After the amount of replies by the B&B, spitting venom at the cars they loathed with a passion, I decided to inject some needed positivity to TTAC. We’re often accused of being negative and downbeat, so here goes my attempt at being positive.
When I asked “what car do you think is overrated”, you all had plenty to say. Now let’s see if you’re all just as gobby for the same question, but from the opposite end of the spectrum. Which car do you think is underrated?
Which car do you think gets a lot of stick but unfairly? Maybe you think the Volkswagen Golf is actually a good reliable car? Or that the Corolla’s handling isn’t as bad as others think? Or maybe the Chevy Aveo isn’t all that bad? Come on! Let’s see some positivity, people! I want TTAC to be flowing with positive energy this Sunday!
And before anyone asks, that picture isn’t me. It’s a picture of Sarah Millican. An absolutely fantastic and UNDERRATED comedienne.
I don’t know if it’s just the photography, but Sarah appears to have a HUGE set of Humeri — maybe that means that “funny” is in her genes?
Underrated Car? Why my 2008 Hyundai Elantra — gets no love, and grudging respect.
Edit: My first attempt at watching a Sarah Millican YT video netted me the opinion that she’s charming, and quite possibly funny (because I could barely understand a word she was saying…)
Cammy,
I can somehow picture you looking like that
Wow Cammy, you’re cute! And I thought sexual exploitation weekend was over. Just kidding. :-)
Most GM cars. I’m going to argue like Paul’s old station manager that GM cars are still all about what you check off on the options sheet.
Impala, get the 3.9 and the LTZ package and it’s a good big car. Malibu, better get the V6 but avoid the leather interior cause it feels like sitting on vinyl instead of cowhide. Buick, the new one’s are handsome and the up-level interiors will make you forget it’s supposed to be a “grandma car.” I mean considering that you’ll never pay full sticker for a GM vehicle, and the engine/transmissions are pretty solid. What’s not to like? (OK if you’re one of those people who has to have a new vehicle every few years then resale value sucks.)
I also think Hyundai’s underrated but only by the B&B.
The problem with the Impala is it’s a victim of GM’s typical greed. To make the Impala halfway livable, it needs the 3.9L, but you have to pony up another $4-5K for the LTZ to get it. At the Impala LTZ price-point, there are too many other, better choices.
If GM would just make the 3.9L available in the LS or even LT Impala as an option for a reasonable price (say, $1k), it’d easily qualify as underrated (and they’d sell a lot more of them).
@rudiger:
+1.
The 3900 should be standard in the Impala. Or, they could have done like the Grand Prix/Lacrosse and soldiered on with the 3800-SIII as the standard engine. The 3500 is major disappointment in the torque department, and is suitable only for rental cars.
I think the 3500 is okay as a base engine in the Impala. They’re a great bargain used, especially now that stability control is standard (2010).
GM’s after-sale support leaves a lot to be desired, though.
Suzuki SX4, largely because Americans who aren’t prone to reading TTAC don’t know that the SX4 is a “real” Suzuki (or that a “real” Suzuki is a good thing).
But the SX4 is a Fiat Sedici .Designed by Italdesign
Strippo > I agree! How many cars of that size/price give you full lock 4 wheel? I’m in SW Ontario (snowbelt) the X-4 just laughs at full-sized storms.
They are, except for minor fit/finish stuff, very well made. I don’t own one but I know 2, unknown to each other, who praise them with almost identical enthusiasm.
We’ve run quite a few of the 2008 and 2010 SX4’s in our fleet, pretty good driving cars. The steering is the best in class hands down. Visibility is also another strong suit along with interior room. Lack of a standard MP3 jack is peculiar. Also the 2008 sedans we had didn’t come with folding rear seats.
Reliability was pretty much fine except for a few sensors, namely the passenger seat airbag sensor which is $2k+ to fix through a dealer! I would place them not at Honda/Toyota quality but more like Mazda/Hyundai.
Yes, let’s not forget that Saab isn’t the only small, import car company that GM almost destroyed! North American buyers stayed away from Daewoo models in droves, but rebadging them as Suzuki models (Nubira as Reno/Forenza and Leganza as Verona) would somehow fix everything!?!? Instead, Suzuki became the 3rd place (out of only 3) Korean car company and made KIA not seem so bad in comparison!
Prior to the SX4, there was another underrated ‘real’ Suzuki (engineered and manufactured in Japan)- the Aerio sedan and wagon. When I used to travel for work all the time, I grew rather fond of the wonky-looking Aerio and requested it whenever one was in stock. The build quality, handling and beefy 2.3L 155hp engine were all pleasant surprises that weren’t available for the same price anywhere else..,.but it never sold is signficant numbers and never got the praise it deserved….the SX4 has all the virtues of the Aerio, but seems to be suffering the same fate…
Chevy Malibu and most Buicks
First generation Subaru Outbacks.
The first generation Outback (1997-1999) when equipped with a manual transmission was great fun to drive. The twin-cam 2.5 liter flat four made 165 horsepower in a car that weighed a little over 3100 pounds and while not fast, could easily get out of its own way. Handling was surprisingly good for something with 7 plus inches of ground clearance riding on 205/70-15 tires.
Once the pesky issue with blowing head gaskets was resolved (with an updated head gasket that was barely ever prone to blowing) the car was extremely reliable, to boot. I drove mine for 4.5 years and had no problems beyond normal consumables (brakes, tires, timing belt, etc).
I like the regular Legacy version of aforementioned car which is why I bought a decked out Legacy LSi wagon, complete with leather and a sunroof (and a bum headgasket) for a cool grand and rebuilt the engine for a few hundred bucks.
I give up a bit of ground clearance over the Outback, but it sure handles nicely for a wagon.
I have the sedan, and despite a little oil problem chronicled in Piston Slap it is fantastic. I paid well under 20k out the door, it is fun with stick, the pedals are arranged properly, and it handles great.
Our 1998 is a Legacy GT wagon. It has the same engine as the Outback, but is lower and has 16inch wheels. It is still running fine after 200k miles. Oil consumption is a quart between oil changes every 3,750 miles. Reliability hasn’t been as good as that of the Honda Civic it replaced. In addition to head gaskets, we have had to replace the AC condenser, ABS computer, rear differential and front brake calipers. Transmission and clutch are original.
That’s a tall order Cammy. It’s always much easier to be negative than positive.
In Brazil? The first Ford Ka, event hough mine was a lemon. Good city car, fun to drive on roads. Shunned in Brazil for the style (it never caught on here like in Europe, they even painted the bumpers and changed the back a little, helped but not much) and lack of space. In Brazil, even this size must be a family car (carry 5, space for luggage). The car didn’t offer that (it wasn’t meant to).
Fiat Uno (old one). When Fiat launched it in 1983, it didn’t go down well. It took at least 10 years for the market to realize how good the car was and how well it served people’s needs. After that it took off.
Since I didn’t answer your overrated post, here goes. VW Gol. Hard, sterile, dark. Dynamics of a tank. Expensive for what it offers. Reliability and re-sale price very overrated (people get a shock when they face the reality).
You all have a nce Sunday!
+1 on the KA. I bought the last year of the first generation (2008) and it was a stonking little car. Basic, easy on the eye and although it wasn’t fast, the handling was fantastic. Blasting down English country lanes at 60-70mph, hand brake turns in the tiniest of places… lovely little beasty. Just a shame they don’t sell it Canada where I live now.
My beloved Mazda RX-8. Derided by the “magazine racers” who can’t see beyond printed specifications. A throwback to when a car was much more than the sum of it’s numbers.
It’s certainly not a car for everybody, but it’s a car for a lot more people than have given it a chance.
(Whoops — This should have been posted to the Mazda6 comment, not the RX-8. I do agree though, the RX-8 is a helluva performance car!)
+1. You beat me to it.
My 2006 is more fun to drive than any five Camrys or Accords. And it positively whips any current Government Motors sedan.
There is no better tell than a person’s opinion of the RX-8.
I’ll take that as a complement. Especially coming from you.
Another vote for the RX-8. The big problem is that people dismiss the car outright based largely on misinformation. They moan about oil consumption as if it is a design flaw and has to be topped up weekly. I’ve added oil to my car fewer times than washer fluid. The rotary engine is deemed to be unreliable when statistics don’t entirely bear that out (although proper maintenance is arguably more important than for piston engines). The RX-8 is beaten off the line by a Camry, sure…but the car is still plenty fast when you want it to be, and feels like buttah doing so. Plus, it fits passengers and baby seats and groceries and hockey equipment almost as well as a small sport sedan.
Audi A4.
People think of it as expensive car, marketed as premium to the rich. They ignore its actual reality.
Its a strong fast durable quiet car with that nice AWD system down there. And its not very expensive.
A stripped A4 is in price range of chevy and ford (and stripped it still has too many features).
Many people thinking in the low to mid 20s should raise their sights a bit. Don’t go paying 49k for one though, get it for 30k (without the V6 and without the home entertainment system).
I agree that the A4 is an excellent car. Beautiful interior. I don’t think they offer the V6 in the US anymore. The 2.0T is a great engine, but if you start ticking the option boxes, a car in the mid-to-high $30s really ought to have more power.
It’s quick, beautiful, comfortable, and according to informedforlife.org, pretty much the safest car you can get….but durable? While Audis initial quality has improved greatly, long-term durability has tended to be pretty bad.
Unfortunatley, you can only get the wagon with quite a few options…starting around mid-30s.
The older style was based on the Passat, making the value-quotient not so great.
I liked the 2.0T when I drove it, but Audi needs to step up their game. The new 2.0 turbo DI from Hyundai makes about 30% more power, a bit more torque, is more efficient, and does it on regular 87 octane. Audi is supposed to be a premium car. They need to make sure they don’t get their butts handed to them, engineering wise, by Hyundai.
A long time back, maybe around 1990??, I had a Toyota Camry V6 wagon with the big butt rear that later was adopted by Mercedes and others (to my great surprise). That car was super smooth, reasonably quick, had a beautiful interior for its segment, and never gave a bit of trouble. And it was roomy front and back. I still see a few around, and they look remarkably contemporary. I wouldn’t be the least unhappy having a brand new one of those again. A very underappreciated car.
The Rover 75. When launched people judged it almost entirely by it’s retro looks, which for many didn’t appeal. But it was extremely well built, to BMW standards and it was full of quality. The V6 K series engine proved reliable and the BMW diesel version was superb. When Rover was sold off the car got cheaper but the quality (in the first few years at least) got even better.
It’s just the car was not fashionable. A shame really because it was an interesting car, unlike some of these bland cars we currently see.
The Rover 75 Tourer (pre-facelift) was one of the best -looking cars built, especially for an Estate (station wagon). The retro theme was beautifully executed, and even today looks good, unlike the Jaguar S-type which became quickly dated.
I live in Canada, and I always regretted that I could never buy one.
johny ro: Couldn’t agree more with you. I have a 2009 A4, and though mine has some options, I’d probably enjoy the car just as much with none. At that price point, you’re talking well-equipped Accords and Camrys. Unless you need a family hauler, to me it’s no contest.
Apparantly the Mazda 6 doesn’t sell. Its way more stylish and fun to drive than its competitors. In 4cyl 6spd manual base form, its a bargain and fun to drive. I’ll be sad when the North American market succumbs entirely to the Camry/Accord poofmobiles. There aren’t to many large practical “drivers cars” available to blue collar folk like myself.
+1. You beat me to it.
My 2006 6S is more fun to drive than any five Camrys or Accords. And it positively whips any current (and likely future) Government Motors (by which, of course, I mean Opel/Daewoo) sedan on any practical measure.
+1 on the Mazda 6. my buddy needed a new car, got him a couple year old first generation 6, four cylinder, stick shift, basic car but a hoot to drive. He loves it. Saving up his money for a Mazdaspeed version (and hoping they make one of the current 6).
Another one here in Brazil. In fact there’s a review of it on TTAC, in which I said how underrated it was.
The Renault Logan.
Cheaper and roomier than the Fiat Siena and VW Voyage, though these last 2 have better styling. It’s more expensive than the Chevy Corsa Classic Sedan, but GM’s baby is horrid to drive. Not to mention it’s the worst of them all in internal space, luggage capacity and it’s not much to look at, either.
“Or that the Corolla’s handling isn’t as bad as others think?”
It’s still better than the Elantra and Nissan Sentra, which isn’t saying much. The older models weren’t really bad at all. I had a 2001 which handled better than a Honda Civic of the same year. It had one of the better engines in the class too.
I had one for a rental while my 03 Civic EX was having accident damage repaired. It was a great car, but a real snoozer. I would never own one. When my civic was rear ended again they gave me a Cavalier. As much as I disliked the Corolla at the time, it was an Audi compared to the Cavalier. A sportier interior in the Corolla would make it truly a great economy car.
Yeah, but the 2001 Civic and Corolla were, in base trim, pretty poor cars by their respective manufacturer’s standards. Both were the spawn of a serious de-contenting binge.
Impala and Mazda 6.
This is simple:
Chevrolet Impala.
– It may be old school just like the 1980s Caprice and 1990s Caprice before it.
– It may be an embarrassment to General Motors.
– It may not be sexy – although the minor exterior tweaks in 2010 have certainly helped.
But no where else can you achieve a higher value – utility – durability factor.
Chevrolet Impala is the car that I would recommend to my working class brother-in-law or to a single parent colleague.
For those who don’t agree, simply go to a dealership and drive one. You’ll walk away impressed.
Oh yeah The Impala is the best bang for your buck,bar none. Educator Dan is right,you should go with the LTZ and leather.
Carefully detailed the Impala with the 18″ wheels can look pretty good. If I really want it to stand out, I park beside a Camry.
1990-94 Subaru Legacy. The 2.2 is overbuilt with five main bearings and a non interference engine. AWD, ABS, and driver airbag. A hoot in the snow, utility of a wagon. The sedan with a stick is light and very fun to drive. Parts are a dime a dozen, and mine has 250K on the clock. Mikey Likes it.
Well, since just about every other Subaru Legacy has been mentioned, I’ll throw in the 05-09. It looked good, drove well, had a nice interior and in GT form, it was as close to a bona fide sport sedan as you can get for under 40 grand. It was not only faster than the contemporary WRX, but MUCH nicer and hardly more expensive.
Also, if you got some goodies, you could easily be looking at 400WHP reliably.
I guess we could just say “Subaru Legacy, pre-10 model year.”
I have an ’05 Outback which is a great car. But I’m not sure I’d call these “underrated.” As far as I can tell, these are pretty well-regarded, and I see them all over the place here in Colorado. For that matter, the same can be said of the previous-generation Legacy/Outback.
Hyundai Elantra Touring / i30cw.
My first Hyundai, after Mazda 626, Honda CR-V, Honda Accord, Toyota Prius. A real eye-opener as to not just what Hyundai can do, but what compact cars can do. Smaller than the Elantra sedan on the outside but more room on the inside than the Accord. The same cargo capacity as the CR-V with seats down. 35mpg highway real-world, a fact reviewers never seem to realize because they don’t drive the review units enough and just use the EPA estimates. In carbon units per mile 35mpg is pretty much equivalent to the often-touted Jetta Sportwagen TDI. Much much better than the Fit, well known as a well crafted econo-car, the i30cw being bigger, more refined, beautifully styled on the outside, not embarrassing to look at on the inside, with more safety features like ESC, and the same price after incentives. Underrated even by its manufacturer, who refuses to run any advertising of any sort for it, calculating that they can get more bang for their advertising buck on the Tuscon, despite its much worse real-life mileage and smaller cargo space, simply because it’s bigger on the outside and most people don’t take the time to look beyond that. Even underrated by the NHTSA crash test ratings, which were inappropriately copied over from the already decent Elantra sedan, which has a completely different frame. Actual i30cw testing in Australia and Europe got top scores all around.
2004-2007 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart. The Evo gets all of the attention, but the Ralliart was much cheaper and also quite fun to drive. Same ultra-cheap interior, unfortunately. They also offered a wagon version, but it wasn’t attractive and wasn’t available with a manual. Should be cheap as a used car, because Mitsubishi has fallen off the radar.
Absolutely disagree with the Sportback being “unattractive.” The sedan of that generation has always been plagued with ungainly proportioning, strange profile, and an absolutely disgusting rear end view (even when rounded off in later years), something the wagon’s styling somehow avoids…or at least ameliorates. And the full height jeweled taillamps are surprisingly gorgeous.
Little known fact – even the base Sportbacks have virtually the same output as Ralliarts (160hp), so its a sleeper of sorts, especially in white. Plus, they made them for only 04-05, so good luck finding one.
I bought one at the auction to retail on our lot and loved driving it – great mileage, lots of room, and perhaps the worst interior this side of a Rio, but a great bargain for a sport-biased utility vehicle. Probably the only Mitsu outside of a 3000GT I could stand as well.
Underrated? Along the lines of what johnny ro posted about the Audi A4, a surprising number of affordable family sedans equipped with the base engine. Not necessarily these specific models, but in the U.S. I’m thinking in the class of Camry, Accord, Altima, Mazda 6, Malibu, Fusion, etc.
A lesser engine may give up some torque, but it’s often offset by better handling, probably due to less weight on the front wheels and sometimes less unsprung weight (if wheels and tires are smaller). And brake effectiveness seems superior in those cases where the brake size is the same across the model range,
Yeah. My daily driver is a bare bones 4cyl 2003 Camry. It came new with a mediocre set of “T” series tires. Replacing them later with a decent set of “H” series tires made a huge difference in the handling and stability of the car.
Subaru Legacy and Forester. Maybe the not the cheapest to buy, but generally very reliable, pleasant to drive, safe, and great on snow and ice, if fitted with proper tires. Whatever one thinks of the styling of present models, engineering, that is design and execution, is strong. Subaru’s slogan, “Inexpensive and built to stay that way,” was right on target.
I’m glad everybody like their Subarus, but isn’t this thread supposed to be about UNDERrated cars? The Subarus are always highly rated by reviewers and consumers alike.
While I like (and am surprised by) the many GM-related answers, I have to pour one out for my homey: the Dodge Viper.
There is an endless parade of people who have never driven anything more powerful than, say, a minivan who will tell you authoritatively that it has “too much” power or doesn’t brake well or will spin out of control if you look at it funny, or any number of other sour-grapes assertions. The fact is that handling is excellent if you actually know how to drive (e.g. you don’t get nervous if you can’t find four kinds of traction control lights on the dash), and it is exactly what it was meant to be: a late-80s/early-90s race car with a VIN.
And don’t even get me started on the Porsche-owning Whine & Cheese set, or the cone-dodging ricers (whaaa, Sebring’s back straightaway is too long), or any number of other performance car enthusiasts who really ought to know better. But it isn’t their fault, really. Half of them couldn’t define heel-toe braking if their lives depended on it, and the other half are simply regurgitating what they’ve read.
But for nearly two decades, around 1,500 people each year happily laid out a relatively modest amount of cash and took delivery of what amounts to one of the most interesting, fun, capable and above all, underrated cars in automotive history…
Well said sir.
“LOL That interior on a 90k car?” Note to morons who say these sort of things about the Viper: when using the car for its intended purpose, you should have zero time or spare attention to focus on the interior.
The most lethal street-legal race car America ever made. May it rest in peace, and here’s to hoping Chrysler doesn’t neuter it in whatever the next incarnation is.
Again, I’m not sure about “underrated.” The press gushed about these, many months before their introduction, and they are well-regarded on the track as well. These beasts were the stuff of dreams for many a teenager (myself included, at the time). I suppose “underrated” could be interpreted as “met a premature demise,” and I’d agree with you there.
I’ll take the Jeep Patriot.
It is usually lumped in with its terrible siblings- Compass and Caliber- but the Patriot actually looks like a Jeep, gets okay gas mileage, and I can’t think of a CUV for sale in North America right now that matches its available off-road ability.
Disagree. Had one as a rental from Enterprise (after getting a Compass the week before) in New Jersey. What a hunk of junk. If it can go offroad, fine, but just like 95% of other CUVs / SUVs, it won’t.
I agree with Rover 75.
For new cars:
Hyundai I20
Hyundai I30
Citroen C5
Volvo S80
Oddly enough I was having a conversation a few days ago with someone about this same topic, and my personal car came up.
You see, I have a Chevrolet HHR, or as I call it, the Heritage. When I decided to look at these, I was still having problems from a leg injury that made it hard for me to get around (still is, but not like it was), and I remember being first surprised at how easy it was to get in and out of it. Secondly, for such a small car, it can hold a lot of stuff. An eight foot ladder would not be a problem for it as both the back seat and the front passenger seat folds down flat. Due to the aforementioned leg injury carrying bulky items can be a challenge at times, so it’s not uncommon to see my old Radio Flyer sitting in the back of the car, waiting to help me move things. Yes, I can fit my wagon in my wagon!
Now, one thing to keep in mind, the lower level HHR’s, while roomy and practical, are nothing like the top range models. When I bought mine, I went for the 2LT, which is really an LTZ. From heated leather seats to the power everything to the wonderful sounding stereo, it just feels like a higher class of car. It’s a decent handler, and has no problem breaking the 30 mpg mark on long trips. I once drove from Erwin, TN to Chambersburg, PA on one tank of gas! On the reliability front, I have had very few problems with the car, and even with over 70k on the clock, it still feels as solid as ever. Say what you want about the styling and car’s Cobalt origins, but it’s a heck of a car.
Ironically, I’m trying like crazy to sell it, because I am inheriting a car from my grandparents in a couple of weeks…
New Skoda Superb in Europe. Especially Wagon, which is better looking and more practical than sedan. Huge space – more rear leg room than S-class. Wagon has huge cargo capacity. Wagon is well designed, handsome car. Best VW-Audi technology. Suspension, engines, gearboxes. 1.4TSI, 1.8TSI, 2.0TDI, 1.9TDI, 2.0TSI, 7-speed DSG, optional awd. Audi-level interior quality and ergonomics. Good VW-level handling. Best part – prices. The car is dead cheap. Similar equipment and engine-geatrbox configuration – Super is at the same level with Golf. But you will get twice the size car.
I would nominate my CX 9. It has only had one problem in the two years I have owned it (rear door lock) everything else has been excellent. I have driven pretty much everything in its class and it to me is unappreciated by the buying masses. It is markedly better than the Highlander or the Chevy and doesn’t sell in very good numbers at all. My only gripe with it is the fuel economy.
Of current cars:
1) Chevrolet Impala in LT or LTZ trim – these cars are not as awful as portrayed, they offer tremendous value bang for the buck, do yeoman duty as police cars and taxis in some of the toughest places in the United States, and have near bulletproof reliability. They aren’t a Honda Accord (to compare fullsize to fullsize) but they aren’t as bad as portrayed.
2) Mazda RX-8. Fine. It is getting dated. Fine. It’s two-rotor engine sucks gas like a college freshman on a three day holiday weekend bender. Fine. Where is the torque. It still has amazing utility, its handling remains phenomenal, the looks are still current, and it is a package of wrapped up fun that can be had for under $30,000.
3) Ford Focus. See Chevy Impala above. No, the Ford Focus isn’t all that good looking and it is dated and much better version is coming next year, but Ford has built a darn reliable car in the class, it isn’t as bad as people say.
4) Toyota Matrix. Fine. Its a glorified Toyota Corolla and I could write a screed all day long on everything wrong with the Toyota Corolla. But this takes the maligned Corolla and amps up its practicality on steroids. Better rear seat room and head room, the practicality of a hatchback, AWD if you’re really that afraid of the snow, and it doesn’t look all that bad in a hey I kind of whisper prior generation Mazda3 hatchback if you’ve had a few too many beers. Faint praise you say? I say the Matrix has always been understood, case in point, when Pontiac was alive it even lived in the shadow of the Vibe, which was the better purchase prior to Pontiac getting shot in the head due to deeper incentives couple with ironically better resale value than its ignored Canadian built Matrix twin (urban legend number 4,569: the Matrix and Vibe were built side-by-side at NUMMI – wrong!)
5) Porsche Cayenne. I don’t understand the hatred of this SUV at all. Fine, it is an SUV made by Porsche, I GET it. But I’ve spent time at the track and driver skills days, these SUVs are deserving of the Porsche name, they accelerate incredibly, they brake effectively, and the handling is better than most cars on the road, even cars in the same price range. With the new Porsche Cayenne hybrid giving you 380HP, going 40 miles on 100% electricity at speeds up to 97 MPH, 0 to 60 in 6.0 flat, and the utility of a Porsche wrapped in a package cheaper than the projected $75K price of the Tesla Model S (if ever built) – bah – freakin’ haters you don’t get it.
Defunct Cars:
1) Pontiac Aztek. What? Am I high? I am not here to defend the exterior. It is indefensible. But anyone who has sat in an Aztek would know that it is a fabulous case study in ergonomics and usability. There were a ton of great ideas on the inside wrapped up in a butt ugly package on the inside. Aztek owners are a darn loyal bunch and do some searches on Craig’s List for how much they sell for. Many of the firsts in the interior of the Aztek are now found in many other CUV/SUV offerings.
2) Toyota Solara. What isn’t it? Well it isn’t a sports car, as Toyota weakly tried to position it given the lack of anything sporting in its line up. What is it. A darn good looking Camry coupe that had more external appeal than the bread and butter sedan with all of the Toyota bits (both good and bad) included. Maligned as gay, a woman’s car, emasculating. What is more emasculating, a four-door Camry in beige or a two-door coupe in beige. Game, set, match.
3) General Motors First Generation U-Body Minivans: Yes. The Dustbuster™ minivans. They were the first vans to offer a power sliding door (and the technology is now licensed by every minivan making company except Chrysler). Sure, the plastic body panels are ill fitting but they never rust. The Generation I 3.8L V8 under the hood bows at the altar of torque, and the 4-speed auto it was attached to was incredibly reliable (especially compared to the horrid Dodge/Chrysler trannys attached to even worse Mitsubishi engines). Ugly? What, and the mid-engine Toyota “van” was attractive??? Or the Leggs Egg™ offering that followed??? You can find more of these on the road than the 3.4L head gasket self-destructing models that replaced the dust busters in 1997.
4) 1983 – 1987 Ford Tempo: Is the Ford Tempo a great or legendary car. Nope. But here is what is lost on Ford’s bread and butter 2.3L powered push rod coupe/sedan. Look at the utterly craptastic Detroit pieces of iron they replaced. This was like going from semi-spoiled chud packed industrial hamburger to a nice supermarket grade sirloin steak on sale. They were under powered, undeniable, and the Ford 3-speed auto only emphasized that. But give it a 5-speed manual and it was actually fun to drive and it handled well, especially when you consider how darn nose heavy it was. In the rain and snow it was a pleasure to drive. The refresh in 1988 just wasn’t enough to address the growing issues.
5) Saturn Aura: I had a Saturn Aura as a rental car. It was a stripper model, only had one small option (floor mats I think) and otherwise was the $20,000 out of the wrapper version. The 3.5L GM V6 under the hood gave me 40 MPG on the highway. It rode firmly, the handling was solid, the steering was acceptable, it even had ambient lighting. As I drove this for a week I became increasingly impressed with the level content, the build quality, the price, and the GM 3.5L (which in itself is a maligned engine) that, despite being noisy and gets asthmatic when pushed hard, had gobs of torque and absolutely sipped gas.
Agree re: the Focus. My ’05 wagon has almost 109,000 miles on it, and I haven’t had to make a single major repair. Add to that wagon (or hatchback) utility, and decent handling on the older ones, and it’s hard to find much fault with the car. Too bad Ford won’t have the wagon on offer when the new model appears.
The Saturn Aura is basically an Opel Vectra. So it has some German engineering in that ride and handling you liked.
If GM had not deep 6’d Saturn, the new Opel Insignia would be the 2001 Aura.
I meant the new Opel Insignia would have been the 2011 Saturn Aura.
Gee…My wife and I actually liked the Aztek when it first came out. For a converted minivan, you couldn’t do better, and with the cladding, makes it easy to keep clean. But I liked the AMC PAcer as well when it came out. All about design and being different.
+1 on the Tempo. I leased an ’85 GL Sport HSO, in a sumptuous blue metallic, as my first new car out of college. I put 60k miles on that little gem, with nary a problem and it still looked new on the day I turned it back in. Once they made FI standard, instead of the 1 bbl carburetor, (as in the early models), the car performed reliably and while not terribly hoonable, when equipped with the right wheel/tire combo, it was quick & responsive. (An emergency trip between Kalamazoo and Mount Pleasant occasioned by the near-demise of a brother-in-law in a car accident, in which average speed exceeded triple digits, is a particularly impressive if not fond memory.) If Ford had put the resources into continuing the momentum on that vehicle (which, arguably, they didn’t have as they were pouring all their available cash in the late 1980’s into the Taurus, the F150 and a new Mustang) they might have developed the marque into a well-placed-for-the-market intermediate, which might have resulted a brand with significant equity…..I always remember that car fondly, though I am an Audi owner now.
The Solara is a good mention. I would specifically mention the convertible: if you have no sporting intentions, it’s a great car to appreciate scenery and weather in. On a nice fall day you can drop the top, crank the footwell heaters and go on and on and on.
How about we have section for which cars are overrated, I could have a lot longer list for that one.
It’s much easier (and more fun) to be negative, isn’t it?
Any of the VW TDI’s. The infamous unreliability that’s so often posted here and elsewhere doesn’t apply to the diesels particularily the electrical and engine issues of the gassers. Tarred by the same brush for different vehicles. These are reliable, powerful and economic on platforms that are a step above the same types of vehicles in their price bracket.
Honda CR-V. It doesn’t do anything wrong. 85 mph and 25 mpg all day long, then over the mountains through a snowstorm; it just will not let you down.
I want to brag about my 09 Ford Escape. It is reliable, comfortbale, rugged and quiet. Ford has hit the sweet spot with these.
I think the new Mazda3 is getting unfairly panned because of its unconventional styling. I drove one, and compared to the other coma-inducing slow-mobiles I’ve had to borrow from time to time, it was delightful.
Yes, I own a Mazda, which biases me slightly. But seriously. Other new small sedans are like boring, forgettable, superficial women, whereas the new Mazda3 is like the cute, slightly nerdy girl with glasses who makes you laugh.
With a few exceptions (RX-7, Miata), Mazda, as a company, seems to get the least respect with its products the most underrated. The latest Mazda3 was generally considered the class leader until Mazda, for whatever bizarre reason, descided to start slapping the Joker-grin grille on everything.
Another recent example was the last gen MPV minivan. It was sized ‘just right’ with dimensions similiar to the original 1983 Chrysler. When Mazda gave it the 3.0L in it’s third year, it was a well-packaged, useful vehicle that didn’t handle like a van and had great features (‘magic’ rear seat and roll-down sliding door windows), but it still didn’t sell.
Strippo October 3rd, 2010 at 9:48 am:
Suzuki SX4, largely because Americans who aren’t prone to reading TTAC don’t know that the SX4 is a “real” Suzuki (or that a “real” Suzuki is a good thing).
Reply: Flipper October 3rd, 2010 at 2:49 pm :
But the SX4 is a Fiat Sedici .Designed by Italdesign
Paul Niedermeyer January 10th, 2007 at 2:35 pm:
The Sedici is a badge engineered Suzuki. Suzuki engineered this vehicle; Fiat needed something like this, and the two cooperated, but it’s Suzuki’s doing. This is quite common in Europe, especially.
Personally, I think the Grand Vitara is underrated. Because it’s always compared to things it’s substantially different from, such as the other cuv’s and larger suv’s. The only fair direct comparison would be with the off-road version of the Patriot.
Citroen C6 – an absolutely wonderful alternative to the countless 5-series, E-classes and A6s
Renault Avantime
I would agree with the folks who mentioned the Epsilon body GM’s; Pontiac G6, Chevy Malibu and Saturn Aura. There’s a misconception about the Aura, the Epsilon chassis and the body styling is similar to the Opel models, but the Aura never was a USDM Opel Vectra.
I’m on my second GM epsilon body (Pontiac G6), this time with the Ecotec and the 6 speed autobox. We’d had the earlier “ugly” Malibu Maxx with the 3.5 and 4 speed automatic, it would inhale miles of interstate fully loaded with the air on and get 30+ MPG. Complain about the 3.5 all you want, it was a quantum leap ahead of it’s 3.4 predecessor in reliabilty, and plenty of grunt, too.
I’ve been enjoying the Ecotec and six speed in the G6, if you row the shifter manually, the Eco really spins up well. They apparently did a lot of work on isolating the Ecotec in the G6, it gets down the road nicely and smoothly. We get slightly higher mileage than the V6 Malibu, (+/- 10% more). It handles well already, and I think it will handle better as soon as I can grind off the factory Firestones and get some H-rated BFG’s on it.
I buy my cars for the long haul, so I don’t worry so much about resale value. With the discounts and new car interest rates I got last year, it was too good of a deal to pass up.
Okay, here comes the rage…………..
My Gen III Prius (2010 for you anti-hybrid “enthusiasts”!)
Room for 5, 55 MPG (calculated through 10K miles), great cargo room, average acceleration for a mid size with a four banger, and a reliable history to boot. Oh sorry, it doesn’t handle like my old MKV GTI, but you can’t have it all.
But wait, it isn’t a real car for enthusiasts…………………guess I just don’t get it.
I don’t get the love affair a lot of people here have with the Impala (although I’m sure plenty of them feel the same way about my feelings towards the Panthers). I’ve only driven the base models as rental cars, and they are as boring as a toyota camry (another car that along with its Corolla brethren I consider highly overrated), only not as well made and not as quiet or smooth. I hear people singing the praises of the 3.9, but sorry I don’t see how a large displacement OHV v-6 is ever gonna match the refinement of the competitions OHC units. and going a trim level up wont fix the mushy suspension, lifeless steering, anonymous badge engineered styling, and grainy engine. I’m sorry but it just reminds me of everything that has been wrong with GM. the 4 cylinder Malibu on the other hand, definitely qualifies as underrated.
I’d add the LX platform Chryslers to the mix – whenever I drive one of those as a rental I begin to think that this may be my next car. Also nominate the Kia Rio, which as cheap cars go, is one of the only ones I could actually picture myself being ok with owning. Let’s see, already talked about the Mazda 6, I’ll throw in Pontiac GTO, and my personal ride, the first generation Infiniti I30. Ride and handling are a little mushy but the most brilliant tranmission/engine combination you’ve met, and unbelievably reliable and durable. We’re at 225k very abusive miles and counting.
I hear people singing the praises of the 3.9, but sorry I don’t see how a large displacement OHV v-6 is ever gonna match the refinement of the competitions OHC units.
In many cases, they won’t. Even though the 3900 is hardly a failure in the refinement department.
However, if you want to live life under 4500RPM, and be nearly always in the good part of your engine’s powerband, I can’t think of a better thing to buy than one of GM’s large displacement OHV V6s.
Well, other than a V8 or diesel.
Late 90’s Cadillac Sedan deVille d’Elegance: the best ride quality of any car I’ve ridden in that’s made after 1990; it’s even better than an air suspension S550. Just don’t ask it to turn.
Lexus LS430. It has a few superlatives, but it’s the only car I’m aware of so far with no audible exhaust noise inside the cabin, even red-lined at full throttle.
2004-06 Kia Amanti, 2000-05 Chevrolet Impala, 2003-04 Infiniti M45 for being under appreciated by the general public.
The ’92-’94 5-speed SHO, except for the lousy throw-out bearings.
In what way was this car underrated? I owned one for 10 years and liked it, obviously. However, if anything it was overrated. It was a pretty good car with a great engine. The brakes were borderline, and the body was a little flexible.
One extremely underrated car is the one that is paid off…
+1 Wow, is that ever true.
Buzzdog, you nailed that one!
1. The Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth minivans. Everyone complains about their transmissions, but I didn’t have much trouble with mine (96, 98).
2. 06+ Kia Sedona. While Honda and Toyota get most of the press these days, Kia’s product is just as capable for a lot less money, unless you insist on AWD and reclining captain’s chairs. My 09 Sedona is a terrific vehicle, and an excellent used car value.
French cars
You are very brave.
Buick Park Avenue. Pick any generation, any model, especially an Ultra. Does everything you want with unbelievable grace and style. Park a ’91 in front of a Hyatt Regency and it would still dress up the place.
I also have a soft spot for the LaCrosse Super. Smacks of what Old GM always did when something wasn’t quite right – shove a V8 in it and make everything standard. Plus, its a sleeper.
Also, the Olds Aurora – both generations.
There are several cars which are obviously underrated by consumers based on their sales figures (or lack thereof)-
2010 Mazda6
2010 Kia Optima
2010 Suzuki Kizashi
2010 Suzuki SX4
Hyundai Genesis Coupe: Rave reviews but sales figures tell a different story when compared to its competition. Love flinging it around corners!
Sigh, I think most cars are overrated. And that is coming from someone who drives all types on a day to day basis. Among some groups of people I think the later model Boxster is underrated, really in a class of its own.
IMS anybody?
Hence my later model comment.
The Boxster is and has been a top-rated sports car for years, according to numerous publications. Even the “flawed” ones with the infamous IMS. But yes, these have been IMS-less since the 2009 MY.
Chevy Impala. For some reason it takes a lot of heat, but as I’ve stated before, you get a lot of metal for the buck plus good fuel economy. A good all-around vehicle, I don’t care what the so-called “experts” say. This is a car normal people drive in normal conditions – sitting in rush hour traffic! Might as well be comfortable. I want a new one.
It’s rated the way it is due to the fact of how old school it is. It’s not necessarily an unreliable car and I find the front seats quite comfortable but it’s the last of the old school feeling American cars…of course which some people do like.
1986-1989 Toyota Celicas were the best years for that model . Spacious stretchout roomy interior , decent handling , many options including a real tilt wheel – not the moving steering columns you see today , decent selection of color combos , great fuel economy and looks . 1988-89 had the 200 horsepower All Trac Turbo , but my favorite was the 5 speed 86 GT coupe I had . Only 97 horsepower from the 8 valve 2 liter , but it could chirp the tires going into second and from 3k rpm on it charged like a raped ape towards redline all the while delivering a steady 30mpg – the classic example of a car feeling faster than it actually was . Unfortunately like all Japanese cars from that era they rusted out badly and while holding up quite nicely in that regard , mine was rear ended while stopped to make a left turn by someone looking down to light a cigarette . Instead of adding a couple of hundred to the insurance money to get it fixed I figured at 12 years old and 130k miles it was time to upgrade . Big mistake , since the 92 Celica GTS I replaced it with was heavy, underpowered , slow , and only got 22-24 mpg .
On the Celica theme, the 2000-2005 was another winner: small, light, great steering, great driving position, could be revved into the stratosphere. A better Integra than the Integra.
Didn’t get any love, though, as the whole segment was dying at the time.
I wanted one of those Celicas , but it was too cramped for me and I ended up with a Matrix . To some extent I think the manufacturers kill their own sales of a model by not changing it over a 6 year run . For example a person looking for one can shell out the bucks for a brand new one or get essentially the same car a few years old at little more than half the price of a new one . Now Toyota has the Scion tC with even less interior room and awful gas mileage . The only modern car that has the interior room of my 86 Celica has the VW name on it . Not quite ready to wade into those unreliable waters , but maybe someday .
The SVT Contour. Amazing balance, a perfect 2.5L 24 valve V6, and available with three pedals only. Try not to smile as you row this car through its gears with the windows down. Ford’s Special Vehicle Team had big plans for this car, but the Contour’s US sales figures were anything but spectacular. I had to sell mine to buy a GM product for a contract job. I wish I could find a nice, low mileage example that hasn’t been hooned to death by a teenager.
American magazines derided it for the smallish back seat and plastic interior. Really?
chrysler crossfire. not that bad, and pretty fast too in srt-6 trim.
corvette. everyone likes to make fun of it, but until you’ve driven one, you have no idea what you’re talking about.
Agree with the people that said Olds Aurora, Buick Park Avenue, Suzuki SX-4, Kia Sedona, Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback, Volvo C30.
Some that I didn’t see mentioned: Kia Rondo and Mazda5 (seems to be a segment buyers don’t often think of), Mitsubishi Galant (very solid mechanicals, fugly sheetmetal, great used buy), Ford Explorer, Ford Focus (I’ve rented several, and like them better than almost any other like-sized rental car I’ve driven for the features, durability, price), Mitsubishi Diamante (I owned one, but I searched for two years for one before I found a good one – excellent features, distinctive styling, great mechanical and build quality), and shockingly the Geo Tracker (one of the best off-road vehicles you can buy short of a Wrangler, superb mechanical quality, cheap as all get out on the used market, economical, very practical to live with in 5-door form).
There are probably more, but I can’t think of any off the top of my head.
I’d also like to talk about over-rated cars for a minute, and not ones that usually get mentioned. Much as I love them, the Olds Intrigue comes to mind (press fawned over them when new, even though they really didn’t drive much better than any other W-Body, and the mechanical quality really hasn’t withstood the test of time, unlike the Aurora), the Saturn Aura and second-gen Vue (Aura had very poor build quality and cheap parts, and really wasn’t a mechanically reliable car in my rental experience, while the Vue felt good piece-by-piece when new but had disastrous reliability and basically fell apart around 10,000 miles), and I feel that the related Impala is thought of as exactly what it is (a large, cheaply made, unsophisticated vehicle with lots of old-school luxury options, with an overpriced MSRP but massive rebates and the resultant low resale), this from somebody who has driven something like five hundred different Impalas in the past 4.5 years of working in rental cars.
New mention: The outgoing Mercury Milan. Same guts as the great ’10 Fusion, but with classier sheet metal and a nice dual-tone interior. Also, it could be had in a Manual.
Also, I’ll add my vote to the Impala. I live in SoCal, and a couple of my neighbors own recent models. Living here (despite the nice weather) requires a fair amount of “hard-driving” — heavy traffic in the cities as well as long stretches of desert scrub land. You need a durable car that hauls good air, can withstand accidents, and also hit high speeds on the open road. For those inclined to big American sedans, the Impalas, Chargers, and 300s of the world fit this bill.
I’d say the v8 Taurus SHO. it was slower than the v6, but it was incredibly comfortable, and in between its slow shifts it pulled pretty hard too and sounded awesome, IMO.