Time for some cheery, positive vibes !
We've seen the thread for the worst car. How about your best car ?
Mine was a Honda Integra Type R. I won't list the good points - the post would be too long. I'll just list the "sub-optimal" points :
1. Glovebox was a bit small.
2. It was a bit noisy on the motorway (but heh, what a great noise from that VTEC engine !)
3. I struggled to get more than 5000 miles out of a set of front tyres.....can't think why ?!
That's it. The rest was superb.
|
Boring, but a 1990 Toyota Corolla Liftback (5 door hatch to you and me)
Really nice to drive, very reliable, looked good. Dodgy brake master cylinder and rusty wheel arches at 10 years old and some ready cash kind of persuaded to swap it for a Nissan Micra. Which was a good car too, just too small when the kids got older.
|
|
1991 Toyota Celica GT. Did all things well or really well, and averaged 40 mpg...even the boot was a fair size!
|
2000cc MKIII Cortina. Dark blue, plastic seats, keep fit windows.
I loved that thing.
|
It's probably the car I have now.
Fiat Coupe 20V Turbo.
Ink Black, incredible looks inside and out, georgeous sounding engine, and just about practical enough for my needs (which is of course the perfect level of practicality :D )
Also (shock horror) perfectly reliable for 18 months of ownership now.
|
|
|
|
|
1991 VW Golf Mk 2 GTi 16V in metallic grey. Laughably basic trim (not even electric windows), but an incredible drive.
|
|
My leased E39 530d. Almost perfect in every respect. Arguably the best diesel engine in history, linked to arguably the prettiest body ever to grace a Beemer. Impeccable in road manners, cracking performannce allied to affordable economy and a solid build qualtiy. A car that must be the acme of the art of automotive design.
|
|
|
|
Best car would be my present car, Fiat Panda 4x4 in Dry Turquoise.
Not fast but so much fun, christened "The Gaymobile " by my children.
|
|
|
|
Interesting, Fiat and Toyota equal first so far in "best car" stakes. Come on all you Fiat owners, let's skew the statistics even further.
|
|
I resent your implication that a result where FIAT is the best is definitely a 'skewed statistic'! ;)
|
Well it can't really be a surprise to you all. But, what I've got now!
I know I've not owned a lot of cars to compare it to but I've driven a fair few and what can I say? I love it! Ok, pretty much everyone on here thinks it looks ridiculous/disgusting/ugly but for some reason, I like how it looks!
It drives well, it's been utterly reliable, it's got a massive boot, it's comfy, it's quick enough to have some fun in, it's got a great sounding stereo, it feels solid and to this day, despite nudging 85,000 miles, it drives great...althought that's probably as a result of actively avoiding potholes! I still get a smile on my face when I'm going down country lanes and given I've had it for two and a half years, that still surprises me!
I can only see me getting rid when things start failing which I'm worried could be in this next year given the mileage it has on it now.
But I love it - I'd have another one in a shot and (as you've seen from many of my posts) couldn't recommend one highly enough.
|
|
|
|
Although ive owned a really nice Jaguar XJ6 3.2, it was dogged by poor electrics which were supposed to be sorted on the newer ones... clearly not. I loved the car and you could do a 3 hour drive and get out feeling totally fresh ( a supreme car on the motorway ), but it was always a worry about the oil pressure ( 150k ) which seemed to vary alot.
Best car I ever owned, the one that I was saddest to see go, was a 1993 Volvo 460 Xi. I bought it a few years ago with just 29,000 miles on the clock and full Volvo SH. It was a peach of a car that was utterly reliable, very comfortable and thoughtfully designed. It didnt have elctric winodws, but it did have heated seats, which are far more useful in winter!
I only got rid of it because some vile man in London rear-ended it and the cost of repair was more than two grand. I kicked out the rear panel by sitting in the boot of the car, painted it and realigned a few bits and sold it to a guy who couldnt believe he was getting a car with 34k for £700. He knew it had been crunched mind you, but it actually was very solid still and had no ripples etc. Ive never been so sad to see a car go, but the accident just put me off the car.
If I could find another one, id snap it up in an instant.
On the subject of the Honda Integra Type R, my dad had one a few years back and he loved it also. He got about 20k out of the tyres though...
I still liked his Impreza Turbo more though.
|
Jag S type 3.0SE............. longest i've ever kept a car which says something.......... comfortable, quick, stylish, howling V6 if you mullah it, loads of toys- like climate, leccy leather seats that remember where it should be when SWMBO has been driving it, half decent stereo as standard, sunroof - which a lot don't seem to have nowadays, v smooth auto box.
must have been old before my time as i've always liked big comfy high spec saloons rather than the sporty numbers........... and now that my waist is keeping check with my age it's just as well
|
|
|
|
|
Easy - my last car before the current one. Audi A4 Avant 2.5 TDI - totally reliable, went like a bomb and there were none of the little irritating things that most other cars have.
I was seduced by a good offer on the current Mercedes B-class (£100 cheaper per month on a PCP) but I'll be back in an Audi as soon as I can afford it - and probably in a Skoda Octavia if I can't.
|
|
two good choices......it's amazing how much downhill Mercedes has gone isn't it
|
Agreed. The German taxi just doesn't give you that good-to-be-alive feeling that the Audi did - and I'm sure a Jaguar does too, anmd most BMWs.
Some of it is to do with having 6 cylinders, but not all - the Golf TDI estate before the Audi was lively and fun.
|
funny how some cars have 'got it' and yet others haven't, even though the spec can seem the same......
i know i mentioned this on another thread but couldn't believe how good the Honda Civic 2.2 diesel is.... wouldn't have imagined i'd have liked that, but it was great
|
2000 Mazda MX-5 1.8iS
Just a brilliant, simple, utterly reliable sports car which stuck a grin on my face every time it needed to negotiate anything from a roundabout to a hairpin. Beautifully weighted, communicative, quick geared steering, the best gearbox of any car I've ever driven, and just stacks of feel from every input.
It was also beautifully made, utterly reliable, did 32 mpg, had a brilliant local dealer, and just ran like clockwork between services. The car was just an utter pleasure to own in every possible way.
Loved it. Baby forced sale. SWMBO and I couldn't watch the new owner drive it away. Were both miserable for hours.
Cheers
DP
|
1st - 1996 mk4 1.3 Fiesta. Handled quite well, and stupidly reliable, even after the amount of stupid things done in it. Overall a great little car that I still miss.
2nd - The Toledo. Comfy long-legged luxobarge that still handles well if you don't drive like a complete twit.
|
Best value would be the Volvo 240 estate mentioned in the worst thread.
The car I'd most like back is my MK2 Golf GTi 8 valve.......please
|
|
|
|
|
Here's another vote for the new Fiat Panda - brilliant little car...
|
|
|
Toad the Supra, nothing else I could afford could go like it; it corners and brakes better too. The one snag is the automatic transmission, but I settled for that because the mileage was low, only 14k now. Also the transmission would be less likely to be abused back home in Nippon.
|
1994 Montego Countryman Estate Diesel.
Bought for £400, kept it for nearly 3 years with just basic maintenance. Racked up about 60,000 to take it upto 180,000 before it started to lose water and rust on the doors / bonnet / tailgate. £133 a year depreciation, best car ever.
|
1991 Toyota Corolla 1.6 Executive 5dr
was my first car and will always remember it.
bought for £900 and gave 3 faultless years service apart from replacing rear shocks.
was on 120k and still drove like new.
|
Two bests - sorry!
Mk 1 Golf Gti, with the 1800cc engine
Merc 320 SL The old solidly built one (1997)
|
Honda Legend Coupe. In the best Dukes of Hazzard tradition, it straightened the curves and flattened the hills (and mountains) all over Europe, in total comfort, near silence, effortless power and at 30mpg.
Only sold it because I thought it was too old, at 14 years and 125k miles, to take to live in France. Big mistake.
|
1984 Ford Laser Capri 1.6.
Wonderful car, did 255,000 miles in it. The only car I've ever worn out.
|
|
|
Depends how you define "best".
My current S60 is the best all-round car I've ever had, but so it should be seeing as it's the priciest car I've ever had...
But the best all-rounder for the money - call it best value - is the Fiat Panda. 4 doors, 4 seats, air-con, metallic paint, starts, stops and goes faultlessly, looks contemporary and cost only UK 6 grand new last year... a winner! Do we really need more? Simple really is efficient, sometimes!
|
|
|
|
|
My best car was a Ford Sierra XR 4x4.
It was like a groundhog even with slicks (worn tyres) in the wet, but the only thing that let it down was the 2.8ltr German engine, it was not a patch on the 3ltr Essex engine. Never had to do the tappets in 100k and the crank never rumbled even at 150k, where the 2.8 tappets were forever adjusted and the crank rumbled as low as 40k. And this was serviced by Fords.
The second best car I had was a Ford Capri GXL 3ltr, good in straight line but understeered like a pig.
|
Laguna V6 MK2
180K reliable miles belting up and down the motorways of France, never broke down once. Fantastic V6 engine, never used a drop of oil. Fantastically comfortable motorway car. The only thing that was annoying was the tyre pressure readouts, they didn't seem to work very well.
Downsides were fuel consumption and 72K service was expensive (cambelt and plugs difficult to do).
Replaced with Megane dCi which is much more economical but not so much fun...
|
I suppose - actually no suppose about it - it has to be the 2.4 i-VTEC Accord I currently own.
I regularly get the opportunity to drive many different cars (The usual German suspects etc) and I can honestly say that in my opinion nothing can touch it in terms of build quality and engineering integrity. The attention to detail is astounding - in all areas. Take emmissions for instance - not the most CO2 friendly car on the planet with a 2.4 petrol engine but the exhaust system is stainless steel double skinned. The engine bay was designed such that the exhaust ports are on the rear of the engine and as such you have a very short run of double skinned stainless before you reach the catalyst and as such it heats up to temp quicker than most. The door hinges are very slightly offset/angles so they close with minimal effort and a precision I cannot see another cars - especially the big German ones who think the ability to slam a door hard means quality - I think not. The Accord is all about precision fit and finish.
On top of that you get the usual legendary Honda relaibility (so far anyway), loads of power, comfort and excellent handling.
The best bit is the look on the faces of the 320(& d)/325 drivers faces as they look down at you past their badge and then keep looking as you leave them behind.
|
Best car I ever "owned" - any free one, in the days before company cars were taxed to hell and back as a benefit!
Roger. (Costa del Sol, España)
|
|
My best car would have to be my first... A 1992 Rover Metro 1.4LD 5dr (bought at 7yrs old, 15k). An excellant Peugeot/Citreon 1.4 diesel engine (quieter in the Metro than than the 106/AX), great handling, ride and the nicest gearbox I've yet to use. Never went wrong either.
|
|
|
|
|
My 1989 Mk3 Cavalier. I drove it out of the showroom and every day for 16 years.
|
|
2005 Subaru Legacy 3.0 Estate, brillant to drive, fantastic build, quiet, very comfortable and reasonably economical. Never had a day off the road so has cost me zip in lost revenue, never had a problem - not even a sqeak or a rattle.
|
|
Some interesting responses so far ! Just goes to show what a diverse bunch us drivers we all are. Never thought I'd see a Metro or a Capri on the list, but heh - if that's what you think, that's just fine !
|
I guess it would have to be my 405 before it was rear ended. However I really prefer driving the Xantia, the HDi is much nicer, currently waiting for a tuning box so hopefully I'll like it even more. Funny that a Metro diesel should be mentioned. I had a 1.5 diesel, that was the best of the Metros I've owned (also VP and Turbo).
Steve.
---
Xantia HDi.
Buy a Citroen and get to know the local GSF staff better...
|
|
Talking of divesity of replies, if you're talking sheer reliability as a measure of your "best car" mine would be a 94 Corsa 1.5 TD. I say this not because it was great or enjoyable to drive but because of all the cars I've owned it was the only one that didn't need a single repair. Not even a light bulb in 45000 miles. Absolutely faultless. Every other car I've ever had has had to have at least one repair. Some will no doubt say having a Japanese engin (it was an Isuzu) helped but nevertheless a cracking little motor to add to the Metros and other "unsung heroes".
|
If you are talking best rather then most reliable it has to be R reg E Class Merc. Drive all day and didnt fell tired - supurb - worst point about it was the whopping single wiper - apart from that loved it.
Toodle Pip
|
|
|
Audi A3 1.9 Tdi Sport (old model).
I had this after having a 225 BHP Audi TT for a while. I preferred the A3 by a HUGE margin. Nearly as quick in most conditions, pretty (well I thought so) in denim blue with multispoke alloys, half leather seats, and did 48 to the gallon.
Am getting the new shape one next week, if it's three-quarters as good, I'll be pleased as punch.
|
fiat 132 2.0 litre twin cam
terrible car............but
lovely sounding engine when spun up..........i still miss it........but not the rot
|
|
|
|
|
|
