But what of now? What is there to dream of today? Well, there are plenty but I quite like the Nissan 350 Z. It took a while to get used to it but it grows on you.

It’s all the fault of the Audi TT Coupé, of course. I think they realized that the old Auto Union rear engined racers from before WWII really had something and decided to re-create the look for today. In doing so, they introduced modern car design to the arc of a circle, something we haven’t seen in cars for more than fifty years. The strangest thing is that it works, once you’re over the initial shock.

And the Nissan 350 Z is a Japanese take on the theme, although they made things difficult for themselves by throwing in the triangle, that nemesis of 21st century design. Triangles are for static things like pyramids and don’t belong anywhere near anything that is intended to move.

But I have to admit that those Nissan designers have come close to making it work. By extending the triangles a long way along the body, they make them less obtrusive, almost mere flashes of color to highlight the rounded shapes of the rest of the car. They have understood, too, that what makes the Audi design successful is the suggestion of power it gives - hence the deliberately rectangular grille on the blunt nose of the Nissan.

Throw in some big wheels and a slight flare to the wheel arches and you have a close-coupled, compact design that looks as if it means business. Which is exactly what the designers wanted, of course. The Audi is prettier but the Nissan looks more powerful. Maybe those triangles have something to say about aggression, after all…