Five cars that have had a serious glo-up in 2020

Design follows trends and time just like our fashion, hairstyles and noses (depending on who you are…) and some car brands have more design impact than others. While some cars like the Porsche 911 and Volkswagen Golf have essentially kept their true form over many decades and have only slightly changed style cues, other cars have had some major changes, a ‘glo-up’ if you will. If you’re not familiar with the term, it appeared on social media in 2019 as part of an image challenge. Users posted a photo of themselves from 10 years prior next to a photo from today showing how they had grown up and changed. It is mainly used in reaction to an image of someone who has had a major and impressive transformation in appearance, talent or power.

Here's a Glo-up of our very own Feann Torr! One of his first video reviews on carsales compared to one of his latest...

We thought we’d flick through old carsales archives and find some true glo-ups from some of the world’s biggest car brands. The best part is, you’ll be able to buy them here on carsales too.

In 1994 Mercedes-Benz announced that they would be making a small car, which for the company was massive considering they’d been making almost exclusively large sedans for decades. In 1997 the A-Class was born and was a bit of a shock to the automotive world. The original A-Class was unique for Mercedes-Benz as it was a front-wheel drive car and had an unusually tall but short body. For many years it was the odd pick of the bunch for the three-pointed star brand considering most of their vehicles were still large sedans, wagons and coupes. Something happened in 2012 as if the car had gone through puberty and its whole proportions changed. The A-Class went from awkwardly tall to confidently low. Since then the car which was originally aimed at European families to live the city life had grown up and evolved into a car for singles who loved street racing and young couples who wanted to hit the wide-open roads on weekends. The A-Class has even been given the AMG sports treatment, a badge the 1997 original would have never been allowed to wear.

Find your own Mercedes-Benz A-Class on carsales today

Subaru claims that the Forester started the trend in compact, all-terrain wagons way back in 1997 before we knew what an SUV or AWD was. A simpler time indeed… The first Forester was boxy, roomy and undeniably great value back then, with a real-time four-wheel-drive system and plenty of features for just $26,990. As the years went on, the credibility of the Forester’s off-roading ability and versatile space grew and became a fan favourite. These days the Forester is less unique in its high riding wagon design, being joined by the likes of Toyota RAV4, Nissan X-Trail and Mitsubishi Outlander in the medium family SUV market. But it can still work it hard off-road.

Find your own Subaru Forester on carsales today

When the Hyundai Tucson first hit the scene back in 2004, the way the world saw SUVs was very different. Did anyone foresee that small and medium-sized SUVs would take over the medium and large sedan and the small hatchback game? Not really, but some brands jumped on board early and took a punt both ways. 2004 was the start of Hyundai’s own company-wide glo-up with the hero of the i30 only 3 years away. In 2020, the first glimpse of the all-new Tucson hit our screens and boy does it pack a punch. On the 2004 top of the range Elite model you got air conditioning, six-speaker stereo with a CD and MP3 player, electric windows, mirrors and sunroof, remote central locking, leather steering wheel and a trip computer. Flash-forward to the upcoming 2021 model and you can expect to get high-end luxuries, semi-autonomous steering, braking and acceleration, the ability to unlock the car with your smartphone and drive it remotely without anyone in the driver’s seat. Also, you can’t go past those looks.

Find your own Hyundai Tucson on carsales today

The glo-up with the Yaris is almost peak hipster. The car which was originally released into Australia as the Toyota Echo got so cool that it decided to change its name to something more unique. The Yaris/Echo of 1999 compared to the Yaris of 2020 is almost chalk and cheese. Not only did it change its name, but it’s also been bulking up too, now filled with massive amounts of tech, bigger dimensions and will cost you a lot more too. The original was a game-changer in the small car world offering something different from the Barina, Festiva and 121 of the day. A bit more modern (for the time) and a bit quirky thanks to its centralised digital speedometer. It also gained notoriety being on a very early season of reality TV renovation show The Block. Fast forward to 2020 and the Yaris is all grown up. Now selling from $22,130 ($14,990 was its base price in 1999), it is no longer playing in the budget little leagues.

Find your own Toyota Yaris and Echo on carsales today

Do you remember the TV ads for the Kia Rio in the early 2000s featuring "I Go to Rio" by Peter Allen and the party with car keys in the bowl? Well, the Rio of today is far from a cheap happy-go-lucky key in the bowl kind of car. in 2020 it is much more expensive than the original's $14,990 price tag but has had a big shift in its look and package. Kia overall has had a major glo-up too, social distancing itself from its former cheap and cheerful pricetags and quality, now pushing a sportier mantra.

Find your own Kia Rio on carsales today

Related: Fans of cubism art will love these five cube shaped cars on carsales

Related: Five Australian Prime Ministerial cars through history

Related: Top five budget Ferrari wannabes you can buy