Find Reviews by Make:
In honor of the imminent celebrations, Consumer Reports has picked its “Automotive Turkeys” of 2008, and they got some good ones. Tax credits for Hybrid Tahoes, Chrysler’s four-week Aspen/Durango Hybrid reign of terror, Acura’s styling, the Smart’s pricing and much more get the thumbs down from CR’s Mike Quincy. In advance of TTAC’s Ten Worst awards, I’m asking: what makes your list of automotive blunders for 2008? Personally, the Volt transformation, the bailout beggary and Chrysler’s Project D(isaster) would be near the top of my list. Yours?
42 Comments on “Question Of The Day: What’s your “Automotive Turkey” of 2008?...”
Read all comments
How Acura is out-classed by the Genesis in terms of price, comfort, power, speed, interior, paint-quality, warranty, quietness, etc. etc. So basically Acura’s the blunder.
TESLA. ’nuff said.
Dumb people, doing dumb things – that’s not interesting. It’s smart people doing dumb things – that is what we like to see.
And that is why I’m voting for Acura.
My wife is dislikes the new styling so much she actually gets angry when she sees one of the 2009’s drive by.
Prius!
Spend $20-$25 grand to get slightly better gas mileage compared to an economy $10-$12k car, and then have gas prices drop down-to/near the $2 level.
The good folks at Honda who seemed surprised when people noticed that the new Insight is a Prius with lipstick. Duh.
And then trying to defend the design rip-off by claiming that it’s all aerodynamics. Surely they could come up with something just a touch more unique.
Anything made by Rolls-Royce. Vulgar and ugly.
When did the Sebring come out?
A shout out for the Toyota Venza?
Aspen Hybrid
GM
Ummmm, Project D is ongoing. They’re not done with it. In fact, we haven’t seen anything from it except a couple of news articles of people speculating where Chrysler might go with it.
And the Sebring and Avenger are 2 and 1 years old already, respectively. They’ve had their Thanksgiving already.
robstar,
Prius is a midsize car, and no economy car comes all that close in mileage. It makes sense long-term even at $2.
Corporate jets.
M1EK> I disagree, but then again, I don’t really have use for a midsize car. Compact works just fine.
That new Panamera is a hideous disaster.
Red Ink Rick himself, in that horrible performance in front of Congress. Gobble, gobble.
my Audi 100 LS
When the rear end started sagging I was told that the ENTIRE rear axle assembly needed replaced!!!
and I have owned a Vega
A X-11 citation
and numerous Italian rust machines…but never came
up against BAD engineering such as this!!
In no particular order:
1) Panamera
2) Volt Hype
3) Prius and any other Hype-rid
4) Ford Flex
5) Acura
6) GM, Ford, Chrysler Management
7) The UAW
8) Smart ForTwo
9) FIA
10) Camaro Hype
The begging is a bad one, and the jets
I’m OK with the Volt
M1EK- The Prius is small and not much of a drivers car. It’s worth spending extra on gas to get a car with a better chassis.
oldyak- 2008 not 1978
The biggest one might be Chrysler slashing leasing cold.
GMs announcement that no one over a certain credit rating would get financing. I think this made customers think that no one could get financing from any one. Killed sales and likely killed dealers. GM should have advertised that there were other sources of financing than GMAC.
Huh, that turkey read my mind.
My vote goes with GM for their endless procrastinating on initiating BK, then scaring Joe Lunchbucket silly that the sky is falling, all the while claiming that C11 would “turn people off”.
Based on the caption he placed on the photo, might Mr. Niedermeyer be a fellow turkey hunter? My sentiments exactly…what an insult to these magnificent (and hateful…if you hunt them you know what I mean!) SOBs. Instead of calling POS cars “turkeys” call them what they really are: Turds.
The Turkey Award goes to the media for the hype it gives to a car (the Volt) that does not yet exist.
The new Camaro gets my vote. Dry, over-hyped turkey. I bet it will deflate just like the Griswolds’ bird.
Oldyak
How old is your Audi, seriously?
Hype. Panamera hype. Volt hype. Prius hype. 370Z hype. F-150 hype. Camaro hype. Tesla hype. Mustang (teasers) hype. Challenger hype. GT-R hype. ZR1 hype. California hype. IS-F hype. TL hype. FX hype. Hype.
The new BMW crossover sports utility coupe, whatever the frack its designation is.
Tesla
Everything Chrysler
G8 – Wrong car, wrong time, wrong factory
Saturn Astra, no make that all Saturns
Saab 9-7X
Suzuki’s US automotive lineup – why are they here?
Two closely related items:
1) Chrysler’s $2.99 a gallon for the next three years gas promo. Good for them, any sucker that got roped in to that one deserves to get taken.
Runner up
2) The Government/IRS bumping the mileage deduction to $0.585 for the second half of 2008.
Chrysler’s $2.99 a gallon for the next three years gas promo. Good for them, any sucker that got roped in to that one deserves to get taken.
Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!
Thanks, I forgot about that one.
Those Dodge Ram commercials featuring our favorite prototypical truck drivers: soccer mom, business man, college/high school student. Umm, I mean Contractor, Cowboy, Marine, I was getting my commercials confused! I’m surprised that the boys at Dodge didn’t put one of those ball things on them!
1. Any hybrid, since their payback vs. a similar-size car is anywhere between 5 and 15 years, not counting battery replacement and exotic maintenance. Oh, and those lead-acid or lithium ion batteries are a recycling nightmare, not quite as ‘green’ as billed. Do the math, and then hug a tree if you still think a hybrid makes sense.
2. Volt. 40 miles on electric-only will seem out-of-date by 2010. That is, if GM lives that long. Oh, and $40k for a Volt? I could buy FOUR Versas for that much money, have just as much interior room, a simple mechanical package, and a viable manufacturer to back them up. Do the math, and then hug a tree if you still think the Volt makes sense.
3. Chevy Cruze. Lipstick on a pig, formerly known as the Chevy Cobalt, formerly known as the Chevy Cavalier.
4. Saab, Jaguar, Isuzu. Why are they in the US market?
5. Fiat… for NOT being in the US market with the 500.
6. Tin-Cup-Gate. How does a Big 2.8 CEO figure they’re going to receive international press coverage and not go humbly to DC? And where are the mythical plans for success?
7. UAW blackmail.
8. Scion xB Gen 2. A colossal blunder by Toyota/Scion – a 22 mpg pig that lost all the coolness of the Gen 1 vehicle which got 31 mpg to boot.
The 2008 Acura styling re-direction gets my vote. Each and every one is seriously ugly. I liked ’em better when they were bland (had ’86 and ’88 Legends and a 2000 TL).
Japanese car design has been so bad for so long, that the new direction Lexus is taking seems to be a major miracle. Each new model gets better looking. No more aping the previous-gen S Class for the LS. Or previous 3 Series for the IS.
Au contraire, Lexus now seems to be leading the style parade. The new Jag XF and new 7 Series could have been designed in Yokohama.
Lexus IS-F.
I don’t care how massive the engine is. I saw one in the flesh and it looks like an IS250 tarted up with the biggest POS bodykit ever bolted on.
And the stacked tailpipes.
LMFAO!
In car-conscience west Houston today I saw my first X6, and it was yet again another “WTF?” moment. Hideous. The Venza will look cool next to this monster.
The nimrods that paid full pop for a Chrysler to get the 2.99 $/gal gas guarantee,
almost beats the ridiculous notion that taxpayers should bail out unskilled workers that make three times more then them for tightening bolts.
Hey Oldyak:
My 1975 Audi 100LS had the rear spring breakage problem too. Got two new rear coil springs free, after suitable jumping up and down and threatening. Hell, read about it in Car magazine from England and Audi were handing out free springs in Europe, so I wanted free ones too. That was in 1978. Thanks for reminding me.
Now it’s 2008, but I wouldn’t mind getting the 30 years back.
Wagoner, he’s the turkey of today.
My vote is just for the year 2008 in general. I think this year has been a pretty awful year to be a car manufacturer or dealer and one they’d rather just forget. About the only people in the car industry who are happy right now are mechanics.
Front end styling of the new Mazda3.
gslippy- well done!
@h82w8,
Then the Panamera certainly fits the bill: it’s the right shape.
Porsche Panafugly, BMW, Toyota. Ah, heck. ALL Euro and asian automakers!
It’s not as spectacular as the aforementioned blunders, but I’m pretty bummed that the Corolla XRS has been neutered with the pedestrian 2.4L, auto option, and more weight. Shame on Toyota, the XRS with the Yamaha 1.8L and 6 speed was the best economy car they made – up until this year.
1. Any hybrid, since their payback vs. a similar-size car is anywhere between 5 and 15 years, not counting battery replacement and exotic maintenance. Oh, and those lead-acid or lithium ion batteries are a recycling nightmare, not quite as ‘green’ as billed. Do the math, and then hug a tree if you still think a hybrid makes sense.
This is what we call a lie, class. Make note of it.