Beauty in the bug-eyes of the beholder; KURT MOLLER on how bad car design can hit you in the pocket.

Byline: Kurt Moller

LOOKS are important. The only people who say they are not are usually ugly.

In fact, in today's fashion-conscious society, appearance is more important than ever.

As a result more people are having plastic surgery and at increasingly younger ages.

The same is happening in the car world too.

Usually a motor gets a facelift halfway through its eight-year model life.

But recently there have been a number of high-profile cases where certain manufactures have produced a car that's so ugly it's required cosmetic improvements just months after hitting the showrooms.

So what you might say? Well, if you are one of those who have spent your hard- earned cash on one of these ill-favoured models you could be looking at the kind of depreciation only associated with shares in a dot com company.

This is because when a new or face-lift model is released onto the market it automatically pushes down the trade- in value of the previous version.

In the normal four-year update cycle this isn't much of problem as dealers usually offer huge discounts on a car which is soon to be updated. But if a manufacturer facelifts a vehicle early, buyers can loose out big time.

Take the turbocharged Subaru Impreza. This car, which offers Ferrari performance for Ford Mondeo money, has enjoyed a loyal following since it first appeared in 1994 and has always held its value well.

But when Subaru decided to update the rally-bred motor last November it made a bit of a blunder.

Despite improved handling and offering more performance per pound there was one big problem - it was about as attractive as Christine Hamilton.

It was soon nicknamed the bug-eyed Impreza due to its hideous bulbous headlamps. Needless to say sales were slow. As a result Subaru panicked and updated it 14 months later.

To add insult to injury when the newcomer arrived it was pounds 1000 cheaper. People who had bought the bug- eyed car saw the value of their motor drop by thousands overnight.

Now owners of the new BMW 7-Series, which hit showrooms in 2001, could be facing similar losses because there's talk that the big Beemer is to receive an early facelift too.

Although sales have been okay in the UK, the motor's strange styling hasn't gone down well with the Yanks and their more conservative tastes.

Executive motors already suffer wallet-crippling depreciation at the best of times. So if a face- lifted model of the 7-Series arrives, the current car's value could fall like a stone.

RELEASING an ugly car is a mistake BMW should never have made.

When they unveiled the 7-Series at the Frankfurt Motor Show it wasn't well received.

The firm should have heeded the universal criticism and redesigned its unpleasant front and horrid rear before putting it on sale. But then that's the arrogant Germans for you.

Nissan are also planning an early makeover of their Primera, too. Now I really like this car. Unlike Nissans of old it is it is one of the most attractive family cars on the market.

However, the marque are keen to improve the quality of the interior and make minor changes to the outside. Problem is that traditionally, Primeras have devalued faster than the Argentina Peso.

Bringing out a revised version little over two years after the car's launch will just make matters worse.