Car Talk

[Lucifer]

Originally Posted by Jaglavak

I agree, the Wrangler is the best Jeep so far. After 60 years, Chrysler engineers finally figured out how to make a short bouncy rig track straight at highway speed. While keeping the super-simple bombproof construction, aside from the electronics. I could wish for better mileage, but there's just no way to make that happen without totally changing the size. The thing pushes as much air as a full size pickup and that is that. It is still IMHO the most capable new 4x4 available today.

Supposedly there's a pretty significant redesign pending. Chrysler has been eating shit for years with overall economy and performance ratings, mainly due to the Wrangler. They've been taking baby steps toward reducing wind resistance and increasing fuel economy, and next gen is expected to be a big year.

I've had 2 YJs, a TJ and now my JK, and every single one has been "my favorite so far", so no matter what they do to it, I'll be buying another one in a few years and I'm sure I'll love it.

ETA: I do take a little bit of twisted pride when I'm with a group of people bragging about the fuel economy of their hybrids, and when my turn comes I say I get about 14 MPG in my cinder-block-mobile.

[Nonny J. Nonnington III]

In 2002 I bought a new Nissan Altima. It was a tossup between the Altima and a Camry, but I liked the styling of the Altima and it made some magazine's Car of the Year. It was bigger than I was used to - from 1978 to 2002 I had only driven VWs (1978 Rabbit, 1981 Rabbit, 1984 Jetta, 1996 Jetta). They were tons of fun to drive, and I could parallel park in incredibly tight spaces but I got fed up with their unreliability. Every one developed electrical problems, with only one of them inside the warranty.

So I got the 2002 Altima and was bored with its dependability and reliability. Strongly sensing (correctly) that I was going to get laid off in 2011, I chose to trade it in for a new model. It had over 180k, and was still running fine. I wanted to shoot for 200k, but I knew that if I got laid off I wouldn't be psychologically able to buy a new car. However, I knew that if I had car payments I would honor them. So, I went to the dealership and bought another Altima. I wish I hadn't. Sure, I took it for a test drive, but there are a lot of things that you don't pick up on until later. For one thing, I think that it is wider than the 2002. If it isn't, it feels like it is or maybe the wheelbase is bigger. For another, when I sit in the driver's seat I have only the vaguest idea of where the four corners of the car are. I really don't like backing up, and I always misjudge where my front or back bumpers are. It has a huge rear window, but it is at such an angle that the vertical distance is quite small. To be fair: Good points are the same reliability of the 2002 model, and the CVT is great.

The kicker? When I dropped it off for servicing, they gave me a Rogue as a loaner. As soon as I drove it home I knew that was the car I should have bought. It's built on the smaller Sentra frame, which put me back to the wheelbase I was used to. And I sat taller so I had a better idea of where my four corners were. Such regret; because it was based on a less expensive frame, I probably could have bought it for close to the same money.