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Dec. 16, 2009 1:40 p.m. mndsm Reader

DirtyBird222 wrote:

Yea the Prius...the biggest carbon footprint on the road....not so much car of the decade. Production of the batteries and the toll that takes on the environment vs. the emissions and gasoline it supposedly saves...HAHAHAHAHAH.

JFX I agree with you on the Caddy.

What about the S2000? Honda showed it has the capabilities to make a Front Engine Rear Wheel Drive vehicle that is dare I say it....FUN! It's a shame they put the car to rest, but for a vehicle that was only supposed to be around for a couple of years anyways, it had a very good 10 year run, and still strikes fear into Miata owners hearts. VVVVVVVVVVVVVTEC POP! And like the last sentence it brought a competitor to the market that the Miata had been single handedly dominating for a decade and then we got the Solstice/Sky and now the Miata is all by it's lonesome again.

Which begs the question.... which one was the best? I gotta go with the one that's had 3 generations, a host of variants, a limited edition turbo model, and is still one of the most capable track cars out there. Too bad it started in 89.
Dec. 16, 2009 1:52 p.m. Adrian_Thompson Reader

mndsm wrote:

Hrm....

WRX- I'd go with that based on the AWD to the masses thing, but the DSM triplets did it a decade earlier. Sure they were absolutely useless as a 4 seater, but it's hard to argue with a 20 year old ancient tech car that people STILL seek on a regular basis.
Or the Gallant GR4 did prior to that, or the GTX did before that or the Quattro did before that….. Old news
mndsm wrote:

ZR1-Z06- Corvette has continually been the standard for hot rod cars at bargain basement prices for about the last...... forever. Except for the stint with the late c3-early c4....... GM was regularly dropping bombs on the Germans and Italians with that one since the 1st Bush administration.
1st Busch, try Eisenhower !
mndsm wrote:

Caddy CTS-V- I like this. I like it a ton. Granted the whole stuff a hot motor in a nice car and make it stupid fast is nothing new, BUT- I don't think it's been executed as well dollar for dollar in the last 10 years.
Big engine, small car, shrug, that goes back to the pony cars of the 60's again old news
mndsm wrote: MINI- Ok, yes we all know I have one by now, and we are all probably sick of hearing it. But I love this little bugger. With the exception that I consider the seats in the thing to be torture devices, it's an awesome little go-mobile. Enough room to haul the groceries, enough look to do it in style, and enough power (at least in the S variants) to do it with a relative sense of urgency. I think it almost redefined the retro game, which had previously been held by that silly PT Cruiser, and the close but no cigar Prowler.
What about numerous other small cars that have been success. Ka, 500, Peugeot 205, Golf (Rabbit) etc etc. Nothing to see here ladies and gentlemen, please move on…..
mndsm wrote: Elise- wicked track car, with a Toyota motor... a car with very little compromise. Hard to beat.
Small, light sports car using an engine from another manufacturer, now that's a new one.. Oh except the Elan, Spridget, heck pre war MG's..old as the hills
mndsm wrote: GTR- Hasn't been added to my knowledge, and I'm not going to lie, I despise that car. BUT- you have to admit, with more electronics than NASA and the ability to turn anyone into a hero, in a car that weighs as much as a Buick, it's done a LOT for the performance industry.
Except the Skyline has been around since most readers here parent's were in diapers.
mndsm wrote: Evo- see WRX. Mazdaspeed Protege- Bet you didn't think you'd see this one in here.... but with a basic suspension upgrade and a small turbo, this turned a basic econobox into quite the little barnstormer. The successor to that car, the Mazdaspeed3, is still one of the most lauded FWD compact rockets in the last decade, if not ever. Dodge and Subaru both built rocket hatchbacks after the Speed3 landed, and I have to believe the Speed3 was a big reason. The Speed owes its success to the Protege.
Again great car, old concept, Lotus Cortina?
mndsm wrote: Mazda3- sure it spawned the Speed3, but on its own, it stands the test. Still one of the best n/a compacts on the market, it redefined what was available in a car at a minimum price. My 1st one was 20k OTD, and it had everything and then some in a car costing 2x as much.

Prius- This one, yeah. Prior to the Prius people were are WTF batteries make the car start, gas makes the car GO. Prius changed that. With the Prius was ushered in a new consiousness in regards to mileage and "green" driving. Ecomodding as a whole owes a LOT to this car. They even build Escalades in hybrid, and the Prius started it.
Yup, I hate them and their owners but I see nothing that comes close
mndsm wrote: Tesla Roadster- While barely in production, you have to admire any car that gets as much coverage as the second coming of Christ- while only going "whirrrrrrrr".
Now that's a new one. Good candidate but I still think it comes in 2nd to the crappy little ecoturd.
mndsm wrote: That's what I got, for now.

mndsm wrote:
Dec. 16, 2009 1:56 p.m. Adrian_Thompson Reader

mndsm wrote:

DirtyBird222 wrote:

Yea the Prius...the biggest carbon footprint on the road....not so much car of the decade. Production of the batteries and the toll that takes on the environment vs. the emissions and gasoline it supposedly saves...HAHAHAHAHAH.

JFX I agree with you on the Caddy.

What about the S2000? Honda showed it has the capabilities to make a Front Engine Rear Wheel Drive vehicle that is dare I say it....FUN! It's a shame they put the car to rest, but for a vehicle that was only supposed to be around for a couple of years anyways, it had a very good 10 year run, and still strikes fear into Miata owners hearts. VVVVVVVVVVVVVTEC POP! And like the last sentence it brought a competitor to the market that the Miata had been single handedly dominating for a decade and then we got the Solstice/Sky and now the Miata is all by it's lonesome again.

Which begs the question.... which one was the best? I gotta go with the one that's had 3 generations, a host of variants, a limited edition turbo model, and is still one of the most capable track cars out there. Too bad it started in 89.

Come on, S2000!! Great car, I absolutly love it, but it's just a Honda Miata. The Miata while a copy of the elan of the 60's was revolutionary and could have been hailed the car of the 80's (or 90's) it misses the boat for this poll
Dec. 16, 2009 2:12 p.m. 4cylndrfury Dork

Adrian...seriously? Youre going to take a car of the decade thread and its suggestions, and bump them up against milestone cars from ALL TIME? WTF man. Chill out, contribute or go away
Dec. 16, 2009 2:23 p.m. mndsm Reader

Eh, they're all valid arguements........ though really, my arguements are just as inane for the most part. I'll allow it.
Dec. 16, 2009 2:27 p.m. alfadriver Dork

What's the criteria?

If it's sales, that's easy- F150. +750k/yr average. that's pretty darned important if you ask me.

Carwise- then the Camry- led sales for a decade.

But since this is a sporty car crowd- then Miata- outsold all other 2 seat sporty cars by a pretty wide margin. The elise is interesting, but, again, pretty insignificant- and even it's "tech" can be used in bad ways (see Aston Marting Vanquish- 2 tons of aluminum and carbon fiber, developed by Lotus)- so it's relativityy ain't that great.

Tech- that is a tough question, to be honest. While the press will laud the Pious, since it's hybrid an all, one has to give the high pressure diesels coming from VW a lot of cred for fuel economy. Tesla only qualifies for comment just to say that it's so insignificant as the F150 outsells it's total sum of sales for the entire life of it's line in ONE DAY. It isn't changing the face of cars by any measureable amount. Also, Honda, Toyota, and Ford had much more useful Hybrids on the market for most of the decade anyway. The pious was just the marketing model.

Mention the CTSV, and you just opened a can of worms of the high performance 4 door sedan. That being said, again, this market is insignificant, and few, if any of us, will ever be able to get a car from this class in the NEXT decade.

Me, personally? Toss up between the PZEV Focus, the PZEV 3.5l Taurus (that never needed to be sold), or the EcoBoost. All of them, I can say that I had a lot of input over the last decade.

Just for me, The Eric Car of the Decade, as decided upon by my personal criteria (therefore I am right), is the PZEV Focus.

Outside of that, it's just banter in a magazine.

Eric
Dec. 16, 2009 2:29 p.m. Giant Purple Snorklewacker SuperDork

The Lotus Elise/Exige.

Its the only new car I really really want since the 1995 M3 came out and thats enough to call it a decade.
Dec. 16, 2009 2:37 p.m. Adrian_Thompson Reader

4cylndrfury wrote:

Adrian...seriously? Youre going to take a car of the decade thread and its suggestions, and bump them up against milestone cars from ALL TIME? WTF man. Chill out, contribute or go away

Chill, I'm just having fun defending a car I personaly hate, but to your point yes. I see a car of the dacade not only having to stand up within it's own decade, but also inthe context of what's gone before. The ZR1 is an awesome car and I'd argue that no other car this decade has done the budget supercar better, but the fact that the ver model Corvette has been doing the same thing for pushing 60 years means I see it as no great feat.
Dec. 16, 2009 3:03 p.m. 4eyes Reader

MINI: What Adrian fails to realise is all the other cars he listed in the hot hatch category are not available (yet) in the U.S. The MINI proved to manufacturers that Americans WOULD pay premium prices for a well built, great handling, small hatchback. Even though their expert "focus groups" stated otherwise. The fact that the GTI did it two decades earlier and the lesson was forgotten in the 90's is moot. The WRX and EVO also brought stage rally to the U.S. media/population at large, and helped a lot of people realise that a performance car doesn't need a 427ci V8.
Dec. 16, 2009 3:33 p.m. mndsm Reader

4eyes wrote:

MINI: What Adrian fails to realise is all the other cars he listed in the hot hatch category are not available (yet) in the U.S. The MINI proved to manufacturers that Americans WOULD pay premium prices for a well built, great handling, small hatchback. Even though their expert "focus groups" stated otherwise. The fact that the GTI did it two decades earlier and the lesson was forgotten in the 90's is moot. The WRX and EVO also brought stage rally to the U.S. media/population at large, and helped a lot of people realise that a performance car doesn't need a 427ci V8.

Nope, just needs an LS1. Or turbos. Perhaps both. In that end, the LS9 gets pretty close to my vote for motor of the decade... just because it's gnarly, and based on old school tech. Otherwise Veyron engine, hands down. That is a thing of beauty.
Dec. 16, 2009 3:47 p.m. Hal HalfDork

Trying to get a consensus on "Car of the Decade" on a car enthusiast forum is like "herding cats". Never going to happen.

I obviously like Eric's choice of the PEZV Focus which most people know nothing about and don't realize its significance. The F-150 must be considered simply because of sales volume even though it never had any "breakthrough technology"

However, If the question was posed to "the man on the street" . Adrian is correct in saying that the Prius would be the most frequent choice.
Dec. 16, 2009 4:09 p.m. Brust Reader

I'd submit that it's the Forester XT, or the WRX wagon. Finally, the US gets a PRACTICAL sporty car. Oh, by the way, they're LEV's. Also, the Forester has 8" ground clearance. '04/'05 Forester XT's clear 60 in 5.3. The NA forester has been PZEV for a few years now- not to E36M3 in your cheerios, but really I think it edges out the focus. It's a true "all rounder" to use a cricket term.

I think for the manufacturer title its got to be Subaru. Making us realize that SUV's dont have to weight 5000lb and can get 20+ MPG combined without hybrid technology and with AWD. And they can be fun.
Dec. 16, 2009 4:12 p.m. fornetti14 Reader

Mini or WRX. I'm leaning towards the WRX from Subie.
Dec. 16, 2009 4:12 p.m. jrw1621 Dork

Many good arguments here.
As an outside comment I will say Ford Fusion.
It is the car that has me actually considering a Ford Sedan
Dec. 16, 2009 4:16 p.m. 4cylndrfury Dork

jrw1621 wrote:

Many good arguments here.
As an outside comment I will say Ford Fusion.
It is the car that has me actually considering a Ford Sedan

well if we were going for "cars that made me consider brand X again", Id have to say Cobalt SS/Saturn View RL/Pontiac G8 made me reconsider GM again...that is until they killed all 3
Dec. 16, 2009 4:26 p.m. mndsm Reader

4cylndrfury wrote:

jrw1621 wrote:

Many good arguments here.
As an outside comment I will say Ford Fusion.
It is the car that has me actually considering a Ford Sedan

well if we were going for "cars that made me consider brand X again", Id have to say Cobalt SS/Saturn View RL/Pontiac G8 made me reconsider GM again...that is until they killed all 3

To add a similar vote.... I always kinda liked pontiacs, the g8 was a brilliant machine, and I was well impressed with the interior. If only it was 5 years ago........ beyond that, NEW Taurus SHO. I gotta say I love the looks, like the interior, and AWD TT boosties is never a bad idea.
Dec. 16, 2009 4:37 p.m. TJ Dork

Hal wrote:

The F-150 must be considered simply because of sales volume even though it never had any "breakthrough technology"

This is why I proposed the car of the decade is the SUV. They sold like hotcakes at first, were great for the gas companies, reached a nice big peak late in the decade, and then earned the disrespect of the green crowd, and ended the decade as a symbol of all that is wrong with US auto manufacturing.
Dec. 16, 2009 4:47 p.m. AngryCorvair SuperDork

2005 Mustang.

I can't believe it took this long to get a mention.
Dec. 16, 2009 4:51 p.m. coll9947 New Reader

WRX
Dec. 16, 2009 4:53 p.m. Giant Purple Snorklewacker SuperDork

AngryCorvair wrote:

2005 Mustang.

I can't believe it took this long to get a mention.

I can't believe you mentioned it.

I was born in the decade that the Mustang was revolutionary. Color television was also new. If the Mustang had come as far as television technology you might even be on to something but its just a rehash of the same old ideas.
Dec. 16, 2009 5:01 p.m. Giant Purple Snorklewacker SuperDork

I am giving some more thought to this... because I just put da screws to Angry over the rustang not being innovative. I had previously voted for the Exige and its somewhat innovative at least in that it is constructed with insane bonding agents (glue) but its really just an effective use of power to weight... an old idea.

I am trying hard to come up with a really, truly innovative vehicle that appeared since 2000. Electric cars had been done, Hybrids too... there was a cool AWD electric mini with motors in the wheels I thought was cool but it was a concept that cost 1/2 a milllion and I don't know if it ever ran. PMD, direct injection... different flavors of the same thing...

Where is the showcase of all of these things wrapped into a unique package? Where is my flying car!?

My head hurts. I want an Exige. The Exige is the car of the berkeleying decade. thread
Dec. 16, 2009 6:19 p.m. P71 SuperDork

Hmmm...

My initial thought is WRX. That car did so much for our hobby and others. It came out in 02/03, put Subaru on the freaking map, is solely responsible for the huge growth of rally in the US (Rallycross, X-Games, WRC, Rally America, etc, etc), started a new compact HP war (SRT4, EVO STi, etc), and made wagons cool again.

Then I started reading the responses and came up Z06. It started the modern supercar HP war. Suddenly there was a Corvette that could embarrass any Ferrari, even in the corners! The C6 version did even more damage to the supercar world, introducing 505HP to the masses.

I also think the 05-08 Mustang is a candidate. That car revitalized Ford, had huge sales numbers, handles relatively well, and started the ponycar war again. And you guys know I hate Mustangs, so it's significant that I'm pointing it out!

Underdog Car of the Decade is the Pontiac GTO. Nobody bought them, cops ignore them, you get 400HP/400TQ w/ IRS and aluminum PBR brakes not to mention 28-30 MPG highway with the 6-Speed manual. Couple that with Ozzie build quality, GM's best interior until for 20 years, and a stupid-low price and you have a performance winner that's a bargain to boot!
Dec. 16, 2009 6:35 p.m. aussiesmg SuperDork

WRX came out in 93, just didn't come to the US of A until 02.

I am very interested in the new V6 Ecoboost engine from Ford, not yet made its impact known but looking good, a V6 with I4 economy and V8 power works for me.

Lincoln MKS.

http://www.fordoflondonderry.com/ford-eco-boost.aspx
Dec. 16, 2009 6:48 p.m. DirtyBird222 Dork

Shouldn't be any criteria when consider it to be the car of the decade because if it's going to be car of the decade there shouldn't be any restrictions.

And a decade is defined as 10 years correct? If the new millennium started in 2000, then this decade started the first day of the year 2000. So 1) 2000 2) 2001 3) 2002 4) 2003 5) 2004 6) 2005 7) 2006 8) 2007 9) 2008 10) 2009.... 10 years = a decade.
Dec. 16, 2009 7:11 p.m. Carson Dork

Some people argue that 2001 was the first year of the new millennium because the calender started in year 1, it went from 1 B.C. to 1 A.D. there was not a year 0.

I am not one of those people. 2010 for me will start a new decade. Just like the decade prior to this one was called the '90s not the '91-'00s.

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