Quest for the Least Reliable Vehicle for MontuckyFried

[BmillsSkier]

The $500 dollar used Taurus has provided cheap freedom to thousands of teenagers over the span of a generation, standing head and shoulders above the equivalent $5000 dollar used Camry. You could get 10 cars for the price of one!

But yeah, buying one new? No fucking way.

I can absolutely appreciate the high school shitbox. I've got fond memories of many of my bud's incredibly terrible cars, from the '89 Celebrity (who named it that with a straight face?) with a 15" sub in the trunk that rattled every other gauge, indicator and system inoperable, to the manual Subaru Justy that could be jumped over train tracks repeatedly without issue and provided side-splitting laughter every time.



Now that I think about it, Suby should just put Justy engines in their BRZ, it'll never die.

[simple]

This is why Ford's on my shit list these days. After years of us envying the Europeans, Ford FINALLY threw us a bone and brought us the mighty Focus RS and feisty little Fiesta ST... and just barely after giving us the goods they were like "JK! TROLOLOLOL!" and axed their ENTIRE car lineup sans the Mustang in favor of absolute garbage like the EcoSport.

Shut up and buy one

Brands do it all the time. Small batch exciting cars don't last long and keep the brand loyal folks begging for more.

Sorry that the Raptor is a better brand ambassador in the USA but that truck kicks ass and has a resale price that is still frustratingly high.

[Mazderati]

Jellybean era Fords. F-150s suffered the same fate.

[MontuckyFried]

Brands do it all the time. Small batch exciting cars don't last long and keep the brand loyal folks begging for more.

I get running a small batch of a special car, BUT to literally get rid of ALL the cars was a weird move. I think GM may have followed suit too, with the exception of Cadillac who is still making proper sedans. But not all of us want a giganto Ferd F-teenthousand.

[El Chupacabra]

Ford decided that crossovers and trucks were all that the US market wanted, other than Mustangs. At least for cars from Ford, they're probably right.

It could be worse. You could be a diehard Mopar car fan, and all you've got left is 15-year old "new" Challengers and Chargers. Hellcat everything!

[BmillsSkier]

It could be worse. You could be a diehard Mopar car fan, and all you've got left is 15-year old "new" Challengers and Chargers. Hellcat everything!

I'm seriously concerned for a large segment of the population when Mopar stops making Challengers and Chargers. Civil unrest may be likely.

Parts of ATL may start to look like Cuban streets in the coming decade with 20 year old Scatpacks and Hellcats looking like Mad Max pieced them together from the scrapheap; people doing anything to keep them alive.

[skaredshtles]

I can absolutely appreciate the high school shitbox.

Followed by the good ol' college shitbox:



IIRC the tires for these were about $30 each.

[simple]

People can keep calling them crossovers or SUV or whatever but at this point the lifted 4 door hatchback is ubiquitous enough to just be the standard CAR these days. The brands didn't force them on us, it evolved to be the perfect car for most people. It's them and GIGANTIC pickups. Now when I see a sedan I assume it's some poor Uber driver buying the cheapest shit box they can afford. The Honda Accord may be a 30x best car but I don't know anyone buying one.

You want fun you get a coupe or vert. It screams I don't have my kid with me or I don't have a kid and I'm happy.

[skaredshtles]

This is why Ford's on my shit list these days. After years of us envying the Europeans

Have you ever given thought to *why* the Europeans get so many choices of excellent small vehicles? Just give it some thought...

[MontuckyFried]

You want fun you get a coupe or vert. It screams I don't have my kid with me or I don't have a kid and I'm happy.

False. My family of 4 fits JUST fine in our little C30 hatch. Practical AND fun! It's our daily. The S60's also great.

Proof:

[BmillsSkier]

People can keep calling them crossovers or SUV or whatever but at this point the lifted 4 door hatchback is ubiquitous enough to just be the standard CAR these days. The brands didn't force them on us, it evolved to be the perfect car for most people. It's them and GIGANTIC pickups. Now when I see a sedan I assume it's some poor Uber driver buying the cheapest shit box they can afford. The Honda Accord may be a 30x best car but I don't know anyone buying one.

You want fun you get a coupe or vert. It screams I don't have my kid with me or I don't have a kid and I'm happy.

None of that is wrong.

I think the accord is in a tight spot these days. It’s too upmarket for entry level buyers that can get a Kia or Hyundai with way more bells and whistles, and it’s close enough to the base model German sedan offerings that the aspirational buyer will suck up the price delta so they can brag that they drive “a forinnn” to their friends at the apartment complex pool.


Also, GIGANTIC pickups can die in a tire fire. So many will never tow a damned thing other than the fatass driving it. But it does allow them to act tough in traffic and make parking garages unnavigable so there’s that social utility I guess.

[simple]

I'd rather kids sit on the roof than be that close to me.

[MontuckyFried]

Have you ever given thought to *why* the Europeans get so many choices of excellent small vehicles? Just give it some thought...

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know. I'm still allowed to be jealous. Particularly when it comes to the wagon category.

[Timberridge]

Have you ever given thought to *why* the Europeans get so many choices of excellent small vehicles? Just give it some thought...

Because they live in tiny apartments with dorm room refrigerators and no a/c?

[BmillsSkier]

Because they live in tiny apartments with dorm room refrigerators and no a/c?

belissimo.

[fatnslow]

False. My family of 4 fits JUST fine in our little C30 hatch. Practical AND fun! It's our daily. The S60's also great.

Proof:

How long until you guys are deported from Texas for thinking like that ?

[fatnslow]

Because they live in tiny apartments with dorm room refrigerators and no a/c?

That's because Giuseppe can't figure out which one of the 300 available capacitors is the right one for his Belgian designed/Estonian made minisplit.

[riser4]

How long until you guys are deported from Texas for thinking like that ?

Coffee out nose.

[Timberridge]

That's because Giuseppe can't figure out which one of the 300 available capacitors is the right one for his Belgian designed/Estonian made minisplit.

I see what you did there. Bravo.

[MontuckyFried]

How long until you guys are deported from Texas for thinking like that ?

Good question. Always having to dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge from giant brodozers tryna mow me over.

[BmillsSkier]

That's because Giuseppe can't figure out which one of the 300 available capacitors is the right one for his Belgian designed/Estonian made minisplit.

Lol.

[El Chupacabra]

Bump.

Any of these strike your fancy?
https://www.caranddriver.com/feature...4Pg5op459kuQVk

[Timberridge]

Bump.

Any of these strike your fancy?
https://www.caranddriver.com/feature...4Pg5op459kuQVk

Interesting list.

Pantera is an interesting car. I know a guy with a blue one and it’s a car that has really come up in price over the last 10 yrs. It’s a bit of a handful to drive but looks the part. It’s certainly maintainable by a home mechanic.

GTV6 is such a sweet motor and sound but a nightmare to maintain. You really have to love the motor to put up with the rest of it.

[Mazderati]

I don't know if Panteras were particularly well engineered or built but agree with the maintenance aspect. Many of the components were used on other cars so replacement parts are a matter of finding the other application.

The rotary apex seal shit is so lazy. I drove an FB 30k miles with oil changes and tires. 150k miles on that platform was not uncommon. Very early FDs are a different story.

[Ted Striker]

Yeah, my RX-7 (first gen, series 3) was super reliable despite track days, & completely ignoring the tach. My friend's RX-3 lost all of its oil. He let it cool off, fixed the leak, and it started right up. Still ran strong too.

A legitimate knock on the first gens would be that they put so much time, money, and effort getting a rotary powered sports car to market that they had to make financially motivated compromises elsewhere, like the old school live axle and suspension that probably came right off one of Mazda's other cars.