A good many questions that start with the phrase, “Given an unlimited budget … ” tend to focus on what a person would buy with a bottomless pit of money — and why not? It’s fun to fill our imaginary garages with machines made of moonbeams and unobtanium.
Not this time. Right now, I’m here to ask you: what car makes you froth at the mouth? What car offends you worse than a gunnysack full or rotting tuna? What car would you never buy?
We’ve all got one. Whether it’s a specific model or an entire category of vehicles, I am certain everyone passionate about cars has an example of something they really can’t stand.
Me? I can’t ever see myself buying a minivan (apologies to my minivan-owning readers and co-workers). This, of course, makes no logical sense: minivans are large and well-shaped boxes into which one can plug cubic acres of people or stuff. Most of them are powered by decent V6 engines, many of which offer more horsepower than the 5.0-liter Mustangs I coveted in high school. Fuel mileage is reasonable. Maintenance costs are manageable.
They’re packed with technology, too. The Toyota Sienna’s intercom system will let drivers pipe their voice rearward towards young miscreants in the back row. The Honda Odyssey will let owners vacuum Cheerios and Gummi Bears from between the seats. Chrysler’s Town & Country keeps the young’uns updated on the trip ETA, quelling most are we there yet bleatings. In-flight entertainment abounds. These are all very good things.
Minivans are great vehicles and do a great job of their intended purpose. They are a supremely logical buying decision. And yet … I can’t. Call it being a slave to modern marketing. Call it a matter of pig-headed pandering to my own “image” (or lack thereof). Call it whatever you want. You’ll never find my signature on the bottom of a five-year note that reads “minivan” in the space where the F&I manager fills in the vehicle type.
That’s my never car. What’s yours?
Full size BOF SUVs. None of the benefits of a minivan when it comes to space, less towing power than a pickup truck. Feels like the ultimate expression of jack of all trades master of none in addition to being a beast to maneuver or park. They end up as third vehicles in the Northeast the vast majority of the time.
Not to mention so grossly overpriced
I disagree. Jack of all trades master of none is the seven seat CUV. I had a CX9 and it couldn’t do anything right. Seat seven, sure, comfortably? No way. Haul stuff, yes if ALL the seats were down, but you could not do cargo+passengers. Getting to 3rd row? Forget about it. Roof rack, tiny; the interior was too small for a 4×8 sheet of plywood, and when you strapped it to the roof, it hung off in nearly every direction (tapered top). It wasn’t fast and it wasn’t much fun to drive.
Now that I have a full sized BOV SUV (didn’t really want one, but family) the difference is night and day. Eight normal humans fit comfortably, you can do five people plus a lot of cargo, the roof rack is huge, plywood sheets fit inside, the flip-open rear glass is handy for hauling long stuff like PVC or copper tubing. I don’t tow with it, but the 9000 lb tow rating seems like plenty to me. Minivans are more cost effective and probably have more cubic feets of storage, but nobody makes a minivan that competes effectively with a luxury BOF SUV. If there were a Lexus or Infiniti minivan, I’d certainly consider that, but the price on a loaded Sienna is pretty steep–I don’t think they’d be able to sell a lux version that costs even more.
Suburbans are good for a specific series of tasks, and are overkill when not. I bear no ill will towards them. It’s like being mad at a chainsaw when someone uses it to cut down a twig.
Overpriced doesn’t matter if you keep them long enough. Out here in the rural Western US we do tend to use them for truck stuff for 300,000 miles or so until completely used up – not too many using them to convey a certain image at the country club.
Although that does keep resale silly high.
Agreed. I was responding more to my use cases, can’t imagine the need fits for more than a tiny fraction of the population.
Also these have to be the worst possible used car values known to man. I’ve seen two year old suburbans for 10-20 percent off MSRP. Feels like a for sure new purchase if you must have one.
Exactly what CUV is fun to drive for you then…I have a CX9 and its the best family priced fun to drive CUV outh there.
When comparing “seven-seat CUVs,” it’s important to distinguish true full-size CUVs from three-row midsizers. The only full-size CUVs are the Traverse, Enclave, first-gen Acadia, Flex, and MKT. Everything else (CX-9, Highlander, Pilot, new Acadia, etc.) is a three-row midsizer. The only companies that make full-size CUVs are also the only ones that don’t field a minivan.
Oh there’s plenty of benefits to owning a Suburban over a minivan. The Suburban is the master of transporting people AND luggage in comfort. Minivans cannot carry as many people and things simultaneously as a Suburban. Most vans don’t have AWD, all full-size BOFs have available 4×4. They also have stupid high resale value. I’ve been looking for used ones for a while now and I’m thoroughly frustrated with what dealers are asking for examples with fleet use and 30k+ miles on the odometer. Might as well buy new.
I’m a frequent road tripper and currently drive a CCSB pickup. I find myself wishing I could take more passengers frequently. A Suburban (or Expy EL) is the only option on the menu. It will deliver nearly the same towing performance and is unmatched in total leg room (add up all three rows) and in shoulder/hip room for the second row.
Aesthetically there’s reasons too. I despise FWD, I like having a V8, and I like seeing the hood while I drive. I like the BOF softer ride quality. There isn’t a minivan on the road that isolates you from road imperfections better than a Suburban.
Don’t get me wrong minivans are awesome and they’re what I rent on vacations. They just don’t appeal to me the way a Suburban does.
Indeed, the Suburban has a lot of fine qualities that ensure it will stick around even though its market volume is a fraction of it was in the late 90s. I would say the biggest flaw in Suburbans right now is the fact that GM acquiesced to the fold down third row set, which kills its total cargo volume. Can you still remove the fold-down third rows?
Generally an Equinox is the better choice for a family versus a Tahoe unless you’re towing because the packaging advantages of not being BOF gives it more usable cargo room despite being a slightly smaller package. But it all goes out the window if you actually need to tow something with any kind of heft. Most of the time, people using 3-row CUVs aren’t doing that, so the extra capability of a Tahoe or Suburban are wasted.
The Suburban is still the only choice if you have to carry something behind the third row. as it still keeps a decent amount of cargo volume behind it. It is just such a perfectly matched tool for many jobs, it’s reliable, and it’s easy to service since it piggybacks off commodity truck platforms. But it’s expensive to own and to operate. If you buy one, you’re keeping it for 15-ish years unless you wear it out completely. GM doesn’t make the diesel or 3/4 ton versions anymore either, though the modern 1/2 ton platforms are far more capable than they used to be.
@frylock not sure how large your legs are or how large the people you are transporting in a suburban are but for me and my crew (6′ to 6’5″ size 13-15 shoe) a minivan is *much* more comfortable to drive or be a passenger in than any suburban has ever been.
not knocking the ‘burban. when i was first looking for a new vehicle i went to the detroit auto show and took my time sitting in one from all seats. i was thinking finally i coudl afford to be looking at ‘burban. what i found was that i was in love with the idea of a 2500 but i definitely did not fit well. same for the gmc and chevy pick-ups (little did i know they were the same basic frame).
fast forward a few years after a model refresh and i note the same thing on a dealer lot in kentucky. i do not fit comfortably and i cannot imagine passengers to be any much more comfortable.
now my needs and desires have changed somewhat and we have a ford flex. not as much room for ‘stuff’ as a minivan but as a travel vehicle it cannot be beat. lots of leg and foot room and one heck of a smooth ride. plus it can accomodate a roof box at a lower height than a minivan or ‘burban and hauls our pop up trailer with ease, something most minivans would have a hard time doing.
once the kids are gone we will downsize i am sure but i do know that for some the suburban just is a poor physical fit.
Let’s call out the other elephant in the room.
Want to a haul a 4,000 pound trailer? The owner’s manual of the minivan may say it can do it – but you’ll be replacing a transmission.
BOF SUV – non-issue.
Having owned both through my life, there are key advantages to both, but there are definitely some things a BOF SUV does better than a minivan, or even a unibody based large crossover. Likewise I will say there are a few things a minivan does better than a BOF SUV.
The real question is your needs, and which way you tip.
I’m going to second the opinion of frylock350 and cast my vote for the Suburban as the ultimate SUV for people who can afford the price of entry and fuel cost. They aren’t for everyone and while some of us love to hate big SUVs the suburban works because with its shortcomings it’s got too much going for it in the plus column. Wins for me and I don’t even need all the space. Love the way it drives and love the way it looks. Always have. Plus for 2016 they now have a one ton model! Boner!
Is there another vehicle for me and 4 other adults and 3 dogs and our camping gear and a trailer?
Can’t give much love to anything smaller than a Focus/Civic/Mazda 3 etc. Even those 3 compact cars have grown respectably and while even they are still too small for me to select as anything other than “what the rental company had available” they’re still much better than the step down and better than what they started out life as.The Hyundai Accent comes immediately to mind. Not saying that these cars don’t serve a part of the market that people need and by all accounts the price range for them vs. what they give in terms of value and refinement compared to 10 years ago is leaps and bounds above back then. Still being a fan of larger cars, and crash safety as well as having stretch out space is just too important to me. The smart car, as impressive is it is from an engineering standpoint, just makes no sense to me whatsoever in terms of its size. Maybe in Europe but in North America not really. Fiesta? Too small. Mazda 2? Same thing. Mitsubishi Mirage? Awful. When someone chooses that car they can’t be a car person. And that’s fine but an enthusiast can’t do it. And while we’re on the small cars, I have to take note on the mercedes cla. This car is tiny and while it sells, it’s really riding on the Benz name to sell from my viewpoint — however Mercedes quality doesn’t seem to be what it once was. Spending that much on a baby Benz baffles my mind. I’d rather have something more substantial than brand recognition. I would buy a used s class before ever considering a baby Benz. So I’m tossing that Cla into the mix of cars I can’t stand no matter what . all of these other baby cars seem like compromised transport appliances and until that’s all that’s available for sale I Couldnt ever do it. Id rather buy a used car and get something with size comfort and some metal around me.
That photo was chosen to imply that minivans give you moobs.
That’s only sometimes true.
This is a great question.
How do I answer? “Never” is a strong word, for I used to swear I would NEVER own a foreign car (we do), I would NEVER pay more than $2,000 for a car (ha ha), I would NEVER own a Ford (I did), etc.
Funny how things change.
Right now? I will “NEVER” own another Chrysler product (I secretly want another Jeep as a toy). Why? Perception of lowest-rung quality, true or false. Unfortunately, the market seems to reflect my opinion.
This. I have types or manufacturers of vehicles I’m fairly certain I’ll never own. But I can’t say never. My current Cruze was my “Well, lets see if GM is any better” and I could do it cheap. I answered my question, but I doubt I’ll buy another GM product ever again. Same with Nissan. My Altima was OK, but I wasn’t sad to see it go.
Not sure I could say I have cars I can’t stand, but I do have many I don’t like. Minivans and Escalade’s are at the top.
Basically any current Nissan. Something about their styling bothers me. Their rear ends always look so dumpy.
As a fellow Volvo owner – and former Nissan fan – I concur. Their newer products are a gaudy mess of lines and curves befitting a Chinese upstart.
And to think the company has a 113-year heritage.
As a serial Maxima owner, it is really hard to understand how they could have morphed into a purveyor of such undesirable products.
But then again, I should have seen it coming. The conversion of the 280ZX into the 280ZX is a historical example.
The 1989 Maxima SE was, in so many ways, the high water mark. It was such a break with the immediate past and a stunning example of how to do it right: timeless styling, great performance, solid build quality and a balance rarely achieved in a sporting sedan. The subsequent model (’95) brought the VQ, but also a cheaper rear suspension design and less-solid feel, a sign of an uglier future. As the years went by, they methodically removed every reason for owning one.
agreed. each maxima has gotten uglier than its predecessor. the orginal Z and then the 1990 iteration were that model’s high water marks in design as well. the newest one is downright hideous
I have to say, the entire model line is a mess. Weird shapes. Overdone trim. Mediocre driving dynamics. Meh interior quality. I can’t think of a single vehicle that isn’t done better by at least two or three other manufacturers in their category. It’s been a long sad decline over the past 25 years or so.
Having had many Nissans over the years, our last one which was a ’09 Cube, I am left with the same thoughts. In many cases, the cars have been ok or even great, but the current policy of “f-u” by the manufacturer is reflected in the shape of their products-angry, conflicted, incoherent. I can only remark that they may be ok for a “on warranty” timeframe, but then dump and run. Although, I’m not sure what model even appeals to me to go through that exercise with. I really had fond memories of the ’90 Max and the Hardbody trucks and first gen Pathfinder. Sad to note those were products of a completely different company and mindset.
I know everyone has their reasons, and I do dislike the vast majority of the Nissan lineup, but there is something alluring about the Z as old as it is. You can get it with all the performance goodies for right above $30k brand new. There is something about a 2-seat, toss-able big bore V6 sports car at that price that I like.
And before someone says “but Mustang GT or Camaro SS!” I’d respond with the fact that the Z is almost 2 feet(!) shorter and 500lbs lighter than both of them. And that I currently have an S2000. To me those specs are significant.
So yeah. Not the whole lineup.
Fortunately, the car which offends me so badly is quite old, old enough I’d never likely encounter it anyway.
A Rolls Camargue.
http://www.carbuzz.com/resizeimg/imageshandler.ashx?w=640&h=480&url=http://db.carbuzz.com/images2/260000/1000/600/261699.jpg
C’mon, you have to love a car with FOUR headlight wipers.
Haha.
“Are the headlamps clear, darling?”
“YES THEY F*CKING ARE.”
There’s no way I would never own a car I couldn’t afford in the first place! I hope that makes sense ;-}
It does, if you mean you’re determined to steal them.
The current gen Prius, which is probably the ugliest car I’ve seen from a major manufacturer since the old, unlamented Datsun F10.
Ding ding ding!
Or any car with a “sport” trim that isn’t sporty at all… Corolla SE, Sentra SE etc.
Grand Caravan ‘Sport’ or even better Grant Caravan ‘RT’. Isn’t RT supposed to mean “Road and Track”?
Well now you can get a Grand Caravan GT. Even better.
BTW I love the paint color in the picture at the top of the article.
Dodge used to offer a metallic orange paint on the Grand Caravan. Even though a muscle car paint job on a van looks a little desperate, it was the only minivan I’ve seen where I thought “Hmm, that actually wouldn’t be so bad”.
That color doesn’t exist anymore.
“… any car with a “sport” trim that isn’t sporty at all… ”
My old 2004 Impala base model w/Sport appearance package sure made it look better than rental spec, and made me feel great enough to keep it over 8 years!
I respectfully disagree.
I honestly kinda liked the body color tailight covers for W-body Impalas…
yeah, the F10 looked like a cockroach waiting to be stepped on
I believe the current Prius will bring tailfins back into style
FreedMike, I agree. The current Prius is too ugly to own. I’m not anti-hybrid and would be happy to park a good looking car like the Fusion hybrid in my garage.
HOW ABOUT the entire L E X U S line up
Lux with a fugly look
See I find the Datsun F10 to be glorious. Ugly, sure, but in that gloriously funky way that could only have come out of the ’70s. I’d rock one.
I’m going with the current Prius as well. Back when the Prius was more conservatively styled, I’d have picked the Smart as my least-desirable vehicle.
Oh, so true…
I’ll second the Prius. They are all over the place with there paint peeling hoods and half n half rear windows with poor visibility and many have bashed in rear bumper corners. Ditto Camry’s and Corollas that are mainly driven by 80-90 year old blue hair drivers going 20 in a 40 in the wrong lane with there turn signal still on. It gets very tiring and I can’t stand the site of those cars anymore.
It’s the Impalas and last gen Centuries that get me. 80-90 year old blue hairs? I wish, that’s youth compared to these drivers! I literally have never seen one NOT piloted by a Victorian-era corpse, trundling over the sidewalk, attempting to steer the car with reins from the backseat because this new “mechanical wagon” is simply a confounding craft of dark devilry. Where, pray tell, is the horse? And must I feed this contraption hay or oats?
Oh, who will save us from the fan of the late model GM? Who can deliver us from their appalling driving habits and blind devotion? Judge them not, for they know not what they do, nor the consternation they inflict upon us all.
Christ: any machine that can travel at 100 feet per second almost non stop from LA to Boston is a marvel. I love ❤️ modern machinery in a way you with these petty “i wear my car to Project my esteemed self image”… seem to have very little understanding of the big picture. Maybe I’m totally out in left field …. but….
I swear… I doubly swear…..I could care less if I’m driving a f..ing Yugo or a Bentley… an F-150 or a Tesla… a Coda or a Swift… I just don’t care ♀️. I love ❤️ them all. Ever since I was 15 taking an art my first GMC 216 and a 1300 bug … just for fun… just to learn… just to have something to drive. At least we all agree … driving is fun. The sensation of movement. The realization of speed.
I repeat: Driving at 100ft per second (71? mph) without checkpoints or tolls on roads that are in themselves works of art… for pennies in gas tax fees ….seriously… I’m happy and glad and grateful every time I get in one of my cars. Which range from Lexus to Subaru to Swift to Explorer to RR Discovery to a Nash Metropolitan. And I guess a few more. I love ❤️ ‘me all. Each is a marvel. Each has a story behind it. I really do love ’em all. Whether it’s a short drive (it’s 28 miles to the nearest Safeway) or a 14 hour jaunt… which we do every month… often twice….. I love ❤️ whatever I’m driving…and I bet more st of you go too…and I appreciate the hard work of the thousands who created such things. I’ve done years of work in Detroit and I know the effort involved. Even failed offerings are worthy of respect on one level or another.
Favorite car? Least favorite ? Yeah… yeah…yeah …I guess it’s fun to babble about. But seriously. Look at the world of magic we live in. It’s marvelous & it’s fun. And it’s cheap.
I agree. What was the world’s #1 car maker thinking? Let’s appoint Darth Vader to manage our design department?… Oh, wait… Toyota’s hydrogen car the Mirai comes first actually.
I’d never buy a Prius with my own money, but if one was given to me I’d probably drive it. I’d also never buy a Subaru. The whole AWD thing is way over-rated. I know they’re good cars for some people, just not me.
New full sized pickup trucks. Who decided we needed some garish copy of a Peterbuilt? They’ve destroyed the utility with bed sides as high as the border wall and a pissing contest on the race to 1,000 ft lbs of torque.
Cosigned.
Truck styling is a window into the soul of the American male. As guys get more and more insecure, trucks get bigger and more menacing. I also snicker when some overweight middle aged guy who waddles like a penguin in his 44 waist/28 inseam Dockers has to try to jump in order to get into his truck. Middle aged women who start to become “well rounded” may spend a lot on hair and makeup and spanx, but they’re still spending less than their husbands are to feel virile and powerful in some enormous mechanical surrogate member.
Haha. I love comments like this as they are windows into the souls of jealous people. Can’t afford your own dreams so crap on those of others. I for one do not fit any of your parameters but I grew up loving muscle cars. So when I was making good money I bought one, then a second one for a weekend car. Then a third one as a big middle finger to the haters. I’m sure big truck buyers would say the same.
So much this. My old Nissan hardbody was useful as was my T100. The old ’72 Chevy that my dad used to haul wood was a workhorse, even with it’s straight-6 engine.
The new trucks require a little man step to get inside the bed. What in the world?
My dad has a 2013 Tacoma 4×2 with the 2.7 4 banger. We used it to tow a 1973 VW Thing from Massachusetts down I-95 to Maryland. No problem at all pulling a loaded trailer with the 2.7, easily kept up with 75-80 mph traffic. I realize the total towed weight was under 3000 pounds, but hey, that’s more than the 0 pounds than 90% of truck buyers tow.
That truck is so capable of “truck things” and has such a roomy cab, it convinced me there is a TINY market that actually “needs” 400 horse/450 lb/ft half ton trucks. Trucks have gone from the most utilitarian of vehicle purchases to one of the most emotional and vanity driven. They’re just silly, expensive “Nuht-uh, am too a real man” statements now.
Agree that Trucks are needlessly large + AWD can be massively overrated until it is not a couple times a year.
“They’re just silly, expensive “Nuht-uh, am too a real man” statements now.”
Wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t effective though.
Cool story bro. This must explain my wife’s love for her new 1-ton Ram.
It scares me when a driver of one of those pickups is determined to show it’s 400 hp to the world on mountain pass while towing a 30′ trailer.
This. A couple years ago I watched one of these idiots pass me at 95 mph, trailer swaying behind. Five miles later there he was on the side of the road with two flat trailer tires (the second presumably got badly overloaded when the first went). Good thing that trailer wasn’t more heavily loaded or the scene would have been a lot more dramatic.
the average 18-wheeler only has about 375-450 horsepower. think about that.
JimZ, that’s right for the fleet trucks, but these days most of the independents are pushing 550-600 hp ISXes. With predictable results (meth-addled semi drivers tailgating terrified drivers at 80+ mph).
I feel like there is a big difference between not liking people that roll coal or tow dangerously and not liking someone’s shiny air hauler because it fails your personal pickup truck purity test.
Seen quite a few ranchers haul round bails at 80 mph in their diesel dually down 2 lane highways. I’ve also seen piles of hay on the side of the road assuming they lost it when something causes them to change direction.
The Tacoma 4cyl may be a capable little truck, but it bugs me that it makes half the power of the F150’s 2.7 but gets the same mileage.
That and I sure as hell wouldn’t want to be towing with A/C blasting and have to encounter any type of hill with a paltry 159 HP! These smaller trucks are still heavy these days.
I agree as well. Wouldn’t the lowest possible load floor and bed sides make the most useful pickup? Wouldn’t the smallest tire/wheel package capable of achieving the desired load capacity make the most sense? A half ton that isn’t 10ft tall would be awesome.
What is it with this whole “too high” meme??
Back in the “good ol’ days” 1/2 ton pickups came with 215/75R15’s. My current truck’s stock tires are 275/65/18. They are bigger than the stock tires on my 1990 F250. I’ve been parked next to an 80’s era pickup and the difference in tire size is huge. That alone will add a few inches in ride height. Current pickups have better payload ratings. That will affect empty ride height.
I’ve owned every configuration of pickup and I find that I rarely ever reach over the side to get something out of the box.
1,000 ft lbs? You mean lbs/ft. That would be in the HD diesel pickups. Odd, no one on this board complains about too much power in a car!
I do agree that many people are irresponsible towing trailers. A 10k trailer behind any current diesel doesn’t work it too hard.
Looks like Big Al from Oz has been preaching to the choir ;)
Minivans, yes… but also the current category of full-sized, extended-cab pick-up trucks. While acknowledging that certain professionals and even private citizens require such vehicles at times, for most people they’re a joke. Especially ones with four doors and and undersized beds. If you need a four-door sedan or people-mover, buy one. These trucks are neither – and many aren’t even particularly good in bad weather, even with 4WD. And don’t get me started again on the styling of these things, with their angry, massive, cartoon-like grilles. Exactly what kind of statement are they trying to make? Because they don’t look good. Of course, YMMV.
So which 4 door sedan has the same interior room as a full-size crew cab pickup? I’ll wait right here…
I was just thinking the other day that I’d like a car that’s as big as a full size pickup. Then I realized that full sized pickups really are the big sedans of today and there wouldn’t be much reason to build such a thing.
Current full sized 1/2 tons tend to be more comfortable and roomy than any car and ride is pretty good.
My wife and I looked at cars when we first got married. We had our first child on the way and had a big black lab (see avatar). We quickly ruled out every car available and decided on buying a minivan. When it came time to replace my old F250 I tried a Ranger extended cab and then a Safari. I then bought the F150 SuperCrew. There isn’t a vehicle out there as versatile.
We have cars that are about as long in WB as old ’70s landyachts (120+”), but only extended-WB luxury sedans, and they’re still not wide enough to fit 3 across generously like a full-size pickup.
Drzhivago138 – if one confines the comparison just to passenger cabin, I doubt there is anything out there as roomy.
And let us not forget the Section 187 tax deduction (Hummer Loophole) that until the last year or two allowed for 100% current year deduction of a truck/SUV with a GVWR over 6000lbs… meaning small business owners / self-proprietors were buying these instead of big sedans, and getting a hell of a tax break at the same time
My brother in law lives in Montana. He works at a ski area. When two feet of powder hit overnight, he has to be there to get the lifts running. The Toyota Tundra Crew Cab has studded snow tires on all four. On days off, he goes snowmobiling in winter, or in the summer, there is a lot of rafting and camping-trailers are a way of life.
This would be exactly wrong for my suburban/urban existence (couldn’t fathom taking this to NYC) but for him, it’s the right tool for the job.
Jeep Wranglers and BMWs are the worst, only due to their terrible owners.
I agree. You can add the SVT Raptor to that list. Really cool truck. Really terrible owners.
Hyundai Veloster.
Corey wins. I hate those things. They make me ill to gaze upon.
Eww. In my community, annoying little twinks drive those. And Sonic hatchbacks, too.
I my experience Toyota FJCruiser drivers tend to be aggressive.
Had one tailgaiting the crap out of me in my Prius last summer because, you know jerk Prius driver doing the speed limit on a residential road. We pulled out on the main street and off he sped only to get pulled over by nice mr. police officer.
And BTW, FJCruisers are too much boutique style over function.
I find Raptor owners in my region are fine.
I’ve noticed that any “loud pipes annoy lives” pickup or car is a big red flag for aggressive douche bag driving.
For me, it would be the CLA-Class and GLA-Class. It’s not because they’re FWD; it’s because I think they feel cheap and tinny and are extremely overstyled. The Golf and A3 are vastly better vehicles, as is a bare-bones 320i. Even the departed Verano and the ILX feel more solid.
Never a CLA-Class or GLA-Class, I say.
I also hate the GLE-Class Coupe. It offends me in a way that the X6 does not; perhaps it’s because the GLE-Class Coupe is tall and vertical and looks rather like a dog squatting to poop.
Does that ban also extend to the Infiniti QX30 as well?
Yes. Yes, it does extend to the Q30 / QX30. But you sort of expect tinny luxury cars from Infiniti, whose cars I dislike aside from the Q50 and Q60. You don’t expect it from Mercedes-Benz. Mercedes-Benz cars tend to be overbuilt, not underbuilt.
I think what offends me most about the CLA and GLA is that, as evidenced by the competitors I mentioned, foraying into the entry-level luxury market and making a genuinely solid small car are not mutually-exclusive actions. Those other cars cost the same or less, but feel better. It just feels like they spent all the budget on the styling, and little else on other aspects.
“But you sort of expect tinny luxury cars from Infiniti”
Ouch!
The M was an exception. :P
THAT’S RITE.
Definitely agree on the CLA and GLE “coupe”…with the exception of the S-class and associated models, I can’t say I’m a huge fan of any of the current crop of Benzes. They’re supposed to be kind of understatedly elegant (see the W212 E-Class), and most of them are neither of those things right now.
Their current school of design is absolutely a step backward. It works quite well on something long and sweeping, like the S-Class (where it debuted), and less well on other smaller cars. The E-Class and C-Class now look virtually identical, and while the new W213 E is fancier and fuller-featured, I prefer the elegance of the W212. Bonus points for the 2010-2013, which has the two-piece headlamps and formal lines, as well as the pontoon rear fenders (which were removed from the sedan and wagon for the E-Class’ 2014 facelift).
Personally, I’d kill for an E-Class pillarless coupe.
Love, love, love at first sight.
Sigh… unaffordable.
The E-Class coupe is great. I especially like the way the rear-occupant windows also roll down, which is something you don’t otherwise see on a coupe priced south of the Bentley Continental GT.
Used to be my answer was “BMW,” possibly with the exclusion of anything that still has chrome hubcaps, but nowadays it is indeed those over-styled Mercedeses. CLA and GLA are clearly the worst of the crop, but A and CLS are not far behind, and the only ones that I really can stand anymore are the pillarless two-door E and S coupés, the classic G-wagen of course, and (strangely) the GLE coupé. But this still doesn’t qualify these Benzes as “never ever” cars, because their next iteration might turn it all around for me, as it has before.
No, actually my “never ever car” would be any mid-engined supercar. Most are ugly, and even those that aren’t are so outrageously vulgar I could never be seen in one. (As if there was even the slightest danger of that.) Nothing without an exception though: Bugattis. They are so totally over the top, and such an exercise in no-limits engineering, that I can’t help finding them utterly fascinating.
Prius, because, well, c’mon.
Escalade, if I can have a second.
Any box. That means any SUV or Van. Compared to a car it means worse center of gravity, worse handling, worse performance, worse fuel economy and often (yes) harder to get in and out of.
They are the definition of turning one’s back on the car and its development/desirability. Which is a personal embarrassment at the very least ;)
And given the current sales trends, this is war to recapture the love of vehicles! Don;’t give up on life and buy one!
I don’t understand how you can say SUV’s and Van’s are harder to get in and out of.
SUV’s yes, vans no. At least, I find getting into the rear seat of most SUV’s to be unpleasant. The extra step-up height and narrower opening than a van door are one reason I don’t myself owning an SUV.
I haven’t given up on the car, but I find the van to be the best tool for family conveyance. Our Odyssey lease is nearly up and we’ll be getting another van to replace it. With twin boys, aging parents and the occasional need to take big things places AND a lack of garage space, the minivan wins.
I’m 6’4” and I don’t have to step up into my Crossover, I actually have to bend down a little. BOF SUV’s are extremely easy for me to get into, because my butt is the same height as the seat so I just slide in. Shorter people may need to use the running boards though.
Maybe he had to squeeze into the driver’s seat of an old Dodge full-size van….
I’m 5’10 and barely that, with short legs to boot. We had a Chevy Traverse on a trip and trying to get kids in car seats with the narrow opening and large doors was a pain. I really missed our Odyssey then.
The Traverse was an upgrade from Hertz too, I reserved a full-size car. It confirmed most of the suspicions I had on large CUV/SUV’s, especially the Traverse/Acadia.
Haters gonna hate, but I’ll stick with my minivan.
And yes, I did drive some Dodge vans back in the day, as well as everybody else’s vans. NOTHING is that bad anymore. I had an Aerostar that I liked, access wasn’t too bad.
I really wish Ford still made an Aerostar or VW still brought it’s vans over here.
The “egg” CUVs (Encore, Trax, C-Max, Caliber, etc). Small, slow, and weapons-grade unstylish.
Particularly the Caliber. Seriously ugly. You look at one of those and look at a Neon and you’d think it was the Neon that replaced the Caliber.
Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT. One of the dumbest, most useless things on the road.
and freaking awesome!!
“freaking awesome!!”
Absolutely! Carlson Fan is right though. That SRT8 serves absolutely no purpose except for ego gratification.
I drove my son’s 2012 JGC SRT8 from Long Beach, CA, to our home in NM. Oh whatta feelin’! All at 12mpg on a 25 gallon gas tank.
Ahh, this one’s easy for me. Any subcompact car, or CUV. Also any car made in china.
Toyota Yaris – cheap, crude, and a stupid name. Kias and Hyundais – they are supposed to be cheap, but are now priced competitively with everything else.
Probably the only new car that I can think of to not recommend to anyone would be a smart car or the IQ (if they still sell that). There is hardly a reason here in America for that car/form factor to exist.
I have a neighbor family that has a driveway designed for one car, and lives on an arterial street with no curbside parking. They have two Smarts and it allows them to have two cars.
I guess that’s the a good use for that form factor.
As for the cygnet, I wonder if we could convince Doug DeMurano to buy one. :)
Oh, you hate the iQ? Well, what was more pointless than its Aston-Martin-badged cousin, the Cygnet?
Anything Cadillac save for the CTS-V. Anything Mercedes. Hyundai Elantra. Had one as a rental, couldn’t wait to give it back. Dodge Caliber and cousins. Dodge Journey. Rode in one and my butt was asleep in minutes. Have a 2013 Rogue, don’t think we will own another. Nothing from Toyota. I could do an Accord but don’t like the rest of the line.
Maybe it would be easier to list cars I would think about owning?
Since this is an “unlimited money” question, I’ll leave off the obvious choices of painful “I want a new car but can’t afford one” penalty-boxes.
For me, it’s “Luxury” BOF SUV’s. The Escalade, G-Wagen, and anything from Land/Range Rover.
Ha funny I don’t think I have a never car. There are some I doubt I would ever buy but I’m not going to say I hate any.
I don’t think there are any I can’t stand.
Really how can you “not stand” a vehicle. Vehicles are just a piles of plastic, metals, etc.
Posing this question is treating the car as a living breathing, inelligent being.
If a fridge keeps your beer cold its good. How can you not stand a fridge.
If a car prevents you from walking and offers more freedom, then its good.
Wait… You’re saying you’ve never seen a Pontiac Aztec/Buick Rendezvous?
I liked the Aztek. Because it was different in a way that appeals to me.
Nissan makes the Aztek’s little brother- the Puke I mean Juke.
If you ain’t got a set of wheels it sure beats walking.
A car might look like sh!t, but I don’t think looks alone make a vehicle.
How many friends do you judge by looks of what they own?
If we are talking about ugliness, it has to be the Nissan Juke or any Infiniti in the past decade.
Otherwise: any coupe version of a 4-door sedan, like the Solara or Accord Coupe (gasp). Doug’s old bit about the topic is even showing up in the sidebar here: https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2015/05/its-time-to-end-the-non-sporty-coupe/
Mercedes Benz CLS-Klasse.
Easily the stupidest looking/pointless vehicle on the road today.
Runner-up:
Chevrolet Camaro (I call it the Crapmaro).
Honourable Mention:
Anything from Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep/RAM.
The camaro is ridiculously fun to drive thou.
Especially as a convertible with the top down.
We had a blast driving my friend’s friend 2012 red Camaro convertible a few Summers ago. I would take one.
yeah, like a long weekend in Manhattan – a lot of fun as long as somebody else is paying the tab
I’ll take a Camaro convertible, please… in yellow.
Gotta tell ya, it wouldn’t be like your 64 at all….
Sadly, you’re correct, But I think I’d still like one.
As an only car, a Camaro is probably the worst choice one could make – as a second car (with the V8), I’d imagine it would go and drive like stink.
i have a three way tie that i couldn’t just pick one
neon, pt cruiser and smart car
or i guess just anything Chrysler related to simplify it
Hey now, don’t knock the neon. They’re stout little cars:) One rear ended my friends Chevy pickup. Bent that Chevy frame like it was made of Swiss cheese.
Cars that are not used for their intended purpose. The two I can think of is the newer Bugattis and Hummers (not the military version) I’ve never seen a Bugatti at a race track and Hummers are so clean and polished I doubt they even go down a gravel road.
I think most Hummer owners would say that being clean and polished and never seeing a gravel road is in fact their intended purpose….
Maybe Bugs are for showing off too. Just shows you how little I know about 200 mph cars.
I don’t think Bugattis are meant for the track. Maybe the salt flats.
They are an engineering exercise for bragging rights.
One specific track: Ehra-Lessien.
Googling Ehra-Lessien landed me on a Jalopnik story showing a Type I Beetle on a banked turn; pretty funny. Interesting read too. Thanks.
Anything Porsche, Ferrari, or other “exotic” brands. Overweight, overpriced, underengineered, fragile art cars.
I’m not sure you could call Porsche exotic, unless maybe you are into the 918 category. Also not sure how you can call a Porsche overweight? Or fragile for that matter.
I admit I’m biased as I own one, but it is the most rewarding, all around car I’ve ever owned and certainly not fragile that way I drive it.
No Chrysler product built after 1967 and no product built in China. I could do a minivan if I needed the room for some reason (like someone in my family became a paraplegic God forbid and needed an appropriate conveyance).
I have a few bugaboos….although I try my best to be understanding…but there is a limit.
Highly customized late model pick up trucks. Specifically those that destroy or detract from the utility of said vehicle. Yes I am sure you own a wonderful small business that gives you an abundance of free time and expendable income but I still question your purchase…the factory design options and accessories already challenge the limits of tastefulness.
The sterotype jacked up black diesel with a loud muffler and peeing Calvin stickers?
You can put your life on the line that I would NEVER, NEVER, NEVER own a “Calvin” sticker!
That out-dated cartoon is as bad as the out-dated “Peanuts” comic – I hate them both. Always have, too.
Did you really just compare the peeing, tasteless Calvin sticker to Peanuts, which is a classic comic strip?
Or compare the peeing Calvin to the actual Calvin and Hobbes strip, which makes Peanuts look like, well, peanuts?
Yes. What can I say? I’m a rebel at heart.
Best comic strips I’ve ever liked in my life were: “Smokey Stover”, “The Far Side” and “Bloom County/Outland/Opus”.
Nothing since has been any good, although I like “Pearls Before Swine”. After all, as of today, we still get the Enquirer (mostly for the comics and puzzles)…
Peanuts were great. Some of the story lines have not aged well. I’m sure most wouldn’t even know what a blockhead was ;)
Calvin and Hobbes was a brilliant comic strip and the creator did not sanction and has been unable to stop the production of the Calvin peeing stickers:
https://triviahappy.com/articles/the-tasteless-history-of-the-peeing-calvin-decal
I love Calvin And Hobbes! The best comic strip ever. I have the complete collection, and read every single one. I get angry when I see the Calvin peeing stickers, because I know they’re bootlegged, and tasteless interpretation of Calvin. It makes me angry that someone is making money of these.
Is it still 1998?
“Is it still 1998?”
Your name, your avatar, and you still snide?
Party like it’s 1999?
Calvin stickers and truck nuts.
“Minivans are great vehicles and do a great job of their intended purpose. They are a supremely logical buying decision. And yet … I can’t. Call it being a slave to modern marketing.” No, most SUV buyers are mindless slaves to marketing.
“Call it a matter of pig-headed pandering to my own “image” (or lack thereof).” Yes, most people who refuse to do something based on facts and logic are pigheaded.
“most people who refuse to do something based on facts and logic are pigheaded.”
RetroGrouch, if we all had interpreted the facts and logic the same way, we Americans would not have had a President Donald John Trump today.
Now would we?
Really all SUV’s, just can’t stand them. They are the new minivans (also would never minivan) and they perpetually seemed destined to do 45 in a 55 in front of me for miles upon endless miles, always displaying a sticker of honor somewhere on the rear of the car telling the world your kid is a superstar at a mediocre school in a crap school district.
Funny the vehicle I encounter the most often (Midwesterner here) clogging up the fast lane is a Camry.
the Honda Odyssey. because I’ve never been behind one which wasn’t being driven at (at least) 5 mph below the speed limit. frequently 6-8 mph less.
2nd-gen GM U-body minivans. because the taillights are *never* working properly. Step on the brake? ok, let’s dimly light the brake lights, and make sure the turn signal bulbs come on bright.
I still reflexively wince and give wide berth to 3rd generation Odysseys after seeing one weaving around in its lane, repeatedly falling back in traffic only to floor it and nearly rear end the car in front as the front end dived under heavy braking. As I passed in the left lane, the mother driving it was simultaneously flailing at the children in the backseat, devouring a sandwich, and whipping her head side to side presumably to glare at the other cars but I honestly think she may have been seeing things we cannot. I briefly caught her crazed eye and was frightened.
Ah, vehicular stereotypes. Those will never die, much like stereotyping people. Yes, there is truth to many stereotypes, but not everyone has to conform to them.
I like surprising people who think *all* minivans are driven by people who have no idea what they’re doing behind the wheel. Makes me smile.
Parenting is a challenge and for many people, operating a vehicle is a huge task which they put no thought into. Combining the two makes for an awful alliance of danger and inattention which they aren’t aware of.
I don’t think all Odyssey or minivan drivers behave this way. I don’t even think it is a trend or likelihood. I just remember this one incident well enough that every time I see that van I am reminded of it.
Definitely the Prius.
If given one for free, I’d have it towed to a dealership for trade-in so I wouldn’t have to drive it.
Also any 4 cylinder luxury car, the Spark, all Smart cars, basically anything super small except a Fiesta.
I don’t know about anything super small. I’ve never driven a Mini but they look fun.
A few years ago my answer would have been: the Pontiac Grand Am (that “ribbed” styling!) or the Pontiac Grand Prix. Both of those cars – at least around here – had a high percentage of aggressive drivers.
These days my hatred is more centered on the boring cookie cutter CUVs. They all look the same from the sides, and try to be the jack of all trades while doing nothing particularly well. I would want to take one up in the woods to chop a tree, nor would I trust it on some of the muddy “seasonal” roads I’ve had to take in the sticks. But it’s the boring styling that irks me the most – I recognize that everyone doesn’t need a real off road machine.
CUVs do a few thing very very well. Their skill is offering incredible amounts of usable space versus a car with the same footprint. Our midsize CUV offers the same legroom as full-size luxury sedans (S-class, Lexus LS) with MORE cargo room. That’s what CUVs are good at.
As a class, the subcompact CUV. The compromised result of trend trumping function. As a particular example, the Nissan Juke. $28K and excessively cramped, cheap feeling, and underperforming relative the same priced GTI. It doesn’t do anything well except imitate an amphibian.
Any Subaru with the 2.0 or 2.5 + CVT.
Toyota Yaris hatchback and Prius C.
I don’t ever want a minivan. My 4×8 plywood hauling and third row needs are too minuscule to justify the considerable expenditure on a box whose only joy comes from the utility that I won’t take advantage of.
Where to begin? I would never buy a CUV from any manufacturer, or most SUVs, although something along the lines of an old 2 door Blazer/Tahoe or Yukon holds some appeal to me. No gigantic bro-dozer pickups, but a restrained regular cab short bed could be considered. I wouldn’t want a Jeep, especially not a Wrangler, in large part due to its image, in addition to the fact that it doesn’t make sense for my lifestyle. I would never buy a Toyota, especially not a Corolla, Camry or RAV4. And of course, no Subaru ever.
Prius. Can’t even say the name without snickering like a nine-year-old.
I see you’re the guy constantly doing “Ace of Base” for SUVs and pickups – the two things I hate. Yeah, that guy who buys 8 2x4s every 7 years NEEDS a truck. I was able to haul 10ft 2x4s in my Legacy wagon and still close the hatch.
When a guy helped me load 20 4×8 sheets of plywood into my Grand Caravan and then close the tailgate, he could only dumbfoundedly say: “my pickup can’t even hold these”. And, I suspect most SUVs. With stow-and-go, the FCA twins/Pacifica are the most useful cargo/people haulers for their size. Even my “never a minivan” wife gave in, after seeing that 3-row SUVs are a joke if you need to have a kid seat in the middle row.. or have any pretensions of getting your aging parents into the 3rd row ever.
When “marketing” has you buy the car that works AGAINST your self-interest, you’re right, that’s being a slave to marketing. Of course, their goal is to have you buy an SUV AND a pickup for those times when you want to haul a few small things – when a minivan could do both. AND tow a small boat, if needed.
Best pickup I ever owned was a Nissan Quest minivan. 17 sheets of 4×8 drywall with the hatch closed, no problem!
Okay, the truth is that it was dragging its rear-end. Badly. It was also terrible at towing a small camper up gravelly inclines, or across bumpy campsites. I never launched a boat with it, but I’ve seen enough people attempt it to know what a tire-spinning, transmission-killing, moronic idea it is.
I don’t mock trucks and SUVs anymore just because they look silly in a Walmart parking lot. You need to know the rest of the story.
+1
There’s precious little a minivan can do a Suburban can’t. There’s a bunch a Suburban can do a minivan can’t though. I’m in the market for a 3-row and there isn’t a minivan on my shortlist. I not inexperienced with them either. I’ve rented Chrysler T&Cs, Sedonas, and Siennas. They’re excellent vehicles objectively with fantastic space utilization. I prefer the T&C because it has the most responsive drivetrain. However I just don’t enjoy driving them.
A Suburban rides smoother than all three of those; offers more space for gear behind the third row, has a much smoother and more powerful powertrain, has 4×4, and is more pleasant to drive. The Suburban is RWD; the minivans are FWD. I’ll never buy anything FWD to use as my DD. The Suburban can tow significantly more than a minivan and do it more reliably as well. Take 8 people and a boat to the lake regularly in a minivan you’ll be buying transmissions; a Suburban will be fine. I also like driving a Suburban; its enjoyable. For me its hardly marketing; its just my personal preferences. I like big RWD utility vehicles. I’d buy a new b-body station wagon in a heartbeat if they made a new one.
Edit: A Suburban can haul that plywood too and unlike your GC you’d be within the Suburban’s factory rated capacity.
-Ability to park inside a typical parking space: advantage minivan
-Ability to fit inside the typical garage and leave room for tools: advantage minivan
-Fit 7 or 8 people comfortably: advantage minivan
-Ride and handle like a vehicle built for carrying actual people: advantage minivan
-Safe in winter: advantage low CoG minivan with Blizzaks
-Cost: advantage minivan
-Modern safety and convenience features: advantage minivan
-Cargo space: advantage minivan
-Ability to haul a boat I don’t own over trails I don’t live at: advantage Suburban
-Matches Carhartt clothes and work boots: advantage Suburban.
Everyone has their own calculus. Buy what works for you.
“a boat I don’t own over trails I don’t live at”
See? I knowed you wasn’t no Uhmurican.
Frylock,
The tldr version of your post is ” I like big RWD utility vehicles.” Nothing wrong with that.
You should know however that CR rated the latest Suburban/Escalade/Yukon/Tahoe as “least reliable”, due to transmission issues (and also electronics and other issues). You may want to hold-off and wait for updates from GM.
The Pontiac Aztec / Buick Rendezvous must be on the list for the worst vehicles ever. I can’t stand them. Worked on one once. It literally had not one properly functioning major component. Fortunately they are old enough now that most have ended up in the junkyards as intended. Also the Nissan Versa is not on my list of cars I’d ever own.
Perhaps it was Breaking Bad but the Tupperware styling has finally grown on me.
OMG… what an abominable eyesore!
The Aztec styling has grown on me as well. It’s actually quite subdued compared to the current Lexus/Toyota overwrought hourglass theme. The Buick Rendezvous was always hideous to me compared with the Aztec and it’s Billy Bass mouth grill.
I’ve always found it amusing how the Rendezvous was on a longer WB so as not to give the impression that it was based on the Aztek–then you see the rear styling and you know it’s Aztek-based anyway.
Cadillac Escalade – overpriced, gas-guzzling station wagon for the poor who want to pretend they are rich, or, around here, East Indians trying to impress other East Indians with their blingy rapper status symbol. So transparent, so mediocre.
Any Cadillac ever. Growing up, they were driven by grumpy old fogies. A friend’s dad had one, thought it made him a classy person, and he was a complete jerk. The cars themselves were and are famous for their GM-grade quality, but with a huge price tag.
BMWs because practically all are driven by annoying, self-centered a-holes or someone’s skanky girlfriend. The cars themselves may be OK.
Mercedes anything, anymore. The quality is gone, but the pretentiousness and price remain.
Any car with wheels over 18″.
Diesel trucks modified to “roll coal”. These guys are so inconsiderate and rude, the nouns that describe them can not be written here. Someone should fill their exhaust pipes with insulating foam.
Its very clear that ugly sells a lot of vehicles.
i. e. Lincoln Alligator
Another stir the pot article? Why get over-emotional about any car or truck. Those who manipulate thought of the masses have you by the balls. It’s all about money. Those advertisers, Madison Avenue types, they want you to be over emotional so they make money off you. Over the top fanboys don’t know that they have been manipulated somehow to believe and spout rhetoric about their favorite make or model or hating another make or model. And they don’t know they are just wasting their time, breath and money while looking immature, untruthful and silly.
Can’t stand because a car broke down too many times makes sense. Hating is usually part of a game of “mine is bigger than yours is”. Gets in the way of good decisions.
It’s just a car or truck. Metal, plastic, steel. Throw money at it. Get transportation out of it.
If you can’t grasp that your choice of a motorized chair enclosure intimately affects the fates of your gametes, progeny and species plus the whole universe-as-we-know-it, then get outta here.
Thanks for the motorized chair observation- ha !
Thanks for appreciating!
Yeah, what is the big deal with all these people and constantly talking about cars? Just hunks of metal and plastic.
What a waste of time discussing them.
So, how ’bout that Trump, eh guys? Amirite?
Yeah. That’s way better.
John-95_Taurus_3.0_AX4N – quite………..ssshhhhhhh…….
Tuba, see what a wrong choice can do?
@tubacity – this is an automotive enthusiast’s site. I doubt that “The Truth About Appliances” would garner much traffic.
You could substitute almost ANY product or brand for car in your rant and it would still apply.
Right, because getting worked up over grown men playing sports means SO much more.
“That $#&!# shoulda caught that pass” or “the Sportsing Ball players from your town suck way worse than the Sportsing Ball Players from my town”.
Lou is right, there’s fanatics and fanboys for EVERYTHING out there and a lot of it is for inanimate objects. Guns, electronics,etc. Because for many of us, there’s a connection to the machine in some way. You put your faith into your car, as well as a great deal of time and money. How so many people can be apathetic to their vehicle is beyond me.
But I don’t give a s**t about sports and that’s weird to people? The actions of a bunch of very skilled and well paid entertainers doesn’t interest me in the least. Because their actions have no effect on mine. But if I don’t care for my car, it will eventually affect me. We can give machines personalities, but they don’t take it personally when they do something wrong.
And in the end, none of it really matters. But ya gotta have hobbies.
Original Chrysler Pacifica. Fat ‘n’ ugly, always slow, always in the left lane, usually in rough shape.
“usually in rough shape”.
You mean “always”, don’t you? From my observations, they came from the factory that way.
Pacifica: “Let’s make a station wagon that blocks a follower’s view of traffic, just like an SUV!”
Hey I’ve seen some very cherry used Pacifica’s. But only at dealers in Florida, the same ones who seem to have spotless Concordes and LHS on the lot.
Pacifica: The crossover when no one wanted a crossover. It wasn’t the prettiest thing to look at true, but it was ahead of its time. Until the current restyle, the Traverse/Acadia were just as blobby as any Pacifica. You’ve melted the minivan box to a rounder shape, jacked it up slightly and shoved an AWD system in there, styling has to be a compromise.
You could say the same for the Aztek/Rendezvous, but they were hideously styled, especially the earlier Pontiacs with the plastic cladding.
Me too. I don’t like CUV’s, especially the huge ones.. I understand why people buy them. ..I also understand that market forces have driven every manufacturer to produce them. I would never buy one.
As others have mentioned, the big 4door full size trucks, with a useless tiny box. I just can’t see parting with $65 K for a luxury vehicle, with an open box in lieu of a trunk.
mikey, they don’t have to cost that much. I paid $39K plus tt&l and docfee for my 2016 4-dr 4×4 Tundra 5.7L SR5 with TRD pkg, factory tow pkg and 18″ alloys.
Ahh Yes, my friend…..But you don’t live in Canada…….I nicely optioned, but not loaded, full size 2017.. 4 door Sierra after taxes and fees ? I’m thinking, with my employee discount, will relieve me of about 64000 Loonys.
Yeah, I know Bud. Pricing in the US, especially in El Paso, TX, is truly remarkably low when compared to other locales.
BTW, my Tundra stickered at a little less than $42K and the dealership offered $39,450 to sell. I countered with $39K and got it.
I had bought several Toyota products there including the 2008 Highlander, 2011 Tundra, 2016 Sequoia.
Range Rover.
I’m continually amazed at the number of people who line up to drop 6 figures on an ugly vehicle that makes Chrysler reliability look like Lexus. The one thing it really excels at compared to the competition (off road traction) is the one thing its owners will utilize least.
The vehicle I detest is one I currently own. 2014 Ram 1500 sport. This truck comes with the BW 44-44 transfercase. It is an “on demand” transfercase that doesn’t actually lock up until the rear tires slip, even in the 4wd Lock, and 4wd Low settings!!
This truck annoys me every time I drive it in the winter. It pisses me off that Ram would cater to the people who never actually use their trucks as trucks, and ignore the guys who actually need a functioning 4wd system!
Check out this thread for more info: http://www.ramforumz.com/showthread.php?t=192481
I’m more and more a misanthrope every day, so my hatred of certain vehicles is “mostly” tied to the people who stereotypically drive said vehicles.
1. Minivans: Don’t like children. Don’t like people who think theirs are special and want to share. Wondered why minivans had got so darn wide and were spilling out of parking spaces and then someone on here mentioned it was because of the new “baby bunker car seats.” Went outside and immediately threw up on a perfectly nice nandina.
2. Toyota Prius: More of a political statement than a transportation device, and suffice to say those politics are the opposite of mine. I have chosen to make my life in a very conservative area in a very conservative state but there are pockets of insanity around, primarily in an adjacent college town. They just opened a Whole Foods there and my wife wanted to check it out. I have literally never seen so many Prii in one place, not even at a dealership. Hell, it looked like a dealership – I counted 10 (TEN!) in a row on the compact car aisle. Barf–and no convenient foliage around.
3. Subarus (WRX Excluded): I really don’t hate Subarus, because I think they’re pretty practical cars (and I’m a car guy). However, I throw this one in because my wife hates them as much a I hate minivans. She is convinced that every Subaru owner is a moron and a terrible driver that is trying to kill her. Except for her brother. Who owns a WRX. I started paying more attention when out and about and Subaru drivers DO seem to go “Crazy Ivan” for no good reason just a little more often. I can also get behind the Subaru hate because most of the vehicles that were at Whole Foods that weren’t Prii were…wait for it…Subarus.
4. PT Cruisers: Never have I understood the appeal, and the people I’ve known that owned and loved them were all goobers. Funny, because I always found the original Neon to be an appealingly honest little car.
5. Ford Windstar/Freestar: You may think that I’ve already covered this ground with my general distaste for minivans and children, but there’s a special place in hell for the Windstar/Freestar combo. If you run across one today, you can rest assured that the owner is someone congenitally incapable of good decision making who probably has many problems (and children) of their own making. They’ll want to tell you their sad, sad story–many of them centered on the unreliability of their ride. You may be sympathetic. You may be tempted to help. You should instead slowly back away, knowing that their ride is a clear indicator that they would only make the very worst of whatever help you give them. These are the people that win the lottery and are broke in two years. Run away.
You’d be surprised how many Priuses I see around here with conservative bumper stickers on them.
Conservatives might like a car that gets good gas mileage too, you know.
Yeah, I’ve heard a few conservative commentators argue for the Prius here on TTAC simply because it is dead reliable and very economical. I’ve seen Prii flying at 90 on the freeway, I’ve seen them tailgating and (kind of) launching from stoplights, I’ve seen them hypermiling on a downhill onramp attempting to merge into 70mph traffic at 45. They run the gamut of owners.
Back when I was a daily commuter, I once saw a Prius on fire at the side of the road. The driver was standing at a safe distance, so it was all in all a very pleasant sight.
Wait that can’t be. CR keeps insisting they are the bestest and mostest reliable vehicles ever.
They do. Odd car…. somehow infuriorating though.
I never much cared for the last Hudsons that were really just restyled Nashes. While a Nash is a decent enough car in its own right, the real step-down Hudsons handled a heck of a lot better than the “Hashes” both on the street and on the track.
You were just a limber 30-something when the step-down Hudsons were popular. I’d like to see you DD one today. Me, I loved Studes back then.
BTW, aren’t the opinions of these <100 year-old people here hilarious?
Everything has been going downwards since the Model A. Before that we could expect every new car to be of better quality, more practical, and cheaper to build than the previous model.
Then all of the sudden Ford (thank you ,Edsel) had to try to make stylish fast cars to compete with Chevrolet, and now we are all expected to pay more for styling and speed and disregard quality all together. hrmpf.
(I’m still 2 years away from reaching 40, but I honestly really want a ‘slightly modified’ model A)
I could go for a subtle Model A hot rod.
Whitewalls, wire wheels, but a flathead (or 302) under the hood and sneaky exhaust with cutouts. Would be fun!
Studes were great cars. Almost bought a Daytona several years ago but on close examination it became apparent that the tinworm had just done too much work on it. I think I’d still be able to get back into a step-down without too many problems, though I do understand why so many people these days prefer a taller vehicle. As I said though I never cared for the ersatz Hudson “Hashes.” If I wanted a Nash I’d just buy a Nash.
As far as the opinions of the “<100 year-old set" – I really don't much care what young people think or want. I just want them to stay off my lawn!
G-Wagen by Mercedes, I see them everyday in LA and find them to be such a waste, original bare bones models not included.
Crossovers for the most part are merely cars on stilts and I am not into the fad, I do understand if you are older the ease of entry and exit being a selling point.
Any cars with CVT’s, looking at you Nissan.
The Mercedes CLA for many reasons.
Most Dodge/Chrysler products.
The excessive size of modern pickups, in a dense city they are huge and no longer easy to load items in and out of. Also the diesel power wars are absurd.
I agree on minivan. Our first child is due to be born any day now, and my wife said in the future when it comes time to replace her CX-5, she wants a minivan. I am being pig-headed and stubborn and immature and refusing. First of all, because I don’t want one. Second of all, minivans today are anything but “mini.” They are huge, and any of them would take up our entire garage (the CX-5 fits snugly). And, thirdly, I don’t like any of them. The only one on the market today I’d remotely consider is the Kia Sedona.
I don’t trust FCA at all in the reliability/build quality aspect, so that outs the Pacifica and the ancient Grand Caravan. The Sienna and Odyssey are luxobarges that are expensive as hell once you add any type of usable options to them (and they tend to hold their value crazy well, even on the used market with ten pounds of crushed Cheetos embedded into their floors). The Quest is a relative unknown reliability-wise and has terrible crash-test scores. And, to be honest, I’m not sure how I’d feel about the long-term reliability of a Sedona, either.
I tried to explain all of this to my wife and her response is “But it would be so much easier to get a kid in and out with sliding doors.” I get that, but it’s not the sole reason to buy a van, especially when you only have one kid and your 2013 CUV is paid off.
I agree on any current minivan. If I required a 7 passenger vehicle that isn’t a BOF SUV, Ford Flex or maybe (gulp) VW Atlas.
Hold. Your. Ground.
A minivan for one kid is insanity. I have twins and their first four years were spent in a Jetta Sportwagen and Nissan Altima. In the VW we weren’t swimming in an ocean of interior volume, but we never needed more room. The Altima is huge. Each of these cars has taken our family of four on a 10 day 2000-mile road trip without issue and in comfort. The biggest hurdle for loading kids into the car is seat height and your CX-5 already has that covered.
If she absolutely must have sliding doors, how about a Transit Connect?
For one kid, it’s overkill. A Mazda 5 could have been fine, it’s what we started with for our twins. We liked it so much we bought it before we had kids, since we expected to have one before it was paid for.
We went with an Odyssey EX-L on lease, which is almost up. Since the residual is high, the lease was the best way to go. I like having a new car, the payment isn’t onerous and you can get rid of it before you need to put money into it. But I agree it’s overkill for one kid. But for two kids, and grandparents and a trip to the zoo, Costco or whatever all at once, we don’t regret our choice. We’ll be getting another van. I like the Sienna SE, but my wife really likes the new Odyssey. We’re split on the Pacifica.
The Mazda was fine, but it’s a “people or stuff” problem. The third row is nearly useless, so you can’t put people back there. But there’s zero cargo space with the rear seat up too, so it stays down, giving you a wagon like floor. The 2.3 Mazda wasn’t much more efficient in real world than the much more powerful Honda. And for Hondas being noisy, it’s still much quieter than the Mazda.
Power sliding doors and power liftgates do make life with kids easier. An Odyssey EX would be about 32k out the door. No, it’s not 25k midsize car money, but it’s not a midsize car either.
If Mazda would’ve redesigned the 5 to match their current styling and given it the CX-9’s 2.5 Turbo SkyActiv, it’d be a winner. But, it would also be a Mazda, which means it wouldn’t sell well and they couldn’t justify the R&D money.
If they just would have done SOMETHING to the 5 besides the “PsychoHappy Mazda” face, 2.5/6spd and a mild interior refresh. If the diesel could have been in it from the start here in the US, it would have been way more interesting, possibly stealing some TDi sales.
But then the CX-5 was brought out, putting the final nail in the mini-minivans coffin.
We still have our 5, it’s doing third car duties now.
Not overkill for one kid. The amount of crap you lug around and the insane size of car seats once they get a bit older makes it worth it. Once you get used to hauling the kid in the baby seat in/out of sliding doors you won’t want to use a regular door ever again.
The new ones seem to be a bit more price than the Sienna XLE I bought in 2011. Even with the kids being older it is much easier than a car/SUV/Truck. With the sliding doors I don’t have to worry about them slamming the car next to us with the door.
Plus, the cargo space is great and it is very comfortable. My only real complaint is the terrible dash layout and interior noise, both of which have been fixed in recent models….
My objections are as follows:
1. We have a 2013 Mazda CX-5 with 42,000 miles and it is paid for in full. It is not even halfway through its useful life and costs us nothing per month.
2. We have a loan on my car, a Mazda6, because we decided to get something bigger since my former Mazda3 would be a royal pain to put a car seat in (and I wanted more modern safety features).
3. A minivan on sale today is huge and will barely fit in my garage, if at all.
4. Price. Our limit for vehicles is 25k or so. My 6’s MSRP was 27k but after haggling and my trade, we paid 20.
5. Necessity. The CX-5 has more than enough room to haul the baby seat (it’s already installed since he’s due anyday) and the stuff that goes along with the baby. If it wasn’t, how would you explain the vehicles families in Europe use? Hell, the CX-5 is a pretty big vehicle to people over there.
I could understand buying a minivan if you A.) had real need for one and B.) had the financial means to justify it. Unfortunately, we have neither of those. :/
Is it possible that we’ve gone this far into the thread and nobody has said anything about a Volkswagen branded product? ;-)
FreedMike’s purchase/write-up has put a wet blanket on the fire of hate that burns for VW amongst the B&B.
I’ll gladly get another VW. I had an 04 Jetta GLS Wagon 1.8T that I enjoyed very much. Never had a problem with it in the three years I owned it and I bought it used. I sold it because I was given a “free” Pontiac G6. It saved me a car payment for 2 years, but I hated that Pontiac.
Just looked at the website.
There is a #PinkBeetle! That’s the damn model name! It looks like Pepto Bismol and has pink interior accents. All that after they removed the flower vase. Put that one on the list.
Otherwise I have no VW ire. My one VW ownership experience (MY 2010) was fantastic for 7 years. A GTI nearly replaced it and would have if I didn’t make a shift to an entirely different class of vehicle.
I have never owned a VW but the two Beetles I have had as rentals both drove and rode very nicely. One of them had a glitchy and often inoperable driver’s side power window at 700 miles, but oh well.
Stop the Envasion! no Commie cars here. Mr Trump, add that 35% now!
Nissan Maxima – I can stand the rest of Nissan’s CVT only lineup (with the exception of the poverty spec Versa/Sentra/Juke/Frontier which can still be had with a manual) but the 4DSC as CVT only?
I could get passed the styling if it had a sweet shifting 6 speed.
Actually, I kinda like the styling, especially the front, although it is a little too busy. But, I can’t get past the CVT.
Kinda the point I was making.
With CVT only, yah might as well buy a new V6 Impala with 6 speed auto. No sporting pretensions but a little more straightforward about what it is and what it isn’t.
The CVT isn’t as much of a soul-sapper as it’s purported to be. Chassis and engine are fantastic, the VQ35 is old enough to quote Heston but it’s a block of hewn granite.
I have come to really like the styling on it.
@Dan,
Agreed.
To that point, the Taurus SHO may be an overweight whale on an old platform, but you get push-you-in-your-seat acceleration and a real trans with 6 gears.
@blue,
Once you’ve driven a car with a decent CVT (Honda), its hard to justify the terribleness of Nissan’s.
I need to drive a new Honda with a CVT. The only CVT I have driven was my friend’s former car, a Nissan Sentra, and it was terrible. I genuinely thought something was wrong with it at first.
All Nissans except Titan and Frontier. I want to like the Maxima, but CVT disease kills it.
All current Toyotas, except maybe the 86. Most certainly includes their overrated, hideously styled pickups.
The Toyota Camry. Not because it is in any way a bad car, but because it is so soul-suckingly beige in every possible way. There is just no reason to buy one if you have any care at all about cars. The Accord is just as reliable, and about 1000000X more interesting and involving. And I do not care about the V6 Camry, it’s just a faster shade of beige.
Second for me are cowboy Cadillacs, aka gigantic over-chromed pickups. I get it, sometimes you need a truck. But I want one I can actually use as a truck, then hose out when I am done.
“I want one I can actually use as a truck, then hose out when I am done”…..My thoughts, exactly !
My friend, his son and I play a game called identify the Camry. We have to site a Camry anywhere on the road or in a parking lot etc. If that Camry has an elderly driver the person who called it first gets a point. If the driver is younger such as a kid that got one handed down by granny that doesn’t count. The person that gets the most points gets lunch for free. Camry’s with any body damage especially bashed in rear bumpers get two points. We do this on many longer trips ,especially on the highway. Always a lot of fun.
Aesthetics are a big factor, for me. In that area, the Germans, BMW, Mercedes, and to some degree VW’s are far ahead of the Domestics and the Asian offerings.
Reliability , and long term costs ? I’ve never owned one, and never will. So i will leave that opinion to others that have had more experience in that area.
They are pretty though .
Anything unreliable! Though I sometimes just take the good with the bad (looking at BMW!)
Any car that looks like a cartoon of itself, e.g. Escalade, Camaro, Renegade.
Or the Juke, IQ, Smart car or Cube! Total clown cars.
The Jeep Compass or the Nissan Armada. For very different reasons.
Presumably the first-gen Armada for the reason that it’s not a terrible vehicle, but the other three competitors in the mid/late-’00s full-size truck-wagon segment (Expedition, Tahoe/Yukon and Sequoia) are all better.
I want one now that it is a lightly rebodied Patrol. Shame that the Nissan dealer network is so terrible.
Every modern CUV I’ve had as a rental or a loaner (rogues, escapes, rav4, compass) has been consistently hard to see out of, cramped, unresponsive to throttle inputs, not great on gas mileage, and an eyesore. Handling is typically better than BoF counterparts, but the trend of putting teenie tiny section tires on huge wheels even with the base models means that, while the suspensions have come a long way and feel great for the big bumps, the NVH from imperfect road surfaces is annoying and incessant. My wife is always exited that we’ve been upgraded to a “truck” then starts complaining once the baby seat, luggage, and a few incidentals are loaded. One of these days I’ll actually get the Impala or Charger I always try to book for these trips…
Modern cars? Anything with a touchscreen for HVAC/radio control. Forces me to take eyes off the road. Tactile controls are a safety necessity as I already have barely-legal eyesight and don’t have time to focus on an LCD.
Classics? Chevy Cavalier/J-body. Those insufferable pieces of shit would run forever with everything else decaying around the drivetrain. Also, I’m NOT a Juggalo.
I’ll stick with my Camry Wagon — back when a Camry had character (electric seatbelts).
Anything unibody, you were sold a bunch of lies. It was sold as a way to make cars cheaper, yet they never have been, Ridgeline is an excellent example. They were sold as a way to reduce weight, yet they seem to weigh in just as much as BOF examples. They were sold on the promise of increasing fuel economy, doesn’t seem to have happened. I can continue…
All around unibody vehicles are a complete failure in regards to getting your money’s worth. Worse the inability for manufacturers to simulate the look of a vehicle with a frame under it has turned the vast majority of unibody vehicles into grotesque blobs.
Company vehicles. Plumbers, asphalt layers, electricians… I’m assuming it’s their 22 year-old apprentices driving these vans but I know as soon as I see one he’s gonna be riding my ass, presently. Then after passing me, riding the ass of the next guy. And the next. Related: vehicle you always see first in the ditch during a snowstorm? “Call 555-649-POWR.”
Ladder racks make good roll-bars.
Nah, they don’t.
Which reminds me, I’ve yet to meet a late-model Porsche owner that wasn’t a ego-driven overwrought nub of a dickbag. They all, to an individual, have the mentality of “people hate me for my success,” and have an inability to think past that self-centered BS.
No, people hate you because you’re an insufferable prick, don’t signal, last to leave the light, and use “creative” accounting.
Yes! White contractor vans, apparently those things have tremendous power, because I frequently see them well over 80 on the highway.
The car I will never buy is the one I can’t buy for cash. At age 65 I have lived by this for 45+ years. Do I regret not owning a Vette? Yes, a little, but the freedom to know that I can walk into a dealership and pass a check for the price of whatever is truly sublime. And that ability is almost solely due to my self imposed buying restraint in my younger days.
My “never” cars are impostors, including but not limited to:
– Anything that looks “sporty” or “rugged” but isn’t
– Toyotas which command a “quality” premium yet are midpack at best in terms of materials, driving dynamics, etc.
– low-end BMWs and Benzes that lease for $399 a month OAC
I cannot say I won’t ever buy certain vehicles or manufacturers, but I’m inclined to never buy:
-Another Nissan unless it’s a GT-R. My Altima was fine, I was not sad to see it go. Especially due to the CVT.
-Another GM product. As much as I love the idea of the SS, the GM part of it would probably annoy me. My current Cruze is me giving GM another chance and while I don’t hate it, I don’t have any reason to get another Chevy or GM product.
-Anything with a CVT if I can avoid it, though more keep showing up.
-Prius. I’ve had two as rentals (Prius and Prius C) and I just can’t get over how awful it is to drive. And to get the economy out of it they advertise, you must be a rolling roadblock and a snail off the line. The thing I liked was the regenerative braking and the tech behind it all is kind of interesting.
– Any large SUV or CUV. I don’t tow, don’t go off-road and don’t live on a mountaintop. My only exception might be a Rover because I just like the things or possibly an SRT Jeep.
I need help with this one. There are a lot of cars that I don’t ‘want’ to own, and don’t wish to own. There are a bunch of cars that I just don’t get along with very well, or that I just think are really uninteresting. I’d even get an ugly or crappy car over a boring car any day. Having owned around 30 cars I managed to almost avoid the 90’s completely for that specific reason.
It’s not just that I really really love cars , and love modified cars to the point that I can see some potetnial in every car.
I also really really hate carrying stuff. I’d even go as far as buying a Passat or Golf if it ment not having to walk to the store to buy food. Heck, even a noisy smelly diesel, and even with an inconvenient nagging automagical transmission.
There is a chance that I would paint it bright orange with #01 on the doors, just so I could find it in a parking lot, but I would still drive it if I had to.
I come at it from the perspective of not wanting to be associated with the group of people who currently own a vehicle. Dodge pickups and H2s come to mind.
That being said, I would be afraid to own a car with a $9,000 timing belt service and an interference head like many of Maranello’s finest.
I was shopping for a sub $5,000 car on autotrader, and half of the results were all Chevy Aveos or the Pontiac equivalent. I would never buy one with my own money. I WOULD however, drive one as a winter beater if it was given to me for free and had a stick shift. Only because I wouldn’t feel guilty learning how to drive stick on it, and beating the everliving hell out of it. Basically, the Avo is a car for hate-driving and nothing more.
The only car I can’t stand is the Smart Car.
Aside from the alleged benefit of being able to fit two of them in a city parking spot (something I’ve never seen done in real life), they are almost as expensive as a Civic while being less useful, less safe, less comfortable, worse mileage, and ugly.
Most cars have *some* reason to exist. There is something they do that other cars do not do. I cannot, however, understand why the Smart car exists.
It’s a go-kart with climate control, roomy interior, and amaaaaaazing seats.
Go-Cart? It’s a phone booth on wheels.
When I was in Rome last year, I saw a ton of Smart cars. In that environs, with skinny streets and motorbikes everywhere, they seem to make a lot of sense.
A-segment cars (microcars) don’t usually get proportionately better MPG than B-segments (subcompacts), but their primary selling point is that they’re physically small, good for urban areas where space is at a premium. In most of the U.S., it’s not, so microcars like the Smart Fortwo, Scion iQ, or Chevy Spark are mostly bought for advertising (my local Pizza Ranch has three Sparks as delivery cars).
I think a Smart could be fun if it had a manual transmission, wider front tires, maybe a stiffer rear stabilizer bar, and all nannies disabled. I would then be able to appreciate it as a practical vehicle for city parking.
http://i64.tinypic.com/5edfnb.jpg
That’s my old Accent, jammed into one of the few parking spaces available near my old apartment. This was fairly routine for the couple years I lived there. If I still lived there, a smart would make a ton of sense.
Also, worse mileage is pretty inaccurate unless you, like Deep Purple, are a highway star. The smart has the slightest edge in the EPA city cycle, and based on Fuelly, the smart averages about 36-37mpg overall, the Civic is more like 33-34 – not enough to make it a real competitive advantage, but it’s not worse.
Mercedes G-Wagen and a Smart car. Both for obvious reasons.
For me it’s everything in the current GM lineup I cannot stand
1. Mercedes CLA (the only non-customized current vehicle I can think of that instantly negatively affects any opinion of its owner)
2. Any subcompact sedan (I love hatches, tiny sedans are completely pointless)
3. Any luxury-branded crossover or SUV.
4. Any high-trim pickup.
5. Any Jeep product
6. Vast majority of GM products (pretty much hate everything except the old Spark, Bolt, Volt, Cruze, Sonic hatch and SS)
What’s wrong with high-trim pickups? Mechanically, they’re 97% identical to lower-spec models. Except for the 22″ wheels and maybe the automatic running boards, a $55K F-150 Limited is just as practical as a $30K XL SuperCrew/5.5′ model.
+1. I know a lot of farmers who like their pickups well-equipped. $50k doesn’t seem that high when the combine or 4WD tractor you’re driving out to operate cost 10 times that (and is just as nicely appointed as the pickup – leather seat, touchscreen interface for the machine systems, etc.)
Lifted bro-dozer truck.
I love trucks but hate it when they’re used as an expression of the owners insecurities.
I’d rather drive a new Prius than one of those, but I’m sure a Prius could also be tastelessly and uselessly modified to the point where I’d rather drive a bro-dozer!
The Camry and Corolla. Bland vehicles that get away with being hopelessly uninspired because they’re bulletproof. I don’t like the level of arrogance at Toyota dealerships, which doesn’t help.
The Altima and Maxima. Almost universally terrible drivers who, here in Atlanta, don’t understand or care to use turn signals, or to put down their %*#(@#* phones.
Lux-level F150s. I tend to see guys in Chevys actually using their vehicles for the work required of full-size trucks. The top-trim F150 drivers are just showing off.
Toyota Prius. GET OUT OF THE LEFT LANE.
Dodge Journey: how can we produce a vehicle that meets the bare minimums required of its class, while also reflecting our distaste for our customers?
Chevy Tahoe/Suburban: POS that gets away with it, because ‘Murica and the hood love it.
Mazda6: I want to love this car, but Mazda’s baffling inability to get more power under the hood and/or bring out a two-door version make this the most frustrating vehicle in its class. It’s like the beautiful girl you’ve got to leave for logical reasons.
“Mazda6: I want to love this car, but Mazda’s baffling inability to get more power under the hood and/or bring out a two-door version make this the most frustrating vehicle in its class. It’s like the beautiful girl you’ve got to leave for logical reasons.”
No one is going to buy those. Test drove a Mazda6 touring. Power was plenty adequate. How well are the midsized sedan coupses actually selling? Not really well. My only complaint was the 19 wheels. They were terrible.
Spend some time online basically anywhere populated by Mazda’s buyers, and look at the complaints about the fact that a “premium sedan” from a “Zoom-Zoom” make trails its competition in available engine power.
Even though the one and only 2.5 185 HP 4 banger is perfectly adequate it’s comical that they actually have the balls to refer to themselves as the zoom zoom whatever when literally every other mid size foreign or domestic has an optional 240-300 HP upgrade motor available.
What’s wrong with high-trim F-150s that’s not also “wrong” with the same models from GM or FCA? Except for the Limited, every F-150 trim has an equivalent trim in Chevy, GMC, and Ram.
Ford =Chevy =GMC =Ram
XL =WT =Sierra=Tradesman
STX =LS = =Express
XLT =LT =SLE =SLT/Big Horn
Lariat =LTZ =SLT =Laramie
King Ranch=High Country= =Laramie Longhorn
Platinum = =Denali=Laramie Limited
(The formatting doesn’t work well with this commenting system, but hopefully the point is understood.)
The Smart car for sure. I’d ride a scooter before I’d be caught dead in one of those. The Prius because they’re ugly, their hyper-miling drivers always seem to irritate me, and they just reek of that self-righteous California vibe. Any car shaped like a cube. And of course, all minivans.
Many cars on the road make me nauseous from just glancing at their over-styled body designs or awkwardly places taillights. That said, Nissan is a victim of it’s own self inflicted wounds with disasters such as the current Murano, and Rogue. You’d have to pay me to even consider test driving one of those spaceships.
To be fair, the Kia Soul is also gut-wrenchingly painful to look at, as is the Veloster, GLA, Rio 5-door, and of course the 500L. Could go on and on!
Just my two cents from Canada.
I can’t believe no one has mentioned the only right answer yet.
Range Rover Evoque.
It’s a
1) small CUV that
2) has more in common with the Ford Escape than it wants to admit and
3) is powered by a noisy, rough 2.0T engine while
4) having styling that takes away all interior room and visibility and
5) having an interior that looks totally blingy but with cheap materials, all
6) with the image of
A YAPPY SHIH TZU.
Other vehicles (X5s, brodozers, CLAs) may irritate me a bit but nothing makes me half as angry as an Evoque.
I’m envisioning you utilizing the RR’s high-beltline blindspots and creeping up behind one in your Lexus, then employing the mighty V8 to nudge the Evoque off into a ditch as you merrily waft by.
It’s an expensive and pointless vehicle but there’s something about the styling I like enough to keep the rage at bay. There’s a convertible 2-door, though. That might push me over the edge. You’d think the Murano CrossCabriolet would have taught the entire industry a lesson.
Don’t give me ideas…
Evoques continue to enjoy high resale value. My thinking is that the ladies love them.
It’s a depressing comment about the gullibility of humanity that the general desirability of the Land Rover badge rubs off on them.
http://setina.com/push-bumpers/push-bumpers/pb-450-l/
The only thing it Evoques is blind rage?
The Lexus NX is probably the most offensive car on the road, in terms of looks. All Lexus vehicles are ugly from the front, and I’m particularly offended by the Nike swoosh running lights. The new Civic hatch may be able to take the title. I saw one on the road for the first time the other day. The slope of the hatch removes any practicality the body style might have, and the giant plastic inserts on the back of the car just scream ‘cheap’.
I can’t get behind the idea of dismissing a car because of the reputation of its drivers. I cringe whenever I see a Corolla in front of me, because I’m about to pass one of the worst drivers on the road, but that doesn’t mean I couldn’t buy one if I thought it was the best vehicle in its class (it isn’t).
HOW ABOUT the entire L E X U S line up
Lux with a fugly look
I have never liked the look of Mustangs and Camaros. The large hood area, big doors and small trunk have turned me off since I was a kid. There are a lot of more notably ugly cars, but for me, the proportions of these have held constant as a turnoff. Sixties-era Mustangs are a different story, but not sure where it went wrong for me.
It’s interesting for me, because I didn’t like them well before I had any notions of performance, efficiency, etc. I was born not liking grapefruit, and the same for American muscle cars…
Its all subjective eh ? I personally love the looks of a long hood, short butt .
That’s the essence of pony car styling.
“I was born not liking grapefruit, and the same for American muscle cars…”
Right on both counts!
tinyurl.com/hfud5dq
Not even a little bit, Mr.Pants?
Nice try but wide-angle lens distortion is making your case for you. Much more balanced fore/aft in real life.
Muscle cars were created to assist their owners in the fondling of grapefruits.
So I guess his comment makes sense.
The Smart. I can stretch and make a case for almost anything else but not this one. You can get a more useful car for less money, it’s not particularly fuel efficient, the dork factor is off the scale and it’s not remotely fun to drive.
The Smart has just one purpose: to fit into parking spaces others can’t.
If you never have reason to do that, it’s totally pointless.
If you regularly park on city streets, it’s awesome.
Actually, watching a young woman in a mini-dress or short skirt getting out of a Smart is breathtaking!
I’ve got pics to prove it, taken in the Wal-Mart parking lot.
You’re, like, sub-baruth with that one.
Well, maybe Baruth has good taste, and knows what tastes good…….
HDC, let’s ask the populi.
B&B, any of you have a problem with some wizened old geez sneaking photos of your daughters’ crotches?
Why does that comment creep me out to no end?
“Why does that comment creep me out to no end?”
Because you’re a human being? Ick.
I think I agree. Doesn’t make any sense in the US. Of the list here I’d give the Prius a pass. It’s new style is unfortunate, but for how utilitarian it is a small factor. A Veloster would be there.
Hard to generalize about pickup trucks. Too much variation.
Lots of cars are a bad idea for the people who buy them. The fact that I think they are a very bad idea for most people doesn’t make them bad cars.
GMC Acadia.
Just what is the fucking point??
-Any Ford product.
My worst experience with a car was an older Mustang.
-A ’73 Ford Torino, four door, in green.
-An AMC Matador, possibly the ugliest car ever invented…
Are you basing your perception of an entire brand off of two cars from 40+ years ago?
Also, which Matador? If it’s the sedan, yeah, that was a pretty frumpy car. But the ’74 Matador coupe is quite nice.
I’ll be damned if I’ll step foot in an AMC showroom again, after what happened to me in the back of a Gremlin in 1978.
That’s like swearing off ever buying a new Oldsmobile or Pontiac. I don’t think there will be any trouble keeping that resolution.
As long as they keep making Saturns, I don’t think I’ll miss Pontiac. But I will definitely miss Oldsmobile. They had this way of taking a Buick and making it seem like an entirely different car, just by changing the badge. That was talent, back in the day, I’ll tell you.
As long as they keep making Saturns.
I hate to break it to you, VoGo…
Saturn rocket?
“I’ll be damned if I’ll step foot in an AMC showroom again, after what happened to me in the back of a Gremlin in 1978.”
So it wasn’t consensual, vogo? Did the guy get charged with rape?
“I’ll be damned if I’ll step foot in an AMC showroom again”
I do believe you are in luck, since there no longer are any.
Well there may be one left
http://www.hotrod.com/articles/hrdp-1204-collier-amc-dealership-the-living-dead/
http://youtu.be/aWuuWDJ1xf4
@DrZhivago138
Well, with Ford and the awful experience with that car, I realized there are plenty of other car brand options that I can choose from. I didn’t find it necessary to go back to them. I don’t mind Ford trucks but I wouldn’t buy one.
As for the Torino, well it kind of speaks for itself.
And I just never thought the Matador was a very nice car in any regard.
I realize these are older picks, but they were the first ones that came to mind.
Modern cars, I would pick the Prius on sheer ugliness, and the new Civic hatch is a total disaster, style-wise.
“As for the Torino, well it kind of speaks for itself.”
How so? All we know is that it’s a ’73 green sedan. Rather dowdy-looking IMO, but all “mid-size” sedan offerings in the ’70s from the Big 3 + AMC look that way.
I hate Mitsubishi Galants, in fact I hate every vehicle Mitsubishi makes, they should go the way of the dodo bird. I also hate brodozers of all types and I hope people who “roll coal” on their fellow drivers would catch some lead.
Hate any car with a CVT. And any Subaru. And Versa. And any Kia. And Smart cars.
Escalade/Navigator/Lexus LX
Like a Suburban/Expedition/Land Cruiser but with less class.
Any fiat or mitsushiti
GTIs make me roll my eyes.
Can you be more specific? I ask because they are on my short list, and I would love to hear the downsides before I take the plunge. Thanks!
I should rephrase that to “GTI drivers make me roll my eyes.” I don’t know anything first hand about the cars themselves.
I do know that the combination of Nissan grade future time orientation with Ultimate Driver grade aggression is interesting to share a road with.
The car is brilliant.
I have to grudgingly agree on the stereotype of the drivers, though. The last GTI I saw had a poor-fitting aftermarket exhaust and was loudly farting its way up a hill as the driver caned it. The one before that had a kid with a reverse while baseball cap devoting his attention to his phone.
None of this would stop me from buying one though.
I love the GTI too. Not in the market for shopping, but the size and abilities of this car appeal to me. I’ve even seen a few of the (slightly) older R32’s lately. I really like them.
The one I drove made my eyes roll back in my head, in that good way.
Seriously, Dan, what’s up?
GTI is the car that my left brain has been telling me I should own for years, ever since the MkV came out.
It’s small outside, very roomy inside, drives extremely well, is comfortable, reasonably well equipped, and very reasonably priced. Its main disadvantage, VW reliability, isn’t too much of an issue for me because I don’t usually keep cars longer than about 6 years and I don’t put on many miles.
But somehow my right brain always rebels, and I’ve never owned a GTI (or Golf R). Instead it’s been giant V8 sedans that barely fit in the garage.
I don’t know if it’s the predictable and ordinary-sounding 2.0T engine, the fact that So Many People in my demographic in big cities own GTIs, or maybe the fact that I have a weakness for advanced-level toys not typically seen in hot hatches. But I’ve considered GTIs and Golf Rs in depth several times and never pulled the trigger.
Couldn’t agree more on the GTI dilemma. Left brain knows it’s fast and fun enough, affordable, and has packaging that borders on magic; right brain has the tape measure out figuring out how to stuff a D3 A8 into the garage.
Tesla and anyone that supports them….ROTF
Prius.
Any of the econo-blobs.
Most SUV / CUV’s for the reasons already stated
I actually own and use a minivan although “it’s my wife’s”
You guys should do “Are Sedans/Hatchbacks The New Coupes” as the next QOTD. New Camry, A3/A5 Sportback, Stinger GT, and the uptick in style (good or bad) in the mainstream segments with cars like the Fusion, Mazda3/6, previous Sonata/Optima and arguably the new Civic
The toyota Prius.
nothing makes me more angry than a prius. I can’t even explain why. I think its the people who drive priuses merged with the priuses smuggness.
I will tailgate a prius. I will cut off a prius. I will get upset if one passes me on the highway. I will do everything I can to prevent a prius from getting in front of me.
Its bad, I know. I don’t have road rage with any other car, but just seeing a prius invokes such an awful emotion by me I can’t even explain it.
To solve this problem, come to the West Coast, where so many of the cars on the road are Priuses that after a couple days you won’t even see them anymore.
Vehicles I can’t stand no matter what?
If I went on looks alone (In no particular order):
Pontiac Aztex especially yellow.
Nissan Juke
AMC Pacer
Suzuki X90
Hyundai Tiburon
Most recent Prius
Jeep Compass
Subaru Tribeca
AMC Matador
Ford Mustang II
Subaru Baja
Ford Edsel
That Matador killed the bomber pilot at the end of “Fail-Safe”, that’s how bad it was!
Thanks for the video.
GREAT question!
I couldn’t see myself owning a midsize or fullsize CUV/SUV.
I could own a compact one, my wife’s Forester is one thing, it is fun to drive, surprisingly fun. The Ford Edge is about as big as I could go. After that you’re justing lying to yourself, and I’d rather have the BOF SUV or the minivan, depending on needs.
The 3-row CUVs I’ve rented/driven all have had torture chambers for a 3rd row, and despite more of a car like feel still ultimately feel heavy, gulp gas, and tend to wallow. In giving them CUV dimensions they may have better interior volume but I’ve found them consistently narrow. I had a loaded AWD Acadia as a rental once and there was much to like about it. I’ve driven the Pilot and the same – but in the end they just feel like a more refined but less capable BOF solution, that in current times has a minimal fuel and service cost benefit – if anything, the more “primitive” BOF offering is cheaper to service.
I’d rather have a large, comfortable 5 passenger sedan, a minivan if I need more seats/room, or a BOF SUV if I’m hauling a lot of crap around constantly. The problem with anything that tries to be something for everyone is that it does none of those things well.
I’d had bought a Venza over a Highlander as an example.
So vehicles like the GM Lambda triplets, the CX-9, and Honda Pilot just don’t do it for me. The Acura MDX is the only one that would come close, but I hold no delusions that the “third row” is anything but useful for holding humans – I would view it as a 5-passenger option with a larger cargo area – just as I have viewed my minivans I’ve owned.
Let’s just call the new Prius a continuation Toyota Echo and finally it kinda makes visual sense.
Any small vehicle from FCA.
PT Cruiser, Smart, Aztec, Tribeca, (current) Prius, Evoque, i-MiEV, Murano Crosscabriolet, Spark, Aspire, 2CV, etc.
Toyota vehicles made after the millennium for the obvious and heavily repeated reasons (e.g. cheapened quality, dull styling and dynamics, clueless drivers who insist on clogging up the fast lane)
Nissan vehicles particularly bread and butter Altimas, Versas, and Sentras with their mediocre reliability, quality, and dreadful CVT’s that manage that sell boatloads in my area and more specifically the owners who drive like they bought a car 3 times the price weaving in and out of lanes in heavy traffic and tailgating you.
Bro-dozers for being everything douchebag incarnate right down to the tapout stickers
Subarus are overrated with their dull interior and exterior styling that seems a generation behind the rest though they’re starting to change that.
Also LOATHE those crossover-coupe-sports utility things that look like frog’s bums or squatting dogs from the rear, looking at you BMW X6/X4 and Mercedes GLC/GLE “Coupes”.
Since I’m talking about them, modern German cars in general, the same sausage different length philosophy is so old and tired.
Hating cars I don’t personally own used to be something of a hobby for me– its softening as I age and “WTF that’s stupid and ugly” has turned into something more like “Why would they do it that way?”
That said– I will never own another Ford.
Any Chrysler/Fiat product. Terrible, terrible cars. PT Cruiser, ’nuff said
Any Honda or Acura product. The cars are not so bad, but the dealer and corporate experience is a total turn-off.
What bad corporate experience did you have with Honda/Acura? I contacted them twice and both ties they went out of their way to help. First time was a warranty claim while i had the car out of the country. Technically not covered but they sent me a check for the repair anyway. Second time was again out of the US for the airbag recall. They worked with a local Honda dealer to get the parts to them and reimburse them for the work
I second the Nissan thing. They are the sub-prime car maker, and their quality shows it. I work on the damn things, trust me they are not good. I wouldn’t buy another Volkswagen product, with the exception of another Porsche. I don’t like most Mercedes because of the price, and I think that BMW has lost its way.
I used to blast Hyundai and Kia, but their cars and quality have increased by a ton.
I don’t like most Toyotas because they drive so boring, and my dad had a hard time (not getting) his leaking struts replaced under warranty on his Avalon at 33k. I would admit that overall their quality is still good, but there are better cars out there.
I like most of the new Fords. Some GM’s are good. Chryslers cars are still junk.
I would totally drive a minivan if I had a family. I would drive an economy car if I had to. I would drive a sports car and truck (as I do now), and I would certainly drive a sedan or luxury car. I would not, however, drive any type of SUV that a truck or minivan could take the place of. You’re not cool in an SUV.
I’ve said it since 2008ish (so I wasn’t 2008 and late).
Nissan is near to the new Mitsubishi.
Subpar crap vehicles, with subpar (unimaginative or trying too hard, no in-between) styling and aesthetics, with subpar materials, subpar driving dynamics, and now even middling to worse reliability, sold to rental fleets in bulk and credit criminals.
I put Nissan and Kia on the same plane.
Hyundai surpassed Nissan garbage years ago.
Mustang – the tilapia of the car world. Now leave me alone.
Nearly 300 comments an no mention of my most despised current car brand – MINI. I would buy a single one of those turds- not even the regular 2-door mini hardtop; a car where they took a pretty solid starting design, inflated it, and smoothed it into the dud it is today. And don’t get me started on their interiors (across the entire lineup). Not to mention their reliability. Or ride quality.
The ultimate turd would have to be the MINI Countryman. The sight of which makes me gag. What an abomination.
The current Toyota Prius; it’s just disgusring more than anything ever seen on the roads.
I’m guessing you’ve never seen a ’61 Ambassador.
1961 wasn’t a good year for cars unless you were Ford or GM.
Though I wonder how a 61 Ambassador compares to a 61 Fury.
I like the ’61 Fury, unabashed aping of Angry Buicks notwithstanding. The 2-dr hardtop’s roofline is Space Age heaven.
I honestly never liked angry Buicks either.
Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Cadillac were the winners at GM in 1959 and 1960, especially the highly underrated flattop 4-doors.
Oh, there’s just no agreeing with you!
(’60 Galaxie Starliner for me)
Love the 60 Pontiac….and the 62 was even better looking…The 61..? not so much.
“the winners at *GM*”
You really ARE an old man, your eyes don’t work!
“You really ARE an old man, your eyes don’t work!”
No, I merely rejected your constricted choices.
Well I personally think the 1960 full size Fords are quite nice so it’s not like we disagree…
Friends!
But that Ambassador still sux.
’62 Pontiac Catalina! Wide-trackin’!
Or a 1962 Dinarg… http://bringatrailer.com/2017/01/25/never-seen-one-1962-dinarg-d200/
Here’s my list of vehicles to avoid: Any penalty box sub-compact or compact. For the price of one you could have decent pre-owned luxury or a Mini.
Newer full-sized trucks especially bro-dozers. That almost Kenworth thing is a bit overwrought. A regular or club cab with a 6′ bed is more than enough. Or a mid-size Colorado/Canyon. Wrangler pickup. The Dakota needs to come back or the Fiat/Ram 700.
Mercedes CLA-Noisy engine, subpar interior. A real Benz C-Class is not much more money.
Nissan with CVT. Most Mitubushi’s. They have really fallen. Prius, the ungainly version. If I wanted a hybrid I’d go for the Camry or very nice Fusion. I read a few years ago that most Prius buyers are not making a statement but just like the practicality, big CUV like hatch and great mileage.
Wow. Over 300 hits and no politics,and no stories of sexual conquest.
You missed Vogo’s admission of being molested in the rear of a Gremlin?
GeneralMalaise – that is not political unless he misspelled Kremlin.
You have a point there…
https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2017/01/qotd-no-way-no/#comment-8887137
What could possibly happen in the back of a Gremlin?
Dunno, but it left an impression.
Jack Baruth can give him pointers on how to work that into a story about cars ;)
Toyota Camry Solara. A pitiful attempt to make bland sporty, without the sport. If you look at the undersides of cars, as I do, it is even less impressive. A bald, overweight office drone in poorly fitting clothes who goes to Cancun for a week and thinks he’s cool.
The car I hate ? Nissan Rogue. Second only to the Solara, it blocks my two lane roads in an oblivious haze. I can’t make any case for purchase, either….for anyone….where the terms aren’t 72 months at 0.0.
Anything with a CVT. They belong in snowmachines. I’ve yet to see one that wasn’t just crap.
The CLA. All the Tool-aspect of BMW ownership without the actual ground consuming ability.
My wife hit a deer so now my 2013 Journey 3.6 6 speed auto is in the shop. We drove a Fusion, impala and a cruze. Talk smack all you want. Gimme back my Mopar. Any day. The U Connect alone is worth it.
You should love the new Pacifica. I was a passenger in one today, going to lunch with friends, and the Pacifica is “slick”, “smooth” and quiet.
Not MY kinda vehicle for my own use, but very nice.
The bloated brodozers that pass for trucks these days! Christ almighty heaven forbid you get stuck behind one plodding along in the left lane and cannot see around it!
Lexus. They make me itch.
Any “four-door coupe”.
The word they’re looking for is “sedan”. (Or “liftback” if combined with a hatch, as is common.)
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I don’t care that it was Walt’s whip in Breaking Bad. It’s still not cool and it crushes my soul to look at.
I have to pile on the Prius. All it does well is pinch pennies. I suppose that’s admirable, but the rest of the experience is more depressing than it has to be.
I don’t even like it from a utility standpoint. The backseat lacks headroom, luggage space is disappointing considering the size of the hatch, and the ride is noisy and uncomfortable. In addition, the new one makes the latest Civic hatch look attractive – I find it that ugly.
New cars:
:: any full-size pickup, esp lifted and meatsacked-out. Unless you’re a contractor, farmer, own livestock, or tow a fishing boat, you don’t need to slow us all up in the fast lane, so you can max out at 12 mpg for the view.
:: any micro or any kit electric car — Smart, Toyota/Scion iQ, Tango, Kewet, NMG, or G-Wiz… just hateful, half-baked, and all are sitting-ducks in real traffic.
:: obnoxiously-ostentatious cars — any Bentley, Bugatti, Ferrari/Lamborghini, or other vehicles that cost as much as or two of a decent two-story house in polite suburbia in L.A… or nowadays, Silicon Valley…
:: Prius. Wake me when there’s a version that advertises a Nürburgring time.
:: Corvette. Improved? Yes. Better than an R8 V10 on any metric but price? No.
Used cars:
:: gansta rides. Escalade, out. G-Wagen, out. And I wouldn’t make it five miles in L.A. before my year-perfect ’63 Impala SS droptop was ‘appropriated’ via my brains on the inside of the windshield…
:: any Mitsubishi besides the Evos. What happens when your engineers only care about the Evo.
:: Honda’s Insight or Crosstour or CR-Z. At least while the Element was ugly, it could do something well. Note to shareholders: block all pretenses to aerospace in future product to prevent forcing banality as a engineering goal.
Toyota Camry or Lexus RX.
I would rather walk.
Prius!!!! (Sorry, grammar check – Prii) Wretched to look at, Wretched to be stuck behind, Wretched to ride in.
Honorable mentions:
Nissan Juke
Most Subarus
Nissan Murano
Buick Encore
Lexus IS
Jeep Compass
Nissan Cube
Lexus RX
Nissan Versa
Mercedes CLA
Notice most seem to be crap in their segment, or the answer to a question no one was asking. Or, just plain ugly.
Geländewagen, particularly the AMG version which automatically comes with douchenozzle badging.
Virtually any new Honda: I simply won’t be seen in one.
BMW X6.
PT Cruiser
L8 to this, but:
Kia Soul, Nissan Joke, or anything which looks like it was styled by the designer of the AMC Gremlin. (Fiatsler Pacifica excluded.)
Smart cars.
Kia Optima.