When auto industry writers don't like the appearance of a car interior, they pull out a word that's meant as a serious insult: plasticky. I saw it most recently in an Automotive News report on the new Mazda2. The interior of the five-door hatchback was unveiled Feb. 11 at the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto. "Compared to the current European edition, the North American model will have an upgraded audio head unit, higher-grade climate control knobs, and seats with higher-grade fabric and stylish piping," the story said. "The look and feel of the top of the instrument panel appears to be less plasticky." I shared the mention with Rhoda Miel, the Detroit-based staff reporter for Plastics News, who told me this story:
At an interiors show, I was talking to a plastics guy who said he was looking at a high-end car on display. One of the guys complained about the "plasticky fake wood" touches. The plastics guy just looked at him and said: "Well then, plastics must be getting a lot better at wood trim, because that's real wood."Maybe the problem was the finish on the wood. You'd think the luxury car makers could use a coating that's less ...
