Curbside Classic Outtake: Keeping Up With The Big Boys Edition
Published: February 16th, 2010
Share
When my other son Will was a toddler, he loved to put on my size thirteen shoes and shuffle around the house with them. He called it Shook. This Samurai brings that memory back very vividly.
More by Paul Niedermeyer
Comments
Join the conversation
The modern Samurai, the Jimny, has gone all soft. Of all things... it comes with electronic fuel injection... and an electric 4WD switch. - Thank goodness it still comes with twin live axles... it's incredibly good off-road, even in stock form on street tires... and properly set-up, it's major fun.
We had a red '86 Samurai convertible when I was in high school and drove like a bat out of hell. I jumped the thing on a crease in a parking lot and I had it on two wheels more than once. It's a wonder I didn't get killed in it. Top speed was around 85 and 0-60 was measured in minutes. It was a blast to drive in town or off road, but a chore on the freeway. The little engine loved to rev, however. It put out way more sound than power. I don't think I'd want one now because the doors were about 4 inches thick and because of how tippy it was. Consumer Reports was right about how easy they are to flip. And ours had wide low profile tires on it. I can only imagine how tippy one with stock tires or even worse, one that has been lifted would handle.