Stylish classic car dashboards to put you out of touchscreen misery

Fed up with modern car interiors? Here are 10 styles from when cars were as individual as the companies that designed them

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Not a fan of the modern car interior, festooned as it is with touchscreens? Not one, not even two, but three in some of the latest cars.
And the steering wheel, nowadays filled with myriad buttons and switches that not so long ago was the preserve of Formula 1 machinery. Side-impact safety considerations, meanwhile, dictate that the bottom edge of the side windows are nearer shoulder height than they are to your elbow; safe, but claustrophobic.
What happened to individualism and elegance in car interiors? To demonstrate how much has changed, we have delved into the past to select some of the most stylish dashboards. Which is your favourite?
Current Mercedes interiors are pretty glitzy places, but if you want straightforwardness and the sort of build and material quality that feels like it will last forever then the original S-Class is a winner. Okay, so the shiny wood isn’t everyone’s cup of Glühwein but it’s all incredibly well-engineered and constructed; few other car makers produced switches that operated with such satisfying precision. And it’s all finished off with the traditionally huge steering wheel. What’s not to like about this Teutonic masterpiece?
Jaguar’s range-topping model has always done a nice line in interiors and the generation featured here boasts all of the wood ’n’ leather luxury you could want. A couple of LCD displays are as sophisticated as it got and it even featured a cassette player – none of that touchscreen DAB business here – but it was just what buyers wanted. There’s a richness about it that’s incredibly soothing. If you have to stare at a dashboard for hours on end, this will do very nicely.
When the DS appeared in 1955 it couldn’t have looked more space-age if it tried, but things were a bit more restrained inside. Not in a bad way, mind, because we think there’s something charmingly stylish about its dashboard and the details of this particular version are very well executed. The delicate gear lever above the steering column is another lovely touch, but your eye can’t help but be drawn to the single-spoke steering wheel. Quirky, yes, but brilliant all the same.
No one does luxury and craftsmanship quite like Rolls-Royce and if, back in 1965, you’d have treated yourself to the sybaritic Phantom this is the dash you’d have faced. Or perhaps your chauffeur would have. Anyhow, what’s so lovely is that there’s nothing superfluous set into the slab of the finest wood, certainly nothing as flashy as a rev counter. It’s just the minimum of dials and controls, all with the look and feel of impeccable class and quality.
The Swedish manufacturer has always done understated particularly well and while today’s switch to screens isn’t universally welcomed it was much simpler in the 1960s. I could bang on about “Scandi-minimalist cool” but it’s just the sheer pared-back functionality that makes this dashboard so appealing. Three dials, a few switches, a lovely V’ logo in the centre and that’s it. Neat, clear and with nothing in the way of ostentation. It’s something many other car companies could have learnt from.
Although this particular dash is from the notably more modern 964 generation, it hadn’t really changed much in years. Quality was superb and it was certainly functional, but a Porsche is all about the driving experience so there was simply no need for anything flashier. But what makes it so timeless is the five-dial instrument pack that provides plenty of information but places the rev counter front and centre. And that’s still the same to this day.
It might all look a bit busy but we can’t be alone in thinking that the black and chrome looks absolutely gorgeous. As an owner back in the 1960s there would have been few things more satisfying than surveying all of this as you blasted to the south of France (you’d have led an exciting life, naturally), while how can I not mention that it’s exactly the view James Bond had. We can’t spot any gadgets, though…
Sticking the engine in the middle of a supermini might have seemed odd enough, but when it came to the interior, well, it’s all a bit bonkers. From the garish colour scheme to the strange steering wheel, this racy Renault just screams exotic and if that’s not a reason to love it I don’t know what is. Later iterations reverted to a more traditional layout, but we much prefer this rather wilder look. It’s hard to imagine anyone doing this today.
If you want clarity when it comes to your instruments then a BMW of the 1970s or 80s is simply unbeatable. Never mind that it looks a bit austere because it works beautifully, with every control perfectly placed; you just know that an awful lot of time was spent thinking about the design, while there’s not an ambient lighting strip in sight! And angling the centre console towards the driver only added to the already excellent ergonomics, making things feel that bit sportier.
If you’re wondering why we didn’t use a picture showing the whole dashboard it’s because, well, this is all there is. To call it minimalist is an understatement, but back in 1959, it’s all Mini owners really needed and the fact that even the very latest BMW-produced versions still ape the look shows how right it was. That original circular layout did expand to include water temperature and oil pressure gauges in a slightly more ovoid shape, but if simple is all you want it doesn’t get much better than this.
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