnail/770×433/a3cdf2f0cd850578098baa50e5c9d496/33060613-2-440-SIDE-3.jpg
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2008/04/vibe128029_opt.jpg
You want your windows to go 100% down right? They won’t, but these little black filler pieces will get them closer to it.
2009-2013 Vibtrix, biggest offender is the Vibe because of the c-d panel windows. -
http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1975045!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_635/2015-toyota-camry-rear-3-4-red-2.jpg
Most recent offender, the 2015 Toyota Camry.
I fear i have just caused all Hoons to have to see this on every Camry they will now see on the road. I am sorry.-
That C-pillar treatment is so awkward I wondered how it reached production.
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http://www.parkplace.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/2013-Lexus-ES350-Rear.jpg
It tricks the eye so that the Lexus looks different. -
A valid comment including the famous front treatment, too. Hard to understand what they are aiming for with a car that is so successful already. On the other hand, you don’t want to be called boring or lazy either. Luxury problems of a market leader.
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Aaagh… and I’d just gotten the obnoxious ~2012 “grounded to the ground” advert from the NASCAR rotation out of my head…
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If I didn’t know any better I’d say they really, really wanted to copy Saab.
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That shoud be in reply to the 2015 Toyota Camry.
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http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/85/1995-1997_Mercury_Mystique_.jpg/1280px-1995-1997_Mercury_Mystique_.jpg
Well the Mondeo and Contour had it too, and I remember it being a kind of big deal on some local car show I saw, because there’s a bit of structure behind there and they complained that the door opening was too small and it didn’t have enough legroom.-
Is it as egregious as the Avenger?
http://f.tqn.com/y/cars/1/S/5/t/jf_08avenger_Door.jpg-
Oy. It even got an echo of the Sebring’s hood strakes. I guess that’s the price that was paid for the baby-Charger styling theme, with that quarter panel upkick that starts in the door and runs into where the Sebring had a little fixed window.
I even had a ’14 Avenger SE V6 for a few days last summer, as a loaner when my pickup needed to spend 3 days in a shop for what was expected to be a 1-day suspension repair; I must have blanked that part of the car out of my memory in favor of how stupidly fun the big V6 + smallish car combo was…-
With all the rebates for these, that trim/engine combo was probably one of the cheapest hp/$ deal out there…
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That’s awful. And just from this tiny picture I get that yoghurt cup plastic feeling…holy smokes!
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The Chevy Spark puts the handle for the back door in the window filler. Because it was meant to be there or something.
http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s–Z04HLWkp–/18ncmutzce65xjpg.jpg-
Renault Clio design follows same idea.
http://sr5.perrys.co.uk/used-car-photos/800x/3/1/OE14WXY.jpg-
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I think the Alfa Romeo 156 was the first car with this idea, might be wrong, though.
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I’m pretty sure it was the first one, too. Lots of fuzz around just that when the car was launched. Also: Sportwagon. Hmmmmm…
http://automobilio.info/auto/Alfa-Romeo-156-Sportwagon.jpg -
You’re right the first was Alfa Romeo 156
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That C-pillar window is SO SMALL! Amazing that they even bothered
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Yep, that’s one small and strange window. A bit bigger on Captur:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Renault_Captur_Luxe_ENERGY_TCe_90_Start_%26_Stop_eco%C2%B2_%E2%80%93_Heckansicht,_10._Juli_2013,_M%C3%BCnster_(1).jpg
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The Spark’s A-pillar is a hot mess too.
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I feel the same about the entire car!! 🙂
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Maybe it doesn’t count, but the Renault Vel Satis has an unnecessary bit in the front window: http://img.automobile.de/modellbilder/Renault-Vel-Satis-30979_wochenthema_taxi_11_41.jpg
To make up for it, here’s the Austin Maestro doing it twice: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/02/Austin_Maestro_1982.JPG/1024px-Austin_Maestro_1982.JPG-
Three times, actually: A-pillar, C-pillar and D-pillar!
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Honda City Turbo II MK1
https://c1.staticflickr.com/7/6116/6266920812_b724e91a56.jpg -
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Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Y̶e̶l̶l̶o̶w Black Polka Dot B̶i̶k̶i̶n̶i̶ Window Corner Filler
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NSFW obstructing the view of the car.
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In full effect in the NF generation of Hyundai Sonata.
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The last generation Mazda6 had it too.
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And as you can see in the second generation Lexus GS, Toyota’s recent job on the 2015 Camry isn’t their first.
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It looks especially bad from the inside
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Stretching the topic but how about mid-window fillers instead of window corner fillers…
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Buick LeSabre Grand National
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Do these things count? They are actually no fillers but integral shutters:
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When I first saw photos of the Chevy Volt I was pleased to see that the high belt-line trend was finally being reversed … oh wait, that’s just a black strip running along the bottom of the greenhouse and (re this topic) kinked up just ahead of the C-pillar… .
(Apologies in advance if the photo doesn’t appear — I’m experimenting with the new Disqus format.)-
With or without a photo, a bonus point for reminding us all of this particularly inexplicable piece of ‘window filler’ madness…
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The Ford Escape, Mercury Mariner and Mazda Tribute hybrids, but only on the left side. It marked the start of a fresh air duct that lead down to the battery pack under the cargo area floor.
http://static.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/images/Auto/izmo/333846/2012_ford_escape_angularrear.jpg
http://static.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/images/Auto/izmo/316817/2010_mercury_mariner_angularrear.jpg
http://cdn1.automobilesreview.com/img/mazda-tribute-hybrid-suv/slides910/mazda-tribute-hybrid-suv-03.jpg-
TIL there’s a Tribute Hybrid
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There is a technical term for this, sort of
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/tag/dlo-fail/-
Never knew they were “cheater panels.” TIL…
http://www.cardesignnews.com/site/home/display/store4/item78127/#4
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the SW20 MR2 promised a lot of window in the profile view, but the buttresses and rearward-curving rear window meant glass all the way out back woulda been useful.-
Fiero was the same way, but they delivered no window at all, at least on the early cars.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/1985_Pontiac_Fiero_GT_rear_right.jpg
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Rover 75, (the second, and last one). Used for a badge location on most, until the later models when it was dropped
http://www.the75andztclub.co.uk/forum/imagehosting/95849b30f643767f.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/Rover_75.jpg
but not the P4 Rover 75, the first one
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Rover_75_aka_Cyclops_ca_1952.jpg -
Hatchback mustangs from ’79-86 had the “sail panels” that looked dated as the Fox years wore on. The entire quarter window from the ’87-’93’s could be installed in their place as it was just a big piece of flush mounted glass that covered both the old window hole and the body work that was formerly paneled over.
http://mustangattitude.com/mustang/1986/1986_00009_05.jpg-
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It didn’t really occur to me until just now, but the notchbacks had them too, just less raked.
http://px6.streetfire.net/0001/98/02/1528920_600.jpg
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