Keep Shopping: 10 New Cars to Avoid

Shopping for a new car is like navigating a minefield, doubly so when times are tough and money is tight. You never want to regret your decision, but with more than 450 different vehicles to choose from, how do you separate the good from the bad?

The good news is that most cars today are at least pretty good. The bad news is that there is still some bad picks out there, and not always from where you think. That's where this article comes in. I've listed 10 cars you should just scratch right off your shopping list before you even get started. Whether they're grossly uncompetitive, poorly built, unsatisfying to drive or all of the above, they're not worth buying. If I missed one, or if you disagree, sound off in the comments!

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2009 BMW X6

Five years ago, when I assume the BMW X6 was proposed, it probably sounded like a good idea. Take the BMW X5, make it a chop-top, beef up the engine and suspension and make it the world's first sport-sedan-crossover-utility-vehicle thing. Problem is, the final product suffers from a acute case of weight (nearly 4,900 lbs), low grade materials (especially in the rear seat and cargo areas), and high price. The fact that BMW recently introduced an M version doesn't help. The X6 does nothing that other BMWs don't do better, except get "what was that guy thinking" stares from other drivers.

Instead get a 2009 BMW x5. It's roomier, handles almost as well, looks better inside and out, and has a lower price tag. It's also coming in an M version, so you won't miss out on the X6's extra available power.

2009 Chevy Aveo

Once, Chevy was cheered for having the Aveo in it's lineup. Now, it's jeered for one simple reason: The 2009 Chevy Aveo is worst in class. On paper it sounds good, with a competitively powerful engine, competitively sized package and competitive price. But the Aveo falls all over itself in execution. It's noisy. It's slow. It's poorly thought out. For every feature it has, it seems there's a flaw that ruins it. For example, the rear seats fold down on the hatchback Aveo 5, which is good, but the posts for the seatback latch stick out so far that they'll ruin whatever you put back there, which is bad. And so on.

Instead get a 2009 Honda Fit. It's just a better car in every way, has more features, and costs only a tiny bit more. While it's true the Fit doesn't have the big incentives of an Aveo, there's a very good reason for that.

2009 Chevy Colorado/2009 GMC Canyon

There's absolutely no reason why the Chevy Colorado and it's twin, the GMC Canyon, should be so poorly done. With lackluster engines, ugly and cheap interiors, miserable driving experiences and only so-so capabilities, it's as if they we're designed in a vacuum, with no eye toward the competition. GM stuffed a V-8 engine under the hood last year, but all that does is make it a quicker crappy truck.

Instead get a 2009 Toyota Tacoma. Sure, the Taco is ubiquitous with just about everybody, but that's because Toyota has the compact truck formula nailed. There's no V-8 option, but you don't need it since the V-6 is plenty powerful.

2009 Chrysler Sebring/2009 Dodge Avenger

Not long ago, my neighbor asked me what she should buy to replace her aging mid-90s Chevy Lumina. I told her the usual selection of the Cam-cord-ima-bu-nata-6 would probably suit her just fine, and that she should also take a close look at the Ford Fusion. I finished it off by saying that any car in that category is a good pickthen I corrected myself. Stay away from the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Avenger. Not only are they ugly, they're cheaply made and filled with the greasiest, hardest, ugliest plastics you'll ever see. They drive poorly, have noisy engines and are as grossly uncompetitive as any car could be.

Instead get, well, anything else. The field is filled with good cars, and any of them are better than these two. Heck, I'd recommend the Mitsubishi Galant over the Sebring/Avenger, because at least it has halfway decent driving dynamics.

Chrysler Sebring Convertible

I'm a convertible fan. Love 'em. Don't actually own one, for numerous reasons, but I used to believe that cutting the top off a car would absolve it of most of it's sins. Then I drove the Chrysler Sebring Convertible. The Sebring itself is no winner by any stretch of the imagination. Cutting off the roof does nothing for the driving experience. Not only does it weigh more, and is therefore slower, but it doesn't even look any better. It's also still saddled with the same cheap-o interior, but hey, at least you can pay nearly $40,000 for the privilege.

Instead get a VW Eos. It looks about the same, complete with droopy-eyed headlights, but it has Volkswagen's excellent 2.0T engine and DSG automatic, plus a cool convertible mechanism that doubles as a sunroof if you don't want to go fully topless.

2009 Dodge Caliber

The Dodge Caliber is an object lesson in getting all the pieces right, but failing anyhow. The Caliber seems to have it all: A convenient five-door hatchback shape, roomy interior, a selection of fuel efficient and powerful engines, and even a high-horsepower sporty version. But it all fails to gel thanks to cheap plastics, horrible engine noises. piss-poor interior and exterior design and dozens of other shortcomings. Need a good argument for getting Fiat to build small Dodge cars? Test drive a Caliber.

Instead If you really need to march to the beat of a different drummer, get a 2009 Mitsubishi Lancer. It's based (very, very loosely) on the same platform, but looks great, drives well and it's sporty model, the Evo X, whomps the Caliber SRT4.

2009 Hummer H2

There are two reasons that Hummer sales have fallen off a cliff. First, thanks to increased environmental awareness, SUVs in general are about as fashionable as Whitesnake. Second, Hummer is a victim of it's own marketing. It was the biggest, baddest, gas-suckingest of them all, which was cool for a while in a screw-you-hippie kind of way. Now, the reality is laid bare: The Hummer H2 is an oversized, overstyled, overweight, overwrought pile of heavily modified Chevy Suburban that deserves to be sold off to a scrapyard in GM's current restructuring.

Instead join the Army if you want to drive something this big and dumb. Then you can actually live out all your fantasies about conquering new lands because you'll actually be doing it. Otherwise, if you want to go off road, just get a 2009 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited.

2009 Jeep Compass

While I'm on the subject of Jeeps, I must admit that I admire the brand's traditional roots. The Wrangler is great if you like off-road adventures, and same goes with the Grand Cherokee. But man, who the he'll green lighted the Compass? Take all the bad qualities of the Dodge Caliber above, make it even uglier, then give it absolutely no off-road ability whatsoever and call it a Jeep anyway. In Jeep's defense, the company did upgrade the interior this year, so at least that's tolerable. But any Jeep that's not capable of crawling over rough terrain is no Jeep in my book.

Instead if you really must have a car-based Jeep, get a 2009 Jeep Patriot. It's based off the same underpinnings, but has better wheel travel and a "Trail Rated" package that at least allows you to handle some rougher stuff.

2009 Smart ForTwo

Talk about a bloom coming off a rose. The Smart ForTwo was the epitome of cool urban transportation, and Smart took thousands of deposits for the microcar before they even imported the first one. Then, it turns out, the Smart isn't all that smart, really. The automatic transmission is dismal, the car itself impractical even in it's city-car-only role, it's pricey for what you get, and it isn't even all that efficient. Now they're clogging up used car lots.

Instead get a 2010 Honda Insight Hybrid. The Insight is fuel efficient, small and cool, but can carry extra people and stuff that the Smart couldn't touch. Sure, it's more expensive, but it's worth it.

2009 VW New Beetle

You can thank, or blame, the VW New Beetle for introducing the world to retro styling back in the 90s. The little Golf-based hatchback shared nothing but a superficial appearance and a name with the original air-cooled version, but it sold like mad at first. But people quickly caught on that they could get more from their dollars with a standard Golf, and the New Beetle languished. Even a refresh a couple of years ago can't hide the fact that this is basically a two-generations old Volkswagen Golf with pretty clothes.

Instead if you want a retro-styled hatchback, the more modern 2009 Mini Cooper is a better choice.

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Posted in Auto sales Post Date 10/12/2024