The Volkswagen Jetta and Toyota Corolla decided to cosplay as each other in the aughts. Or at least I still think so, because the two looked eerily similar at one point. And I wanted to know what other cars readers think have copied another’s style, or which others looked suspiciously similar to their rivals and competitors.
The Kia Amanti was probably the most obvious answer. Kia and Hyundai were eager for a visual identity in the aughts, and the South Korean carmakers were very obsiouly inspired by competitors in the luxury segment. Even if Kia and Hyundai weren’t rivals (at the time) with European brands known for luxury and sports cars, the South Koreans were aspirational, and, perhaps, a little too blatant in their pursuit to emulate the stalwart brands.
But, as readers pointed out, Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar were also orbiting each other’s designs, which led to some car confusion. Maybe automotive styling is just something floating in the air and carmakers accidentally pick up on designs that are too close for comfort. Or, maybe carmakers sometimes do rip each other off, so here are some cars that our readers think look a lot like their rivals.
