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There was a time when round was the only correct shape for the headlights. There are very few left today but in my opinion they still look the best. Kudos to Chrysler for still making cars with round headlights. I can think of the Jeep and the Challenger. BMW does too come to think of it. Manufacturers have really gone overboard with their headlight designs today. I think the trend started out with those hideous rectangular headlights of the late 70s and 80s.
It started back around 1986 when they started using composite headlight housings (GM in '87). I remember when the Ford Taurus was new that year, and it looked so sleek and futuristic with those raked back headlights.
Headlamps weren't round by choice of the designers. They were round due to regulations. Beginning in 1940, all cars had to have 2 round 7" headlamps. Beginning in 1958 they could have 4 round 7" headlamps. Rectangular headlamps were allowed beginning in 1974. In 1983 the Federal standards were changed to allow replaceable capsule bulbs for headlamps, paving the way for our modern headlamp designs. The 1984 Lincoln Mark VII was the first car since 1939 to have a free-form headlamp design.
The shape of headlights is now, more than anything else dictated by the aerodynamics properties of the front of the car where headlights are ideally positioned for illumination. Which is mandated by government fuel efficiency demands. Making headlights any fashion-conscious pre-determined shape would increase drag. They've come a long way from a lantern hanging on a bar.
Round headlights such as the Jeeps and Challengers look good on those vehicles because their overall design is ment to be a retro throwback to when cars had those round headlights. In that context, yes, they do look good, but thankfully they use modern lighting technology in their round shape. If you had one of those old sealed beam round headlights from 1975... you would feel like you were trying to drive down the road illuminating it by nothing more than the glow of a smartphone!
LED's are paving the way for the next revolution in headlight and overall automotive design, giving designers even more flexibility than even the composite housings which hold replaceable bulb and projector lighting.
Porsche still keeps round headlights. After their redesign on the 996 generation (which none of the Porsche purists liked) they went back to rounded headlights for the 997 generation and have kept them on the latest 991 generation as well.
The shape of headlights is now, more than anything else dictated by the aerodynamics properties of the front of the car where headlights are ideally positioned for illumination. Which is mandated by government fuel efficiency demands. Making headlights any fashion-conscious pre-determined shape would increase drag. They've come a long way from a lantern hanging on a bar.
There are still many cars with round headlights so it can’t be a design issue. Round headlights are so part and parcel of a brand that it would be a suicide to change it. There was a firestorm when the Jeep went to rectangular headlight in the YJ. It was never accepted as a real Jeep. Would BMWs be recognizable with those raked headlights so popular today?
Chrysler tried the square ones on the jeep but people did not like the looks of it so they wnt back to useing round housings with the replaceable hi-lo bulbs. There is no more actual headlight any more it's a housing with a bulb. No more taking out the light itself,just like replaceing a turn signal bulb.
Porsche still keeps round headlights. After their redesign on the 996 generation (which none of the Porsche purists liked) they went back to rounded headlights for the 997 generation and have kept them on the latest 991 generation as well.
I wouldn't call the 911 headlights round. Maybe the projector behind the molded lens is round - but then any any car with projector lights has a round "headlight."
I think the OP is really talking about the old school round sealed beams. Which as pointed out above were not a choice by the carmaker but were dictated by federal law.
Headlights have changed radically since those requirements were relaxed. They are now more functional and of course more fashionable.
Other than the high cost of replacing a headlight assembly, I much prefer the modern look of many headlights - fully integrated into the style and aerodynamics of the vehicle.
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