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The Test Drive That Shattered Your Dream

55 messages,  Last post on Sep 11, 2008 at 3:58 AM

You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires

What is this discussion about? Car Buying, Automotive News, Coupe, Truck, Sedan


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#44 of 55
Subaru WRX by ronsteve
Aug 26, 2008 (3:15 pm)
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My Subaru lust had had a couple years to grow, and when they came up with the Limited version of the WRX, I was quite keen to get one. But when I drove it, there just wasn't enough seat under my lower thighs, and it brought back memories of a Saturn with the same issue, which caused my booty to fall asleep on long trips! So no Rex for me. :/
#45 of 55
2 Words... Isuzu Impulse by wjtinatl
Aug 26, 2008 (6:40 pm)
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Back in the mid-'80s, all the buzz was about the upcoming Isuzu Impulse, Italian styling, Lotus tuned chassis, blah, blah, blah. Thought it may be the logical replacement for my (also underwhelming) 280ZX. One finally appeared at the local Isuzu, Oldsmobile, Plymouth, Nissan dealer (guess where he is today). Jeez... the 280ZX felt like a Ferrari 308 by comparison. It may have been noisy, but at least it was slow! Also, a dashboard only Bill Gates could love. No wonder Isuzu is no longer for this country!
 
Additional disappointments from the era included the Chevy Beretta, Olds Quad 4, 3rd generation "Cross-Fire Injection" Z-28 and my dad's Cadillac Seville with the pathetic 4.1 litre V8. GM really was on a roll in the 80's. Thank god fuel injection and OBD II electronics came along, I'd still be looking for a nice '77 VW Scirocco again (rusty but fun)!
#46 of 55
Re: 2 Words... Isuzu Impulse [wjtinatl] by lemmer
Aug 27, 2008 (5:19 am)
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Replying to: wjtinatl (Aug 26, 2008 6:40 pm)

I bought an '88 Isuzu Impulse Turbo RS Special Edition with Lotus Handling, but that would go under "The Car Purchase That Shattered Your Dream."
 
It wasn't a bad car, just not as good as I hoped. Combining that with dismal reliability did not make for a happy combination.
#47 of 55
Re: 2 Words... Isuzu Impulse [lemmer] by Mr_Shiftright HOST
Aug 27, 2008 (7:42 am)
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Replying to: lemmer (Aug 27, 2008 5:19 am)

Well okay aside from dismal reliability and disappointing performance, what's not to like?
 
The last new car I bought....I test drove for AN HOUR...I got a pretty good idea of what to expect and so I was not disappointed later on. Also it was a Toyota, so I just got in it and turned the key for the next couple of years.
#48 of 55
Re: 2 Words... Isuzu Impulse [wjtinatl] by graphicguy
Aug 27, 2008 (12:32 pm)
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Replying to: wjtinatl (Aug 26, 2008 6:40 pm)

No wonder Isuzu is no longer for this country!
 
au contraire.......Isuzu is still alive in the U.S. Matter of fact, I see one of their dealers advertise in my local paper from time to time.
 
http://www.isuzu.com/index.jsp
#49 of 55
The two that stand out... by blueguydotcom
Aug 27, 2008 (1:06 pm)
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CTS - the press made the original sound like a legit contender. I got my hands on a manual - which the salesman chided saying nobody drives manuals. What a sloppy, heavy, cheap feeling hunk of junk. Seriously, that car couldn't feel any less like the vehicle described by Edmunds, MT, R&T, Autoweek.
 
G35 - 2nd gen. Heavy, bloated, muted steering, coarse engine at the upper rev range. The press made it sound like Infiniti G35 had gone from being 90% BMW to 95% BMW. Nope, it actually regressed. As did the e9x BMWs.
 
.
#50 of 55
The CTS by lokki
Aug 27, 2008 (1:40 pm)
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Replying to: blueguydotcom (Aug 27, 2008 1:06 pm)

Yeah - I'd forgotten how bitterly I was disapointed with the CTS the first time I saw it. I was at Narita Airport in Tokyo, and they had one on a turntable rotating around to impress everyone. Well, maybe they impressed somebody but it sure wasn't me.
 
Since turntable lifted the car about 3 feet, it made the CTS' fat and heavy buttocks very prominent. When the turntable rotated, the grill was also pretty sad too; it was made out of cheap gray Mattel plastic.
 
Overall, my impression was that someone had taken a nice 1964 de Ville and done a caricature of it. The Chevron toy cars came to mind.
 
Being an American travelling in a foreign country, I was a bit embarrassed for the home team. My thought was... !%$%! - all that money invested and GM has blown it again.
#51 of 55
Re: 2 Words... Isuzu Impulse [graphicguy] by wjtinatl
Aug 29, 2008 (1:01 pm)
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Replying to: graphicguy (Aug 27, 2008 12:32 pm)

graphicguy
You are correct sir... Isuzu still makes and sells a very high-quality line of diesel and gas medium duty trucks for the US market. I believe GM also rebrands these vehicles and sells them as Chevy and GMC products. However, Isuzu's consumer business is dead. Announced in January, they are no longer selling the re-badged TrailBlazer and Colorado pick-up. Seems like GM got the better of that deal, high-quality diesel engines and commercial vehicles. Isuzu got two of GM's most underwhelming vehicles that they sell at hefty discounts. Isuzu dealers must have been thrilled. The shame is, Isuzu is well known as a diesel expert, and played a significant role in developing the GM Duramax diesel. Why thay couldn't provide a nice 4 cylinder direct injection turbo diesel for the Malibu and perhaps Lambda crossovers is a mystery. A Malibu with solid performance that could get 40 mpg highway would have made the new Jetta diesel yesterday's news.
#52 of 55
Re: 2 Words... Isuzu Impulse [wjtinatl] by corvette
Aug 29, 2008 (3:33 pm)
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Replying to: wjtinatl (Aug 29, 2008 1:01 pm)

If you go to Isuzu's website, it looks like the rebadged Trailblazer and Colorado are eligible for the employee pricing discount, so there must be a few strays hiding somewhere.
#53 of 55
Re: 2 Words... Isuzu Impulse [Mr_Shiftright] by mattandi
Sep 10, 2008 (1:29 pm)
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Aug 27, 2008 7:42 am)

Also it was a Toyota, so I just got in it and turned the key for the next couple of years.
 
Well, that's one way to keep the miles off of it.

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