Best & Worst Cars You've Personally Driven

[power_hour]

Worst = 1999 Toyota Corolla

That piece of shit scarred me to death.

Best = 1989 Mustang LX 5.0

Gas was cheap, car was pretty fast, most importantly it was invisible on the road

 

[xapo99]

Since the Corolla is a entry-level car what were you expecting?. As an A-B type of car it will probably run for 200K without any issues..

We had a Corolla E12 Compressor, it replaced a Civc Type R, it was better in every way, and in the dry handling was comparable, in the wet it would run rings round the Civic...

Toyota's are a rip off in the UK...I don't know how competitive they are in the States, but everyone just buys Kia's here now.

 

[SuperSix]

Best - Any import

Worst - any domestic car.


(Yes, I am being sarcastic)

 

[phucheneh]

Best - Any import

Worst - any domestic car.


(Yes, I am being sarcastic)

To be fair, even with the 'new' rejuvenated American auto industry (you know...except for Chrysler), I can't argue with a less severe generalization. Most of the American cars fall between 'competent' and bad. For most (jap) imports, 'competent' is the low end. Euros are wildcards.

But this is depending on how you define 'good' and 'bad.' I assume we're talking from an 'enthusiast' point of view- driving experience only. In my mind, though, I'm also thinking of price, reliability, build quality, ect. So I would generalize that for the money, you get a 'better' car with most japanese or korean models. But none of them are very fun to drive unless you start getting into their more expensive sport models (Infiniti G's, Hyundai Genesis, ect). Again, Mazda is the exception- Miatas are cheap and they also make the funnest FWD's, hands-down.

In comparison, you can get a powerful (hey, maybe even RWD) American car for not-that-much. You'll have more fun in a 20-30k Mustang that most 20-30k imports...still kinda handles like crap, though. :/

But I guess that's a bit OT/can of worms.

Really I just wanted to say that I forgot about Bimmers. I'm not a huge fan, but the sporty ones are a lot like the G37 I mentioned. The upside to the BMW's is they either have more power, or feel like it. The 300+ hp NA V6 in some G37's feels completely anemic compared to the, iirc, slightly lower-rated DI turbo I6 in the 335. That thing is a friggin' hoss.

And my butt-skidpad says the German will grip just a little longer. Steering also feels a little more precise and 'connected.'

That said, I must mention that German paddle shifts are retarded; Nissan does it right (big column-mounted paddles, up on right, down on left). For real manuals, BMW has better feeling clutches.

But yeah, for driving experience in a non-pipedream car (40-45k or less), I like the G for Japan and the 3-series for the Euros. Maybe Audi is some competition, but I've never driven a fast one. For the US...I just don't know. What has decent power, RWD, and doesn't throw handling out the window? Stock, that is. I mean, I can enjoy a Mustang stock, but to love it I'm sure I'd want some handling upgrades.

 

[mmntech]

To be fair, even with the 'new' rejuvenated American auto industry (you know...except for Chrysler), I can't argue with a less severe generalization. Most of the American cars fall between 'competent' and bad. For most (jap) imports, 'competent' is the low end. Euros are wildcards.

For the most part, Fords tend to be solid made cars and trucks. They've really upped their quality in recent years. As good as Japanese cars from my own experiences, if you factor out the MyFord Touch problems. I really dislike touch screens in cars.

GM is very hit and miss. I've found their trucks are significantly better than their cars. The trucks are built rock solid. The cars on the other hand develop of lot of quirks. Sensor problems, rattling control arms, etc.

Chrysler is... well... Chrysler. They really haven't learned why they sunk in the first place. Even though Fiat SpA owns them now, not much has changed. Cheap cars that are not built to last. I doubt the redesigned Neon/Dart is going to save them. They've got to up their game. Now I admit I do like the concept of the Fiat 500, but lord knows what long term reliability on those things is going to be like.

Japanese cars, always a solid bet. Toyota makes some very pedestrian vehicles. Honda's still the same old Honda. They'll keep running if you drive them off a cliff. Nissan has a decent lineup, as does Mazda. Mitsubishi is hit and miss and some of their designs are getting a little dated. Then again it's the same company that made a war plane without armour for the pilot.

Korean cars are steadily improving. Hyundai's has gotten a lot better since the 2011 model year. As is Kia with the 2012 model year.

German cars, BMW tend to be okay. Volkswagen and Audi still suffer the same old problems they've always had. Electrical issues, expensive to repair. Mercedes Benz has some of the best and some of the worst cars on the road. The B200 is junk and skip to page 1 for my review on the Smart Fortwo. It's really a company that expects you to pay more to get what should be standard build quality.

 

[biffpreston]

I've test driven almost every single compact car made by every major company over the last 2 and a half years. I have rigorously tested the handling of these cars as well. I can tell you that I cannot make any sort of generalization regarding road handling like saying imports are better than domestics or vice versa. I'll also be so bold as to say road handling is not a matter of personal preference. Whether or not the tires on the car respond very accurately and move right along with the turning of the steering wheel with appropriate steering feedback from tire movement is not like a different flavor of ice cream to different people. Steering feel may be a different story. For example, some people claim to like stiff steering, as in very little to no power from the steering. I am definately not one of those people. Having nice precise accurate steering was something I came to expect from the very cheapest and most inexpensive base model economy cars. Good handling did not require purchasing a fancy drivers car.

Toyota vehicles, Hyundai Vehicles and Kia Vehicles along with the Nissan Sentra and Versa are exhausting to drive after about 20 minutes on the road. Driving them is like playing a video game. It feels like there is a thick rubber band or spring connecting the steering wheel to the tires. You constantly wobble and twitch the steering wheel back and forth constantly on the road. You never feel like you have control over these cars with no steering feedback. Unfortunately that feeling of lack of control is not an illusion. I guess that just means its not a fancy drivers car right and is essentially good for the average A to B driver? Yea right. The Column Mounted electronic Steering in these cars is designed to drive like this as well. I have driven many models of these Toyotas, Nissans, hyundais and Kias with this steering. I am very familiar with these systems and the driving characteristics that they impart. They are not good basic transportation and I don't care if they last till 300k miles. Try making an emergency turn with one of these things and see if you even can. See if you even want to get back in one after youve driven one for a while. See if you don't start dreading getting into it and having to drive it again. Try driving one of these fine automobiles in heavy metropolitan area traffic. Be sure and wear a diaper.

I miss my cheap little Dodge Neon. It drove like a completely different species of car from my rolling shitbarge 2009 Toyota Corolla with Column Mounted Electronic Power steering. I forgot to mention the Neon in my best and worst cars post. I could drive my little Neon all day long all over the place and even go out in the evening without feeling exhausted from driving. The neon was an excellent handling little car compared to the wobble wheel mobile I'm currently stuck with. I never complained once about my Neon either. The car did what it was supposed to do, that is what I told it to do with the controls at hand. No illusion of control either it was clearly there. I could fight heavy metropolitan area traffic in that car and have fun doing it.

 

[nerp]

New Chryslers are not crap.

 

[Doppel]

Worst: Early/Mid 90's Saturn
Best: Nothing much. All the people I know have no damn interest in cars and buy nothing good.

 

[Lsx454rLife08]

The best car I have drove is my current vehicle it's a 2008 Chevy Corvette with the Lsx454r option from Chevy. The block puts out 800hp so I bought one from Chevy and built it! Instead of the original pistons Had to get forged pistons so that it could hold boost! I also added an Jackson Racing 75mm custom turbo which I purchased from Jackson Racing! It took me about 4 months every weekend working on the setup I was building, overall when I finally built the block from scratch the motor with the turbo was pushing 1200hp that was without the bottle. With the 150 shot nitrous express bottle it was pushing around 1300bhp and put 1200 to the wheels! I love that car it handles amazingly at the track it runs a high 6 second in a quarter mile. Surprisingly it is still street legal! Now the worst car I have ever drove was the 2014 dodge dart rallye it was soooo slow and the manual transmission gears were tooo close an it was just bad overall! The ride of it was very rough like it had rocks as springs and dampers never buy one!!

 

[JulesMaximus]

I'd like to add this to my worst list: Jeep Wrangler - this is perhaps the most miserable vehicle I've ever had the misfortune to drive. It is bouncy, loud, uncomfortable and if you are stupid enough to take the soft top off it is freaking impossible to put back on. They leak, get horrible mileage and they aren't particularly powerful. Unless all your driving is off pavement I have no idea why anyone would ever buy one of these miserable vehicles.

 

[UnklSnappy]

Worst would have to be a VW Rabbit I inherited, constant electrical problems.
Best would be without a doubt the Bentley Continental GT I had the pleasure of driving a couple times. If I ever win the lotto.

 

[DigDog]

ford focus 100hp petrol 2000, rental. the thing had maybe 60hp left, no brakes, no steering.
best = 2002 (ish) porsche boxter.

kinda unfair though. i drive bikes.
so my nominations are

worst: ducati 900ss (less power and more weight than a SV650, for twice the money)

best: ducati 748R

 

[eng2d2]

Best car

any rental cars.

My toyotas.

Worst car

Any Honda
Ford

 

[nOOky]

Best: 2009 Ferrari F430 Scuderia.
Worst: 1978 Chevy Chevette
Current: 2015 Ford Edge Sport, 2007 Kawi ZX6R
Past: 1969 Dodge Charger R/T 440-6

I normally choose imports over domestic myself, but really like the Ford, previously I had a Honda.

I'd say my best to worst for domestic: Ford, Chevy, Chrysler. For imports, Honda, Hyundai, Toyota, Nissan for imports. I wouldn't buy a Nissan just out of principle because they are so fricken' ugly and unexciting inside.

 

[JulesMaximus]

ford focus 100hp petrol 2000, rental. the thing had maybe 60hp left, no brakes, no steering.
best = 2002 (ish) porsche boxter.

kinda unfair though. i drive bikes.
so my nominations are

worst: ducati 900ss (less power and more weight than a SV650, for twice the money)

best: ducati 748R

:wub: One of my favorite Ducati motorcycles of all time (to look at or ride on a track).

For street/everyday riding you can't beat my Ducati Multistrada 1200 S. :wub::wub::wub:

 

[tweakmonkey]

Best - lotus evora s, 91 Nsx, 2011 gt3rs with 540 hp engine upgrade
Worst - 91 dodge caravan, or pretty much any suv. Not a fan.

 

[DrMrLordX]

Hell of a necro. What process brought this thread back from its 2+ year-old grave?

 

[JulesMaximus]

Hell of a necro. What process brought this thread back from its 2+ year-old grave?

Probably a google search hit on something someone posted in this thread and n00blar454rlife decided now was the time to join and comment.

 

[Childs]

I'd like to add this to my worst list: Jeep Wrangler - this is perhaps the most miserable vehicle I've ever had the misfortune to drive. It is bouncy, loud, uncomfortable and if you are stupid enough to take the soft top off it is freaking impossible to put back on. They leak, get horrible mileage and they aren't particularly powerful. Unless all your driving is off pavement I have no idea why anyone would ever buy one of these miserable vehicles.

I had an 87 Wrangler. The soft top was terrible. The plastic windows clouded over and I couldn't see out of them. The top itself eventually tore and I had no money, so I took it off an got a bikini top instead. I drove around with just the bikini for 2-3 years. Sucked when it rained. Plus, there were no locks on the doors. I couldn't leave anything in it or else it would get stolen. And mechanically, everything failed at one point or another. I used to drive by RPM and mileage to determine speed and gas levels. I still kinda do that to this day out of habit. It broke down on me at least 5 times...once on I-5 in the middle of nowhere, and of course on one of the busiest streets in the south bay during rush hour.

All that being said, it was still a cool ride.

 

[CA19100]

I had an 87 Wrangler. The soft top was terrible. The plastic windows clouded over and I couldn't see out of them.

I had an 88. I feel your pain. My "favorite" part was having to unzip the damn window and lay it on my lap to pay tolls.

I had a pull-out stereo in it because of the theft problem. Stopped for a soda at a convenience store, and somebody stole the pull-out stereo. I couldn't win! (This was before the detachable faceplate ones were a thing.)

 

[Guurn]

Best was a 1991 Nissan Sentra. It was a lot like the truck in the background of Top Gear, indestructible. Pretty necessary for someone starting out real jobs and life.

Worst was a 2005 Pontiac G6- I didn't own it, it was just a rental for a week. What a horrible car. It felt like it was designed to get you into an accident. The rear windows had no visibility and it it had no driving feel.

 

[SearchMaster]

I had an 88. I feel your pain. My "favorite" part was having to unzip the damn window and lay it on my lap to pay tolls.

I had a pull-out stereo in it because of the theft problem. Stopped for a soda at a convenience store, and somebody stole the pull-out stereo. I couldn't win! (This was before the detachable faceplate ones were a thing.)

I rode with a buddy from Tallahassee to Ft. Lauderdale (8 or 9 hours) in his '75 CJ-5 (it was ~12 years old at the time). I felt like I had been in a heavyweight boxing match when we finally arrived. That thing was brutal lol.

 

[master_shake_]

New Chryslers are not crap.

said every chrysler owner every year.

 

[IGemini]

Worst:
1995 Ford Escort LX - a friend's old car. Man, that thing is underpowered. The fact that it was a sedan made it feel like a clown car.
2009(?) Chevrolet Cobalt LT - this was a dealer CPO car I took to pick up another vehicle on a 950-mile round trip. It's a good thing I could make the seating work for me because just about everything else about the car sucked. Also, when I filled it with gas before bringing the car back, the key cylinder defect reared its head by locking into the "on" position. This was a couple years before they did the recall. It's a good thing I didn't stay anywhere for the night, I would've gotten stranded.


I hesitate to put any "best" cars. Handled a few that were fun to drive but had other major problems that balanced out the experience. I did drive a 2010 Corvette Grand Sport convertible that was pretty sweet but also had one of the worst infotainment interfaces I've ever used. Why do all this custom brand work on a premium car only to use resistive touchscreens?

 

[eng2d2]

I have to retract on my rental car statement. I have to say some are horrible. Like the chevy cruze was so uncomfortable