You are here: Forums Automotive News & Views What is "wrong" with these new subcompacts?

What is "wrong" with these new subcompacts?

8676 messages,  Last post on Dec 02, 2009 at 1:07 PM

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What is this discussion about? Nissan Versa, Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit, smart fortwo, MINI Cooper

#7930 of 8676 Re: Civic vs Corolla [irismg] by lilengineerboy Aug 02, 2008 (7:50 pm)
Replying to: irismg (Aug 02, 2008 1:06 pm) Well, I wasn't addressing you, so that may have a lot to do with it. I'll try to explain what I was referring to, though   I understand, I didn't mean to come across as critical of your choices; thats why we have choices, so everyone can get their needs met.   I don't want a car that people are going to envy and want to steal all or part of it. I could have bought an "exciting" car that's maybe less reliable, or a "boring" car that I can count on and has lower insurance rates - the dreaded "appliance".   I think this might be where we differentiate things. An interesting or exciting car need not scream "steal me" nor spend all of its days in the service bay. I haven't lost a vehicle (or any part) to theft nor have I spent a lot of time in the dealer's service department waiting room, and yet I have still found rides I would consider enjoyable. With the exception of my current vehicle, I wouldn't have considered any of my cars as appliances.   My driving experience in my boring car is OK. It's the interior of the car that makes the driving experience for me rather than the exterior anyway, in my view, which for me means as long as I have my music and am comfortable and safe, I'm fine.   To that end, I definitely agree with your decision, the Corolla gives a Lexus-like feeling inside until you actually touch anything.   I personally equate "fun-to-drive" with "driving like an idiot". I don't need that. Slow and sensible wins the race.   Its interesting that you implied that enjoying a drive is "driving like an idiot" but compared your driving style with racing.   I'm really not expecting anyone to "understand" this point of view. It's just that the other poster made some very good points that I agree with. And yes, I am getting my needs met by my choice.   That, my fellow forum contributor, is what its all about (to the contrary of those that feel putting your left foot in and shaking it around is what its all about). Replies to this message: irismg (Aug 03, 2008 8:10 am) lilengineerboy (Aug 03, 2008 10:16 am) nippononly (Aug 03, 2008 10:34 am)
#7931 of 8676 Re: Civic vs Corolla [lilengineerboy] by irismg Aug 03, 2008 (8:10 am)
Replying to: lilengineerboy (Aug 02, 2008 7:50 pm) Its interesting that you implied that enjoying a drive is "driving like an idiot" but compared your driving style with racing.    It's a fable, "The Tortoise and the Hare," about who wins in life, not just about racing: the hot shot showoff or the nondescript but reliable plodder. I thought the terminology was appropos! Replies to this message: lilengineerboy (Aug 03, 2008 10:16 am) nippononly (Aug 03, 2008 10:34 am)
#7932 of 8676 Re: Civic vs Corolla [irismg] by lilengineerboy Aug 03, 2008 (10:16 am)
Replying to: irismg (Aug 03, 2008 8:10 am) It's a fable, "The Tortoise and the Hare," about who wins in life, not just about racing: the hot shot showoff or the nondescript but reliable plodder.   Its the link between fun cars and exhibitionism I don't understand.   And that somehow driving a penalty box gets you further ahead. Replies to this message: nippononly (Aug 03, 2008 10:34 am)
#7933 of 8676 Re: Civic vs Corolla [lilengineerboy] by nippononly Aug 03, 2008 (10:34 am)
Replying to: lilengineerboy (Aug 03, 2008 10:16 am) The Fit is notably more fun to drive than the Yaris, for about the same money and without anything in the way of exhibitionism. You usually don't get too much flashiness in a $15K hatchback, and the Fit is no exception.   Some of the upcoming subs will fit that mold too, like the Fiesta, the new Aveo5 and the Beat that will replace it in a couple of years. Others like the Hornet and of course the existing Mini Cooper give you more flash, but often you pay extra for "flash", and the Mini is no exception. I wonder how they will price the Hornet when it arrives (courtesy of Chery Motors Inc). Seeing as its Chinese, I expect it will be low-priced.
#7934 of 8676 Re: Civic vs Corolla [irismg] by ateixeira Aug 04, 2008 (6:05 am)
Replying to: irismg (Aug 02, 2008 11:58 am) Thanks for the vote of confidence.   Your response was timely because either last night or the night before someone broke in to my flashy convertible (Miata) and stole all the change out of the center console.   It unfortunately does draw unwanted attention.   At least there wasn't anything valuable in it.
#7935 of 8676 so did I post numbers recently? :-) by nippononly Aug 12, 2008 (11:52 am)
'Cause they are pretty DARN good!   From Automotive News, for 2008 sales through June 30:   Fit: up 67% from 2007 Accent: up 48.9% Rio: up 29.1% Yaris: up 39% Mini Cooper: up 33.6%   And if you're counting Versa (debatable for inclusion in this category, IMO), it is up 20.7%.   And for those of you tracking the ForTwo, they sold 11,399 of them by midyear, and that wasn't a full six months of sales by any means.   The only one that wasn't up in a big way (about flat instead) was the Aveo, which I think was partly because a lot of the Aveos were going to fleets last year, and GM is still cutting back on its rental fleet sales.   http://www.autonews.com/assets/PDF/CA5240487.PDF Replies to this message: andre1969 (Aug 12, 2008 11:55 am) nippononly (Aug 12, 2008 11:56 am) thegraduate (Aug 12, 2008 11:57 am)
#7936 of 8676 Re: so did I post numbers recently? :-) [nippononly] by andre1969 Aug 12, 2008 (11:55 am)
Replying to: nippononly (Aug 12, 2008 11:52 am) The only one that wasn't up in a big way (about flat instead) was the Aveo, which I think was partly because a lot of the Aveos were going to fleets last year, and GM is still cutting back on its rental fleet sales.   Well, there was the xA, down a whopping 99.6%.   Considering how bad off the economy supposedly is, I'm surprised that total car sales are staying as strong as they are. The grand total comes out to 3.989M, down from 4.059M. That's only a 1.7% drop. Now a lot of that is redistribution, as sales of smaller cars are increasing while bigger and more premium categories are dropping.   Still, it looks like people are buying. I guess truck sales might tell a different story, though. Replies to this message: nippononly (Aug 12, 2008 11:56 am) thegraduate (Aug 12, 2008 11:57 am)
#7937 of 8676 Re: so did I post numbers recently? :-) [andre1969] by nippononly Aug 12, 2008 (11:56 am)
Replying to: andre1969 (Aug 12, 2008 11:55 am) You DO know the xA was discontinued in 2006, right?!
#7938 of 8676 Re: so did I post numbers recently? :-) [andre1969] by thegraduate Aug 12, 2008 (11:57 am)
Replying to: andre1969 (Aug 12, 2008 11:55 am) I think we might have to limit the sales discussion to those cars still FOR SALE this year.
#7939 of 8676 xA by ateixeira Aug 13, 2008 (5:52 am)
Well, the xA got a lot bigger, especially the standard engine. So it went in the wrong direction, or at least the opposite direction compared to where consumers were heading.   Bad timing. Replies to this message: nippononly (Aug 13, 2008 6:56 am) ateixeira (Aug 13, 2008 7:02 am) nippononly (Aug 13, 2008 7:06 am) and 4 more...

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