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The Best Cars

The best cars  

35 members have voted

  1. 1. Where do you think the best cars are made?

    • Europe
      25
    • America
      1
    • Asia(Japan mostly)
      9
    • Somewhere else(where?)
      0


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As I said earlier, I am not disputing that they are darn cheap for what you get.

I just read a article which says that Holden have just developed a twin turbo kit which will raise the GTS power from 411 bhp to a whopping 603 bhp. Apparently it is scheduled for release in the first half of 2007.

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Someone needs their head checked if they think that is a good looking car, maybe the ubiquitousness(sp?) of the car in Australia colours my opinion, but there is nothing there that is the least bit attractive. Spoilers are a strict no no for any decently styled car, except perhaps for road versions of race cars.

There is one thing though, I guess it is because of the tax regime, but Australian made cars are darn cheap. Crazily cheap. That and misguided patriotism is why they sell a lot. They do keep improving of course, but they aren't there yet, not by a long way.

Beauty is subjective!This one has an aggressive look that i always find attractive, especially when accompanied with a powerful engine(even though the 6.0 liter engine could do better than 360 bhp).Personally i prefer a car that would be affordable to drive all day and still powerful!

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Beauty is subjective!This one has an aggressive look that i always find attractive, especially when accompanied with a powerful engine(even though the 6.0 liter engine could do better than 360 bhp).Personally i prefer a car that would be affordable to drive all day and still powerful!

According to the review i posted when Vauxhall get their hands on the SSV they will get a extra 50 bhp out of the engine so it will produce over 410 bhp in England.

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The global car industry is of course now very incestuous. In the next twenty years there will probably be only a handful of players, all swallowing up the niche brands. These will probably be Volkswagen, Toyota, Ford and GM. Platform sharing and co operation of development engines is now rife in the industry. Personally i find this a real shame as the nuances that made certain manufacturers individual are dissapearing as engineers iron out the quirks. Conversely this also secures the future of brands that would have now gone to the wall, namely Jaguar, Aston Martin, Lamborghini etc.

The quality gap is closing all the time. These days it's more about brand perception than actual discernable differences. This is why BMW continue to out sell Ford in the '3- series' sector 3 to 1. The Mondeo is great product but lacks badge kudos. Having said this, there are manufacturers who clearly lead the the rest for quality. In the case of interiors, Audi are well ahead. Honda make beautifully engineered engines and BMW are masters of suspension design and set up. It is only in the area of tactile delight and 'surprise and delight' features tha the prestige brands can clearly distinguish themselves from lesser brands.

Britain has been guilty of complacency and a lack of invesment. BMW gave Rover the chance to succeed but their workers were not willing to make the sacrifices necessary. Based on this, the British motor car industry has only got itself to blame. We would do well to learn from this business model as we are in danger of being surpassed in other sectors by developing countries too.

The major players must now invest heavily in fuel cell and electric hybrid technology to meet the challenges that our world faces from enviromental demands.

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Very insightful post!

But what about Renault?????????????

;)

*gets out special dribbler crystal ball and puts on mysterious wizard style cape*

Oh, yeah, Renault......they get bought by Fiat who are owned by Toyota. Ralf Schumacher (65 year old chairman and still grossly over payed) instructs his Fiat M.D. (brother Michael) to liquidate Renault with immediate effect. Majority share holder Pat Symonds objects and is found in a concrete bridge with a mass damper sticking out of his arse.

Joking aside, Renault will be bought by Ford. Renault already own Nissan who have strong links with Ford, maybe.

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*gets out special dribbler crystal ball and puts on mysterious wizard style cape*

Oh, yeah, Renault......they get bought by Fiat who are owned by Toyota. Ralf Schumacher (65 year old chairman and still grossly over payed) instructs his Fiat M.D. (brother Michael) to liquidate Renault with immediate effect. Majority share holder Pat Symonds objects and is found in a concrete bridge with a mass damper sticking out of his arse.

Joking aside, Renault will be bought by Ford. Renault already own Nissan who have strong links with Ford, maybe.

Ok I don't like that future for my beloved Renault at all!

I take back the "insightful post" from my previous post so there! :mf_tongue:

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Joking aside, Renault will be bought by Ford. Renault already own Nissan who have strong links with Ford, maybe.

Thought Renault were trying to take over GM in the same way that Daimler Benz "merged" with Chrysler? Tried it with AMC some years ago I believe. FIAT are probably the next one's down the pan, and Ford are looking rather wobbly these days. JCB want to buy Jaguar from them, which would bode well for a new breed of luxury earthmoving equipment.....

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Definately Europe. My favourite sports cars are Porsches and SLR McLaren's.

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Thought Renault were trying to take over GM in the same way that Daimler Benz "merged" with Chrysler? Tried it with AMC some years ago I believe. FIAT are probably the next one's down the pan, and Ford are looking rather wobbly these days. JCB want to buy Jaguar from them, which would bode well for a new breed of luxury earthmoving equipment.....

Hmmm, walnut bucket or magnolia hide seat? The options could be endless.

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I tried it only to see what happens because i actually feel sorry for the car!!Nothing challenging though!If you don't know what to expect you could be suprised though!!

I've got a little Dukes of Hazzard Replica Geo Metro and it is quite fun to pull the e-brake and slide around corners. As long as you aren't stupid enough to do it with other cars or people around you should be fine.

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FIAT - Fehler in allen Teilen.

Always low in _every_ ranking. Dosen't matter if we are talking about "quality" or just consumer raports.

Alfa Romeo - low bulid quality. AR 147 and AR156 are less safe than Rover 110. And of course .. "next model will be better" = "next year will be mine (DC)".

I don't know how in other countries, but in Poland 3-4 year old AR156 is often cheaper, than Honda Civic or VW Golf.

http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_rat...1=2&id2=108

Just look at these rankings, and places of cars from italy.

http://img430.imageshack.us/my.php?image=a...xxxltcm8ap8.jpg

Saab - nothing interesting, at the moment it's just Opel in another design :(

You think Merc and BMW are good in ECNAP? Nothing special, but just look at older models.

http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_rat...d1=3&id2=18

http://www.euroncap.com/content/safety_rat...d1=3&id2=15

Merc for me is .. "taxi" car, and good for porno stars and snobs. They have huge problems with quality for several years.

BMW .. not bad, but fans of BMW :( Ehh ....

Renault, Citoren, Pug .. nothing to talk about. Like always. Cheap, problems with electronic, with reliability (Laguna 2, or 307, C4). Maybe little better than FIAT. But were so good, than in the USA, no french car have official dealer. But Citroen DS or SM were nice ;)

Volvo .. nice car, but Subaru is better, specialy if we are talking about 4 wheel drive. And smaller models (S40) weren't so good .. And now "v50" have the same platform as Ford uuuuuu :(

VW - overpraised. Poor 1.4, 1.6, V5 engines. Only diesels are quite interesting.

And Porsche. "Sportcars" which have 30% from Opel (924), and VW (914, 924 also). And Cayenne .. VW Touareg (SUV) in diffrent body. Too much 911 on the roads to make it interesting car.

So .. I can't find any interesting car in Europe :D

Maybe "supercars" like Zonda, Ferrari, some Porsche, TVR, I remember Vector. Nice cars. So in this category Europe is on top. Maybe also if we are talking about design. I like AR in that category, also Megane 2, C4 are nice and not typical.

But I prefer Japanese cars. Often very reliable, 3 years warranty ;) ... good mechanical quality. Not to expensive. In bying and runing. And very "meaty" (?). Lancer Evo and Subaru Impreza STI are unbeaten as a "group N" rally cars. In Europe they have cult status. Pajero dominated Paris-Dakar rally. Japanese cars (Pajero, LandCruiser, Suzuki models) are very popular in offroad racing. Supras, 3000GT, Civic Type-R, Integras are very good for tuning.

I'm not talking about US cars, beacuse I'm not fan 70' engineering :D;)

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Germans, Italians and us brits make the best cars in the world!

But what are you making? Civic? :D:D;) Or Jaguar, with Mondeo chasis and engines? :P

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Well we all know that cars from different countries carry different philosophies and of course different qualities!Which part of the world gets your vote?Personally i drive a European car but i can't help but notice the extreme reliabilty and high quality of the Japanese cars :eusa_think: !What do you think? B)

'Best' is at the best contentious.

I voted for Japan because they make great cars at good prices. I can get a top of the end New Honda Civic for around 29,000 USD on the road. A Mercedes lower end model would cost twice that much, easily, ex showroom.

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'Best' is at the best contentious.

I voted for Japan because they make great cars at good prices. I can get a top of the end New Honda Civic for around 29,000 USD on the road. A Mercedes lower end model would cost twice that much, easily, ex showroom.

The Japanese like to create cars that are all talk and not much action. They make a nice noise but when you put your foot down not alot happens. European cars also make a nice noise but they have the power to back that nose up.

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The Japanese like to create cars that are all talk and not much action. They make a nice noise but when you put your foot down not alot happens. European cars also make a nice noise but they have the power to back that nose up.

:D The only time I can put my foot down in the traffic here is after midnight, even then it's dangerous, or if I am driving on a 4 or six lane highway. That's the only time I need it. They have enough power for quick bursts through heavy traffic though.

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:D The only time I can put my foot down in the traffic here is after midnight, even then it's dangerous, or if I am driving on a 4 or six lane highway. That's the only time I need it. They have enough power for quick bursts through heavy traffic though.

But dont you agree that for the most part the Japanese create really boring looking cars. There are afew exceptions in my opinion like the MX-5 and the RX-8 but for the most part my original statement stands.

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But dont you agree that for the most part the Japanese create really boring looking cars. There are afew exceptions in my opinion like the MX-5 and the RX-8 but for the most part my original statement stands.

7th. gen Civic is boring ?? And maybe VW Golf mkV is "fun to drive", and dosen't look like a tank ;) The most "boring" cars ale german in my opinion. Fox, Polo, Golf, Passat ... all these look like made from brick. Nothing interesting. Extremly dull cars for older people.

PS: But yes, now it's a little bit diffrent, but most of japanese cars were boring.

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Chevrolet Caprice Tops Middle East Luxury Award

Aussie-built Chevrolet Caprice takes Best Luxury Car award.

Judges for this year's Autocar Middle East Awards have deemed the Australian-built Chevrolet Caprice Best Luxury Car for 2006.

Flagship in GM Holden's range for export, the Chevrolet Caprice pipped Volvo S80 AWD and Lexus ES350 for the honour.

"The Caprice represents unbeatable value given its list of standard features, size and that six-litre V8 engine," Autocar Editor and chief judge, Damien Reid said.

"Given that it's an all-new model, our judges were impressed by the improvement in build quality, ride and overall refinement over the previous model. As it was judged against its competitors the panel found this latest version had retained many qualities which makes this style of car so popular to Middle Eastern customers," Reid added.

According to GM Holden, the first shipment of export versions of Commodore, Statesman and Caprice to the Middle East was dispatched in September 2006. The cars, prepared as the Chevrolet Lumina and Chevrolet Caprice, are exported throughout the Middle East as part of Australia's longest and largest automotive export program.

GM Holden Export Manager, Emma Pinwill, said receiving the Best Luxury Car Award was an important milestone for GM Holden's export program to the Middle East, which justified the $190 million investment in the development of the WM series.

"It is a great honour to be recognized in the Middle East as our success there has supported GM Holden in taking the WM series to a whole new level of design and engineering," Pinwill said.

In 2005 Holden last year exported 60,518 vehicles around the world, a record for the company since its export program started in 1954. Cars were sent to every continent except Antarctica.

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Vauxhall's Aussie M5 Unleashed

Here's something to make you forget about congestion charging, road pricing and ever more tax on the motorist. For just

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