The 'Baroque Taunus' and the aerodynamic 'Bathtub'

Design · Published 9 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In the 1950s, German car design faced a cultural crossroads: should it embrace American-style flamboyance or pursue sleek European streamlining? The Ford Taunus became the canvas for this tension, evolving from tailfinned luxury to a controversial, rounded shape that locals nicknamed 'The Bathtub.'

Following World War II, growing prosperity in Germany pushed Ford to offer more expensive cars. In 1957, the Taunus 17M (P2) captured the era's transatlantic aesthetic. It featured substantial tailfins and a style reminiscent of American 1955 Fords, specifically influenced by the North American Mercury Monterey. This 'transatlantic flamboyance' earned it the nickname "Baroque Taunus." Notably, it was available with four doors—a rarity for middle-class German cars at the time that forced competitors like Opel to adapt.

By 1960, Ford pivoted toward a different philosophy with the P3 model. This version was completely restyled into a streamlined form that earned the mocking nickname "Taunus Badewanne" (Bathtub). The design choice was risky; in Germany, streamlining was often associated with narrow cabins like the Volkswagen Beetle. However, Ford engineers managed to provide greater interior width than the previous model without increasing the car's exterior width, using aerodynamics and a lighter body shell to increase top speeds by 10 km/h.

The Taunus lineage continued to experiment with layout and branding. While most models used rear-wheel drive, the smaller P4 and P6 models featured front-wheel drive between 1962 and 1970. The model's naming convention also reflected a unique corporate history: the "M" in names like 15M was intended to stand for "Meisterstück" (Masterpiece), but Ford had to abandon that specific word because it was already registered by another German automaker.

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