Long live the 1980s! Why Hyundai is tapping the shoulder-pad decade for inspiration

Who would have thought the 1980s would be the antidote for the polarisation of society today?

The Hyundai Insteroid concept might be a modern electric vehicle (EV) concept, but you don’t have to look too hard to find 1980s-style design cues.

But why the 1980s, particularly given carmakers have long favoured the 1960s as a source of design inspiration?

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“In our minds, it’s more the wildest [decade],” Hyundai exterior design manager Nicola Danza told Australian media.

“Everything is serious around us, and everything that happens around [us] politically as well. That’s why we started to say, ‘Guys, just have fun.’”

While the Insteroid features some particularly 1980s details like Pacman-style ghost decals and a sound system inspired by boomboxes, it’s not the first Hyundai to tap the decade for inspiration.

“I see this retro style coming back in almost everything, you know the pixel [lighting elements] as well that we started, something from when we were kids,” said Mr Danza.

“It’s not only in cars, but I think everywhere else it’s coming back – Minecraft for example.”

Hyundai’s parametric pixel lighting can be found on models like the Ioniq 5, Ioniq 6 and Staria, bringing to mind old computer graphics and digital watch displays.

The company even employed this lighting design to great effect for its Grandeur Heritage Series in 2021, a restomod based on the 1986 Grandeur.

Don’t expect the Insteroid to be the last bit of 1980s design influence from the industry.

“We’ll see more probably,” said Mr Danza.

Already Renault has revealed the 5 Turbo 3E, inspired by the hot versions of its 5 city car that it built in the 1980s. Rivian has also revealed the R3, which pays homage to 1980s performance cars like the Lancia Delta Integrale.

Even the new Toyota LandCruiser Prado has some distinctly 1980s-style boxiness to it.

Hyundai says that with the Insteroid it didn’t explicitly set out to make a vehicle that appeals to people who came of age in the decade of big shoulder pads and bigger hair.

However, with the racy design study it thinks it’s found something that will resonate not only with those who did, but also younger generations.

Mr Danza said young designers took the lead in the project, and they ended up conceiving design elements like the ‘Hyundai Beat House’ which Mr Danza likens to 1980s boomboxes.

“We never said to those guys to put a ghetto blaster in there. But they came with the idea,” he said.

“Some things they start to get in common without forcing them to do it.

“[The Insteroid is] purely for the young generation, that’s why we didn’t force any ideas from ourselves in, because we wanted to know their opinion – and that’s their opinion.

“It’s very interesting to analyse it as there are some things in common.”

The 1980s was also a boom time for hot hatches in Europe, providing more inspiration for the Insteroid – while Hyundai didn’t say it, there’s a whiff of Renault 5 Turbo about the concept.

“We analyse what’s going on, especially in Europe – big cities but small streets. Small cars like Inster or the hot hatches, that’s where we’re happy to work on because of the size,” said Mr Danza.

Hyundai is calling the Insteroid a design study, and says there are no plans to put it into production – though it appears the company does want a smaller, more affordable hot EV to slot in under the Ioniq 5 N.

The Ioniq 5 itself drew inspiration from a previous decade, specifically the 1970s. Its design pays homage to the 1974 Pony Coupe concept.