[Neanderthal]

I know. Everyone's favorite whipping-boy. Like the Cimarron. There was nothing mechanically unreliable about the Aztek. It also received one of the highest satisfaction ratings from owners in its day.

I don't know how reliable the Cimmaron was, probably typical for its day. But an aunt bought one of the early ones and riding in a Cimmaron was no more like riding in a Cadillac than reading the Toledo Blade is like reading Shakespeare. It felt cheap, underpowered, tinny, and NOT A CADILLAC.

As for this Forbes piece... Well, it's Forbes. Someone assigned this schlub a slow-news-day article, and he consulted a few sources and put together a list. He's not a car guy and likely has never been in, much less driven, any of the vehicles he pees on.

"No less an authority than Consumer Reports..." Oh yeah!

Funny, the following article--full of irritating pop-ups--names the "15 Hottest New Cars."

a quick look at a dozen and a half of the most noteworthy new-model introductions for 2015, along with full commentary,

Guess a dozen has been dumbed down to 10, probably along with the Keystone Pipeline vote.
Where, oh where, have all the editors gone? Not to Forbes, we can be assured.

As for the piece, some of these cars may get panned by certain expert entities but thangs like Jeep Wrangler sell like hotcakes and are very popular among the much-loved younger generations.

And the 200 was "ungainly"? Mine wasn't. My impression was the majority of the automotive press felt a need to go along to get along and trash the car. It was quick, agile, slightly different-looking in a sea of swoop, and an incredible value then and now.

This piece is by a New Yorker, for New Yorkers, and since none of those folk know jack about cars, What Difference Does It Make??!!

The author takes a risk by criticizing some very PC and/or popular cars among the Smart Set, no pun intended. I'd think a Forbes geek would know what's PC and what's not. Criticizing anything electric is verboten and will likely land this guy in Hell's Half Acre in the not too distant future.

Forbes, like Motley Fool, is a source but not much of a source.

 

[Neanderthal]

Originally Posted by F14CRAZY
Totally agree about the Jeep Patriot. I actually judge the intelligence of people that own them. I test drove one back to back with a Forester...I still talk about how bad the Patriot was whenever I see one and I'm with someone else. The Forester...I decided I couldn't live without one and still have it 170k later.

Patriot was sooooooo slow even with a 2.4L and 5 speed manual. Had to really wind it up to get anyway. Forester felt like it had a big block in comparison. Didn't feel sporty at all either. Couldn't even chirp the tires when I redlined it and dropped the clutch in FWD mode



Yea I don't get how it made the list. It might not be for everyone but FCA can't crank out enough to meet demand.
Wrangler made the list because the guy is a peckerbrain, sitting in NYC pecking away at his keyboard which doesn't know any more than he does, which is nothing.

As I stated in my earlier explanation of why the guy's an imbecile, THIS PIECE NEEDS AN EDITOR.

Here: New cars just aren’t what they used to be. No, we’re not getting all crotchety and decrying the evolution in styling and technological breakthroughs that have literally reinvented the automobile during the last quarter millennium.

I don't know about everyone else, but in my dictionary a millenium is 1000 years.

So yes, I think you can safely say that cars HAVE made some styling and technological breakthroughs in the last 250 years.

As for the Patriot you hated, I haven't driven one so I can neither agree nor dissent.

But cars are ALL about different tastes and what floats your boat. The Forester you refer to was probably the worst rental car I've had with the exception of an early Echo. My Forester rental around 2005 rode hard, the seats ached parts of my body I didn't know existed, the engine sounded like an ailing 1970 Beetle, the radio would pull about 10 miles, and it had about the same power as that older Beetle.

But it's all what appeals to each of us. That's why I find arguments about styling such a total waste of time.

 

[Neanderthal]

Guess the EDIT function is still all sideways. That's how my post #17 ended up looking all cobbed together.

When I tried to edit just now, I got the same blank sheet I was getting last night. HLEPZ!!!

 

[Neanderthal]

Funny, I read it like a normal post of yours

LOL. Touche`! :fall:

Interesting...my mom's fiance (in his 60's) said he liked the ride of my Forester while riding in the backseat for an hour. I wish the seats were a little comfier but I've found them to be pretty good.

I do agree on radio reception though. I'm pretty sure it's due to the in-glass antenna as even with swapping out the crappy factory head unit with a Pioneer the reception still sucks.

Interestingly though, people swap out 2.2L Subaru engines in Volkswagen buses...still slow but it like doubles the power lol

Dif'rent Strokes.

Har har on the VW. We had family friends, the earliest of hippies, who had a VW bus in the 50s. I thought it was really cool because it was like a house on wheels.
I had a girlfriend, well woman friend, in the 90s who had a VW bus and it was the GD-est slowest most sluggish pile of hazard-to-navigation on the road. Zero to 30 in what, one minute ten seconds?

Doubling the power? More like quadrupling it. Which is a START.