Mildly Irritating Misaligned Panels

Let your inner perfectionist run wild with these tiny car imperfections

If you’re the kind of person that can’t help but spot the smallest imperfections, you’re not going to like this because once you’ve seen these examples of very slight, minute errors, you won’t be able to unsee them.

We’re being extremely nitpicky today and these small misalignments may not even bother you one bit but at the same time, we believe that when indulging in a multi-thousand-pound purchase such as a car, you at least deserve a faultless and symmetrical product. So perhaps you’ll understand where we’re coming from when we’re mildly irritated by these panels that are ever so slightly misaligned.

See below 2 examples of some minor misalignment on a brand new car. This is a press image (as are all the images) of the Ford Fiesta Active so you can bet that this car is brand new, not used. Sure, through general wear and tear of a car you could excuse the panels for becoming slightly misaligned over time but we can’t excuse this. This is how they look straight out the factory…

You can see how the lines don’t quite meet on the boot and in the corner of the rear door. That’s two misalignment’s in one car. Yikes.

Below is a close-up picture of the Toyota GT86. That’s just bad design.

This example on the blue Audi A3 below is a bit more subjective. Personally, I don’t like how it looks and I’ve seen other cars handle the “chrome trim point” much better.

Like this Kia Ceed for example. That’s how the chrome trim point should be handled.

Another example of a messy alignment of the A-pillar and chrome trim seen on this Audi Q3 below.

The new BMW Z4 has split opinions on its appearance. Some say it’s a fresh new look, others say it looks too much like a Mazda. I say that the damn petrol cap looks misaligned from this angle! Imagine buying a £50,000 sports car and not being able to unsee this tiny, yet erasable, error.

Another car with double trouble when it comes to triggering the perfectionist within you. The windscreen doesn’t line up with the black door trim and the front door window doesn’t line up with the rear side window! How did the C4 Cactus make it out of development like this?

This Fiat Tipo is suffering from some classic door-to-panel misalignment.

The new BMW X5 is a perfect example of why all panel gaps should be the same.

So what’s the solution to these seemingly unsolvable imperfections? Either don’t spot them in the first place and live in blissful ignorance, or just buy your car in black. That should do it.

Next time you’re out and about, have a look at the cars around you and you may find that you’ve found a whole new perspective.

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