Focus vs Cruze vs Corolla vs Civic (Hyundai, Kia, VW)
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Well there you have it. Depending on which poster you listen to, each and every car in the class is either junk, or perfect. Now you have the answer, time to go shopping...
The only one I can speak to is the Mazda 3. I had a 2016 model and it was so under powered at lower rpm it was "extremely" unsafe. I do not know how that vehicle could have made it to production.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,705 posts, read 58,042,598 times
Reputation: 46172
Quote:
Originally Posted by Me007gold
Like others have said, you are leaving out the best in the class. The Golf/GTI.
"best"
true they are a BLAST to drive "Drivers Wanted"...
the new warranty is tempting...
plan to live next door to dealership
NEVER buy an automatic transmission designed in Germany (where everyone uses a manual tranny)
NEVER use the electric windows (no drive-ups)
NEVER use the plastic door handles if you have freezing rain or bitter cold. (Stay home for a few months )
That said.. they are really fin to drive!
Try one, you might get HOOKED (like me) (GTD's only not gas (ick) powered)
when I rent I always ask for a Focus (I HATE CVT (Nissan (and now Toyota) garbage) great if you like driving a snowmobile)
hint: these are NEW / slightly used AND if they break, I get a free replacement.
Anything Korean or GM is smooshy ride. (Think Buick / Cadillac / cruise ship)
Yes, and Ford has paid out a handsome sum to make this issue go away. I'm well aware of this. But what does "problematic" mean? The underlying issue isn't that the transmission is actually defective - it's that it's designed (poorly!) to function in a way someone who expects an automatic does not expect. Honestly, Ford should have just stuck in a CVT from the C-Max/Fusion hybrids into the Focus and Fiesta and called it good, but here we are.
Don't forget Lehto is an attorney, so he is not exactly an independent third party.
NEVER buy an automatic transmission designed in Germany (where everyone uses a manual tranny)
And yet, VW's DSG (which is not a conventional torque converter, but to most people qualifies as "automatic" as it lacks a third pedal) is widely-recognized as one of the best in the industry.
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NEVER use the electric windows (no drive-ups)
Huh?
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NEVER use the plastic door handles if you have freezing rain or bitter cold. (Stay home for a few months )
Again, huh???
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Anything Korean or GM is smooshy ride. (Think Buick / Cadillac / cruise ship)
Anything with a DCT or CVT transmission is junk and you will most likely hate driving it anyway.
They started putting that Auto start/stop crap on the cruze a couple years ago I believe and that is the most annoying thing every put on a car. Every time you stop at a red light or stop sign, the stupid car shuts off. It restarts when you take your foot off the brake. It is only a matter of time until it starts lagging on restarts and you sit there for a few seconds with foot on the gas and nothing happening. There is no way to turn it off on most of the GM cars either. I rented an impala with it and could not wait to get that car back to Enterprise. Never again will I rent a car with that crap on it.
Either the corolla or civic will be good choices. Go test drive each and decide which you like the best.
They started putting that Auto start/stop crap on the cruze a couple years ago I believe and that is the most annoying thing every put on a car. Every time you stop at a red light or stop sign, the stupid car shuts off. <...>There is no way to turn it off on most of the GM cars either.
Start-stop is a feature made popular in Europe where they are a lot more concerned about CO2 at idle than us. It's on most Euro cars, including Porches and Lamborghinis. It is also monumentally annoying, especially because it turns off power assists such as steering. Imagine having your wheels pointed slightly to the left while stopped - what happens if someone hits you from behind?
Luckily on all cars that had SS that I've driven, there was a button to turn it off. Unfortunately you had to do it every time you re-started the car. Seems Chevy didn't bother including that button, which is moronic to me.
Focus RS > Civic Type R > Focus ST > Civic Si > Civic base > Focus base > Cruze > Corolla.
The Focus RS and ST are less than 50% american. The RS is only 15% American, which is also why it's the best of the class. The Type R is 15% American, some people prefer it to the RS, but IMHO AWD > FWD
Be careful when quoting those domestic content percentages. Those domestic content percentages are severely flawed in many cases. These numbers are really useless as there are some loopholes that certain manufacturers use to drastically overstate the domestic content percentage. (The big one being how sub-assemblies are classified.)
There are also things that can understate the domestic content percentage as well. (In a big way.)
Unfortunately, there is no good way to get a "real" number unless you are really familiar with the car, where each component is really produced, whether or not they utilize subassemblies, etc. If the classification rules were changed to an appropriate method then it would be more useful. Would be happy to post more facts on why if people want but don't want to hijack the thread.
Location: Removing a snake out of the neighbor's washing machine
3,095 posts, read 2,040,022 times
Reputation: 2305
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sharks With Lasers
I'm thinking of buying a relatively compact car. What would you recommend? I'm concerned about price, reliability, and ratings, but also about American content (which ironically, sometimes the Japanese automakers have a higher percentage of than American ones do.)
So of the four I listed in the title - which would you recommend? I'm thinking either new or slightly used (like within two years or so.)
I'm surprised the Cruze is even in this list - it seems bigger, at least taller, than the other contenders. I test drove my uncle's, handled decently, and yes, it has a sunroof, not that my elderly uncle knows even how to slide the shade open, lol.
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(GTD's only not gas (ick) powered)
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