If anything Apple has been bringing buttons back, or innovating on them. Touch Bar was reverted to buttons. The iPhone Pro replaced a switch with a haptic feedback button (many Android phones simply have no equivalent button or switch.) Vision Pro got the “Digital Crown” from the Watch, which has that and a button rather than just a touchscreen.
My guess is an Apple Car would have nice buttons and switches rather than the atrocious touch-screen-only setup many cars have.
All my examples are current, and the list would've been much longer if it included their obsession with thinness on their previous set of laptops and phones.
Anyway, I was trying to illustrate that Apple's obsession with minimalism has resulted in a very sterile and boring design language that wouldn't necessarily translate to success in the car world. Vehicles are considered very personal expressions of taste (Which is subjective, I know).
Shiny chrome bits and fake air intakes etc. are added because consumers want them. Car companies do everything in their power to shave a penny here and there, yet time and time again they add these in because that's what consumers generally like. High-end cars are littered with shiny bits, bodywork creases, and even crystal (BMW). Stuff like this is the antithesis of good design at contemporary Apple.
Even the iPhone 1.0/2.0 had a fake chrome rim, and their old Macs had clear plastic and pin stripes!
I'm not saying fake chrome bits etc. are good/bad design, I'm saying consumers have spoken, and the most boring cars are all at the low-end with even lower margins. Teslas seem to be as minimal as the general consumer is willing to tolerate, and even they have something relatively exotic with the Cyber Truck.
Apple's current aesthetic isn't suited towards high-end cars, and they haven't proven otherwise with recent releases. I know some would love a minimal Apple car, but it would still be a very niche, expensive, and not very profitable proposition.
Sure, but the color and design of something are different things? Apple still sells iPads/iPhones/iPads in various colors, but there’re literally all a variation of a featureless slab. Back when Apple made translucent devices, it wasn’t just color, but their interior arrangement and texture (pin stripes behind the translucent plastic).
Car color is also somewhat pragmatic for several reasons not involving design: A lot cars sold are just low end appliances that are great at taking people from point A to B as cheaply as possible. A gray toyota corola is a perfect example of this and has great resale value. Speaking from experience, some colors hold up better over time than others (clear coat peeling), especially silver and white.
My guess is an Apple Car would have nice buttons and switches rather than the atrocious touch-screen-only setup many cars have.