Most Overlooked New Cars Since 1990+

[YSSMAN]

After reading Diego440's thread on his new Ford Mondeo, it got me thinking...

What have been some of the great cars that have been overlooked maybe by the press or by the public in the last few years?

I had really completely forgotten about the old Contour untill I saw the post about the Mondeo. It got me thinking about how great a car it really was while it was sold in the US, and yet it never recieved much buzz from the American automotive press, although it won a 10-best award from 1995-1997 from Car and Driver and Automobile, but the public seemed to ignore it as well.

...Any others? Well, staying on the Ford wagon for a moment, the Merkur XR4Ti. It was another European rip-off model, essentially the same as the Ford Sierra XR4i. It made the Car and Driver 10-Best list once in 1985, but it is another model long-forgotten in the halls of "American" automobiles.

I'd like to hear if you have any you'd like to nominate. Make it a good, clean, general discussion guys... And the question applies to any and all across the globe, as I'm sure there are penty of forgotten cars in the UK, Germany, Netherlands, Australia, etc...

 

[Leonidae]

205 1.9 GTi's. weights less than a ton and has 130 (non-MI16)-160 bhp (MI16), plus wide range of aftermarket products. yes, it's small and fast car and yes, the rear suspensions is known to be expensive when being replaced, but I don't give a *beep*. it's a classic, designed by same man that planned the original Golf GTi and Golf Cabrio, and planned 205 CTi ( cabrio) as well.. Giugiaro. and that name is nowadays associated with supercars.

 

[Master_Yoda]

Accords... There lots of fun

 

[a6m5]

As much as I liked the Contour, it was regarded as one of the biggest pile of crap by Ford, at least in the U.S. market. They break, and parts were unbelievably expensive replace. Merkur's reliability rivaled that of Yugo. And just when you thought Ford learned from past mistakes, they came up with Focus, which had so much recalls in the beginning, many Ford people still disliked the car, even after all the problems were fixed. At least the repair is cheap for Focus. I personally want one.

And the Accords, I wouldn't say they were overlooked. They've been great, but they got all the praises, both by media and the public.

My personal picks might be some of the Mazdas. Off top of my head, Proteges, last gen RX-7, 626/6, etc. RX-7 didn't sell, despite the popularity amongst enthusiasts, Proteges were always rated under Civics(I thought they were right up there), 626/6's just doens't sell very well. I've always like those, too.

 

[Danny]

Drive safely Diego.

 

[SRV2LOW4ME]

Honda Prelude, specifically, the US 92-96 model.

Sure my opinion may be biased, but this is how I see it. Back when it arrived on US soil, it had the largest and most powerful engine Honda had ever sent to the US (not including the NSX since it was badged as an Acura). With its available VTEC, and AWS it made for one of the cheapest, yet one of the most fun cars to drive on the street, easily out handling many cars twice its price. 👍

EDIT: I agree with a6m5. My sister has a Contour, and I honestly have to say its one of the biggest piles Ford has ever put out, and she's not alone. A few of my other friends own, or have owned either a 4 or 6 cylender and they have all been breakdown after breakdown. 👎

 

[Tornado]

As much as I liked the Contour, it was regarded as one of the biggest pile of crap by Ford, at least in the U.S. market. They break, and parts were unbelievably expensive replace. Merkur's reliability rivaled that of Yugo. And just when you thought Ford learned from past mistakes, they came up with Focus, which had so much recalls in the beginning, many Ford people still disliked the car, even after all the problems were fixed. At least the repair is cheap for Focus. I personally want one.

So they were in fact very reliable cars? Wow.
Off the top of my head, all that comes to mind is the Lotus Elan. Sure it was't RWD like the Miata, but iw was still a very good drivers car.

 

[a6m5]

EDIT: I agree with a6m5. My sister has a Contour, and I honestly have to say its one of the biggest piles Ford has ever put out, and she's not alone. A few of my other friends own, or have owned either a 4 or 6 cylender and they have all been breakdown after breakdown. 👎

It was dissapointing, because I actually really like those, especially after the redesign with those swooping headlights. I've been wishing for Ford to bring in the new Mondeo here, but with the new Fusion out now, I doubt it. I think Fusion is a very good car also though.

So they were in fact very reliable cars? Wow.

You have to help me out a bit here. Are you talking about Yugo or Murkur? Also, are you aware of their reliability issues at all? They are both considered to be the most unreliable cars of their time. Contour would be like the most reliable Toyota, ever, compared to those two cars. NO JOKE!

 

[YSSMAN]

I often feel like the Passat is an overlooked model in general really. Sure, there are plenty of Volkwagen-nuts like me who love the car, but as for the general public, I don't think the car has ever gone over too well.

That of course is probably because of the price of the car, but I really don't think it matters in the grand scheme of things. Your paying for a $30,000 car, a nice one at that, and yet, people get pissed because its a Volkswagen. I would much rather spend $30K on a stripped down Passat than the same on any level Toyota or Honda. The drive is better, the car is more involving, and the feel has that special Germanic-touch to it.

I sometimes feel like Subaru often recieves the short-end of the stick as well. Of course, models like the Impreza/WRX/STi have been favorites for some time, but a look at the rest of the lineup leaves much to be desired. I personally think that of all the Subies not got get their fair share of love, it is definately the Outback variants of the Impreza and Legacy which offer great ammounts of off-road capability and pretty decent prices.

Keep them comming, I like this topic...

 

[Carl.]

Back in the time when Cadillac meant "Overweight fwd barge", this came out:

Lightweight (relatively speaking) and rwd, with adequate power, luxury... and anonymous styling. Perhaps not the most overlooked, but still.

Another one:

80% of a S-Type for fraction of the price, especially used...

 

[Jay]

Back in the time when Cadillac meant "Overweight fwd barge", this came out:

Lightweight (relatively speaking) and rwd, with adequate power, luxury... and anonymous styling. Perhaps not the most overlooked, but still.

I would love to get a Catera front clip and fit it on a Commodore.

 

[IMADreamer]

I think the Toyota MR2 Spyder is high on that list. It is very underapraciated. That car had no hp, no room, and zero practicality but my god was it a blast to drive. I learned to drive stick on one fell in love. You could through it around all over the place and the tires always held and you would suprise the hell out of poor drivers in S2ks and Miatas. It was a great car.

After today I have to add another car to the list too. My father bought a Chevy Malibu LS and honestly, that thing drives like a dream. Electronic steering, 200+hp, a good amount of torque and you have the recipe for fun. Sure the styling is bland but I truthfully enjoyed driving it today. I was shocked because when he told me what he bought I rolled my eyes but he did well. Does this mean I am going to go buy one now? Hell no, but for him to go to work in it's a great car and honestly it's quicker then you think.

 

[YSSMAN]

...An Epsilon-based Malibu LS? I would have to agree with you there. It is pretty bland, but thats okay. I drove one of the Epsilon-based Malibu LT's with the 3500 and the 4L80E, and although it isnt the fastest V6 sedan in the market, it was the cheapest that I looked at at the time.

...Seriously though, don't write off all of the Malibus. The Chevrolet Malibu SS from 2006+ is a pretty good ride, and with the 244HP 3.9L V6, it packs a punch. Unfortunately, you cannot get the Chevy with a manual, as that is reserved for the Pontiac G6 GTP (essentially the same car, a little less bland).

I think it is really dissapointing that the Malibu has not recieved the reputation that it deserved. When Motor Trend compared the Chevrolet Malibu LT vs Honda Accord LX vs Toyota Camry XLE vs Mitsubishi Galant GTS, the Malibu actualy beat out the Camry, but the lack of power and refinement were killers. But if youre looking for a cheap alternative, shes a good car.

...Good news, GM is bringing out a next-gen Epsilon-based Malibu in 2008 or 2009, and they keep comparing it to the old 1955-1957 Bel-Air... Could it be that good?

 

[Master_Yoda]

Honda NSX... Is definatly underated... It IS fast for a car under 300hp.. And they call it a Super Car.. That right there shows good engineering. People may say.. Pfft.. It's a Honda, it can't go fast...

 

[niky]

RE: The Protege was an enigma... It was a car that both the trigger-happies at the car magazines (even "import" mags) and the nitpickers at Consumer Reports loved, but always got overlooked by kids who went straight to the Hondas and sensible buyers who went straight to Toyotas.

Granted, the old FSDE can't hold power worth squat compared to some of the other Japanese engines out there, but it was a swell car... too bad the Protys that could actually get a non-fan's juices flowing, the MP3s and MSPs were made in such small numbers.

The 626/6 question is another conundrum. Having one (a 626) and having driven the other (6), I can honestly say they're as good as or better than the Accords and Galants of their time (in the 6's case... much better in some ways). There's just that little thing missing for people to take them seriously, I guess.

Mazda's woes with the RX-series is understandable. In terms of the meticulous maintenance needed, the reliability issues (whether factual or not) and the undeniable thirst for gas for the amount of torque and horsepower you get... well... ...nice cars, but the rotary was (and still is) a double edged sword.

Ditto on the LS... how Lincoln failed to capture people's imagination with such a cool car is beyond me. Put it in the right wrapper, like the Mustang (okay, so it's been developed some more, but it's still on the same basic chassis) and people go ga-ga over it.

And the MR2? Suffers from hair-dryer syndrome. No matter how much technology and coolness Toyota stuffs into it, people still don't take it seriously. Which is sad, as it should be a definite Miata competitor, but it isn't.

I think the Hyundai Coupe also deserves a nod. People pass over it because it's a Hyundai... but it's got good looks and decent performance for the price... great space for a 2+2, too. Plus, to the non-car person who has little to no idea of brand snobbery, it looks impressive.

The Camaro, new GTO, RSX, NSX, etcetera... Not overlooked by fans and the press, maybe, but not enough people voted for them with their wallets, either.

 

[Carl.]

^^ Ditto on the Protege, although that doesn't apply to our local market, here they sold like hotcakes.

This has been grossly overlooked, too (myselft included):

I'd be hard pressed to find any argument that favors buying an Escape, Tribute or a Rav4 over this, and yet I see much more of these on the road.

 

[High-Test]

That's because arguments against the Forester simply don't exist. It is sad that there aren't very many around.

 

[Master_Yoda]

They looked pissed off... I love it

 

[opendriver]

Ford SHO V-8...

 

[Tornado]

You have to help me out a bit here. Are you talking about Yugo or Murkur? Also, are you aware of their reliability issues at all? They are both considered to be the most unreliable cars of their time. Contour would be like the most reliable Toyota, ever, compared to those two cars. NO JOKE!

I know how bad the Murkurs could be. I was going after your groundless comparison to the Yugo. There was never anything wrong with the Yugo, period. The only reason they ever broke was because people bought them as throw-away cars, and often refused to do even the most basic of maintenance (such as oil changes). And that's not even factoring in anti-Soveit bias that I'm sure helped the image of the car a god distance.

Ford SHO V-8...

I fail to see how a limited-production vehicle is overlooked in anyway when it was designed from the start to be a low-volume seller.

At the LS and Catera: 👍 I'm surprised I didn't think of them. The Catera had a deathly reliability quotient though (though it was stil the best Cadillac of the 90's). It really is too bad about the LS though. Lincoln gets the "BMW beater" even more right than Cadillac has with the current Catera, and they just sit their unsold for 6 years. Even the big bump in power wasn't enough to sell them.

At the MR2: The most recent one? It may have not have sold due to practicality reasons. It may have been nicer and sportier than the Miata, but it sure wasn't as easy to live with. I'm just sad that Toyota never made their own version of the Lotus Elise. They had the engine and all they needed to do was put it in.

 

[IMADreamer]

...An Epsilon-based Malibu LS? I would have to agree with you there. It is pretty bland, but thats okay. I drove one of the Epsilon-based Malibu LT's with the 3500 and the 4L80E, and although it isnt the fastest V6 sedan in the market, it was the cheapest that I looked at at the time.

...Seriously though, don't write off all of the Malibus. The Chevrolet Malibu SS from 2006+ is a pretty good ride, and with the 244HP 3.9L V6, it packs a punch. Unfortunately, you cannot get the Chevy with a manual, as that is reserved for the Pontiac G6 GTP (essentially the same car, a little less bland).

I think it is really dissapointing that the Malibu has not recieved the reputation that it deserved. When Motor Trend compared the Chevrolet Malibu LT vs Honda Accord LX vs Toyota Camry XLE vs Mitsubishi Galant GTS, the Malibu actualy beat out the Camry, but the lack of power and refinement were killers. But if youre looking for a cheap alternative, shes a good car.

...Good news, GM is bringing out a next-gen Epsilon-based Malibu in 2008 or 2009, and they keep comparing it to the old 1955-1957 Bel-Air... Could it be that good?

I am interested in what GM does with the Malibu. The one my dad bought is a huge step in the right direction. It seriously lacks in the gadgetry department that you get with the Camary but for basic transportation and a nice peppy V6 it can't be beat. He got a left over 05 for 14k. Camary can't touch that price.

I have to ask this, but does anyone really consider the NSX as underrated? If anything I think it is overrated and out dated. I am looking forward to what they come up with next because the NSX is way behind it's competition. The Lotus Elise, Z06, Viper, and any Ferrari after the 355 will easily put that car in it's place. Maybe in it's hayday the NSX was underrated but not now. All the kiddies think they are uber cool and gods gift to the motoring world. "oh my god it's a honda and it's a super car." Honestly 10 years ago it was fantastic. Now it's like a nice nostalgia thing. Remember when Honda rocked the world with the NSX? yeah, that was so cool.

 

[YSSMAN]

On Mazda: I think it is almost within reason to say that the brand as a whole is completely overlooked. They make quite a few great cars and SUVs, and although many of the pieces they use in their vehicles are off-the-shelf pieces from other Ford product lines, Mazda has managed to make all of them their own. Now we see Ford dipping into Mazda's portfolio, using the 6's structure for the Fusion/Milan/Zeypher, Edge/MKX, etc. The Duratec that was re-designed by Mazda made it's way back into the Ford lineup as well...

Like Niky said, they are overlooked because everyone goes "ga-ga" over Hondas and Toyotas. It really is a shame, as a good number of their models are cheap and fun to drive, and often times are more reliable than some of the competition.

On the Catera: I don't think that it was the fact that the car was bad bay any means, as it really was GM's first true attempt at matching the 3-series, but it just did not live up to the Cadillac name. I think the problem was that although it was marginally popular, it was a forgetable model between the crappy GM of the '80s, and the lean and mean GM of today. The CTS is possibly the best thing that could have happened to Cadillac in the aftermath of the Catera, but not everything about the car was bad either. Atleast we got to see the Monaro/GTO come out of it...

On the LS: Like the Catera, I don't think the car deserved the fate that it recieved. At the introduction of the model, the car was actually well recieved and sold rather well (atleast here in Michigan), but as time passed, the model faded. I've had a chance to ride (no drives...) in several LS' over the years, both V6 and V8 models, and I came away quite impressed despite my overall bias against Ford and their products. In the later years of the car, I can see why the car failed... The competition got lighter and faster, and far exceeded where the LS was meant to compete. Sure, Ford hired out McLaren to tune the car up, attempted to add more power, but the car still was not as much fun as the 3-series or the G35.

 

[a6m5]

I know how bad the Murkurs could be. I was going after your groundless comparison to the Yugo. There was never anything wrong with the Yugo, period. The only reason they ever broke was because people bought them as throw-away cars, and often refused to do even the most basic of maintenance (such as oil changes). And that's not even factoring in anti-Soveit bias that I'm sure helped the image of the car a god distance.

OK, I know about Merkur's reliability issues from people who had owned them, but not on Yugos. I did not know a single person who bought Yugo, so I'm going by the reputation Yugos had. I don't know if that's completely groundless though. They had absolutely undisputed reputation as a car that broke down often. You are claiming that owners did not change oils, etc. and that's why the cars broke. You are stating this as a fact. In order for you to be right, you either interviewed thousands of Yugo owners, or there is some kind of report that shows that Yugo infact were reliable cars, but it was breaking down for the reason you claim. I don't know, Toronado. I can imagine that most of the kind of people who had bought a Yugo didn't know much about cars, so I can see them neglecting basic mainenance on their Yugos. But I have very hard time believing that this "false" reputation built up due to that, and not because of the actual problems with the Yugo cars themselves.

Also, was Yugo really a Russian car? I thought Yugo was based on a old Fiat(Italy) design, and built by Yugo(Yugoslavia)?

 

[Leonidae]

and american fanatics have taken over the thread even though we didn't have any terrorists here. bummer.. I wonder when they're going to bring up oldsmobile..

 

[Master_Yoda]

After all the info YSSMAN gives about GM turning around i think i'm starting to like American Cars. It way sound wierd me saying it, but it's true. Forza helped to... I was playing aorund with the 06' Vette.. What a fun car.


Anyways, on the Malibu, i totally agree, over looked car, i think it looks great, havn't seen many of them though. Wouldn't mind owning one, but I want manual...


On the other hand, anyone elese think that the NSX is over looked? I mean i've seen more Enzo's then this car. Which is frankly sad... Cause I absolutly love that car, and it's nothing near slow... I mean it's called a Super Car.. It has less then 300hp... COME ON PEOPLE!!!

 

[Gil]

I have to throw the Cobalt into the mix.
I haven't driven one yet. But it's "numbers" are good.

I just feel that it looks too much like the car it replaces for anyone to take it too seriously.

I think the Aztec/Rendevous should have been overlooked.

 

[IMADreamer]

I have to throw the Cobalt into the mix.
I haven't driven one yet. But it's "numbers" are good.

I just feel that it looks too much like the car it replaces for anyone to take it too seriously.

I think the Aztec/Rendevous should have been overlooked.

After driving a Cobalt SS this morning I definately have to throw it in the mix. That car will suprise some people for sure. It's got some scoot and the interior is decent.

 

[Rogue Ssv]

Nissan Quest
BMW 318ti

 

[YSSMAN]

On the NSX: I don't really know where exactly to place the car, as I suppose it would depend on what period of time we are talking about that particular car. Roll the clock back to say, 1991, and it would be one of the best sportscars money could buy, bar none. It was "cheap" by comparison to the Ferraris and Porsches it competed with, and offered comparibly better performance as well. But fast-forward to now, and I would call it overrated, as it never really changed... It is more of a has-been, not an overlooked car.

...If I may for a moment define "overlooked":
I was looking to identify cars that have been sold brand-new since 1990 that were models that were there, and truely were great cars, but generally speaking have been ignored by the press and the public. Of course, there are varying degrees of "overlooked," but youre kinda looking for cars that are there but never get much credit for being there.

...For example, the Accord would not be an "overlooked" model, as millions of people own them, and they have recieved so much positive press that they are popular models throughout the world. On the opposite side of the Honda spectrum, the Acura CL would be an overlooked model as it was fun to drive, good looking, and was quite fast for a FWD car. But they never sold very well, and was dumped quickly when the next-gen Acuras debuted.

 

[Rogue Ssv]

Oh yeah... and the Infinity... er... what is it? Q45?
You know the one without a grill... whichever one it was. A good car but due to lack of grill, not too popular.