Aesthetics are subjective, though there tends to be a general consensus of what looks good and what looks weird, especially when talking about automotive design. The classic car design rulebook says that front-engine, rear-wheel-drive cars tend to look better because of their dash-to-axle ratio, which describes the horizontal distance between the front wheels and the A-pillar or leading edge of the front doors. A longer dash-to-axle ratio tends to produce designs with the more appealing proportions of a long, low nose and a short rear deck.
Front-engine, RWD internal combustion vehicles generally have a more significant dash-to-axle ratio because their engines tend to be mounted longitudinally, whereas front-wheel-drive cars tend to have transverse-mounted engines, which don’t require as long of a hood. Though aesthetics are subjective, it’s generally agreed upon in the automotive world that cars with longer dash-to-axle ratios are better looking than cars with short dash-to-axle ratios, along with many other aspects, but for the sake of this blog, we’re focusing on proportions. Front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive, or all-wheel drive; front-engine, mid-engine, or rear-engine; what car do you think has the weirdest proportions?
Suzuki X-90
I think the Suzuki X-90 has the weirdest proportions, but that’s not a bad thing. In fact, I love the X-90 and want to own one in the not-too-distant future. The X-90 was a misfit when it was first introduced, and it remains one today. It’s a body-on-frame, front-engine, rear-or-four-wheel-drive, two-door, two-seat, truck-like thing with T-tops, so it already hits the weird target, but its proportions are truly wacky.
It’s extremely short overall, with a length of just 141.6 inches, nearly a foot shorter than a 2025 Mini Cooper two-door. But since it’s truck-based, it’s just over three inches taller than a Mini. Where a Mini is a hatchback that has a roof that reaches the rear of the vehicle, the X-90 has a separate trunk, so its greenhouse is extremely upright and abbreviated.
As a whole, the Suzuki X-90 was and remains one of the weirdest cars ever sold in the U.S., and in large part because of its awkward proportions. Its silhouette looks like it came from the wide-ruled paper of my elementary school notebook when I thought I’d make a great car designer, before realizing that I should stick to writing instead of any kind of sketching, and for that, I love the little X-90. What car do you think has the weirdest proportions? Sound off in the comments down below, and I’ll round up the best answers later this week.
