First, Best and Worst Cars

[brokexj]

First: 1971 Pontiac Lemans, sat in my parents garage for 2 years when I was 14-16 getting rebuilt on a paperboy/auto parts lackey salary. New HO racing front suspension, 1-1/4 swaybar in front, 7/8 in back, 350/350. THat thing had a bench seat with a column shift and I loved it. It wuld cruise and go around the curves pretty well for a car that size. Had a chance to buy it back couple of years ago and didn't have the cash.

Worst: 1999 Ford Ranger 4x4, It was a Ford with auto hubs and was the reason I will only steal parts from a Ford now unless it's pre-85.

Best: 1994 Dodge Dakota 4x4, it was a good truck, did what I needed it to do at the time. Only broke on me once and it did it in a way that it let limp home. My brother in law still has it and it drives 16 miles round trip down the beach for 3+ years and other than no O/D, still going.

Homorable mention: A t-boned 72 Lemans 4 door parts car, my neighbors hated me for that thing. No doors on the drivers side, bent frame so only 3 wheels were on the ground at one time, would smoke that one tire, no exhaust, had to be careful with the steering wheel because of the broken windshiel hanging over it. ONly around for a few/couple of days.

 

[churky89]

First car ever driven:
1955 White/Yellow Buick Special 2 dr...Parents car...my Dad asked if I thought I could drive it home from the store(bout 2 blks)...he was shakin by the time I got to the driveway he found out I COULDN'T drive
First owened
1953 Chevy 4 dr rusted throughout auto trans POS

Best owened
1966 Mustang 289CI 3 spd all stock pretty quick for absolute stock
Speedo registered 130...decided to see one night if it would....when the
needle hit 130,the hood blew off....I went home and changed underwear

At present:
1989 Cherokee
4.0 I6 242 CI
EFI
Auto
PS PB(sometimes)
Air(N W)
4X4
This vehicle is slowly trying my patience and may lead to my being sent to a mental instustion

 

[andreas970]

First: 1980 toyota celica GT. I loved that thing. Got a lot of "use" out of the passenger seat, too.

Best: Probably my current DD... 2000 Accord Coupe... leather... very comfy.

Worst: Have to go with a 1983 School-bus-yellow Deisel Chevette I drove in high school. Didn't actually own it, it was a loaner from the rents... but man, was that a piece of crap. 0-60 in 3 days.. if you were lucky. Tires may as well have been off a bicycle. Single-speaker radio. Man... that was one heck of a car.

 

[IndyXJ]

Let's see...
First Car-76 Grand Prix I got for $800 with slicks and air suspension. I thought it was cool to put the air hose on it, etc. Had an anemic 400 in it and rated at only 180hp. Took it a while to get it started and finally the tranny went by. Ditched it for $200.

Got a free 79 Ford Fairmont-I know why it was free now. I knew when to add oil when I'd take a curve and the oil light would come on..then go out! It was a mess. I'd idle and it would leave black soot on the ground! Engine was working "fine" ahem, one night and next morning...wouldn't start. Mechanic said camshaft was broken. Junkyard for $50.

One of my FAVORITES--84 Plymouth Horizon!! Still ran when I had to sell it years later. 4spd. I was poor college kid and it needed front end work, couldn'tafford it, so I just bought used tires every 4 mos. Eventually a shock or something broke in back...the metal from it would poke holes in the trunk area. Too poor to fix. Eventually the exhaust...from around the cat on back just rusted off. I held it up with coax cable. Still kept running and used for college, work. Sold to mechanic type for about $300.
Had a 90 Corsica, it was okay.
95 Corsica-okay until ABS sensor went out and cost some$.
96 Corsica-one of my faves! 3.1 V6 that was very strong. Loved this car for what it was until me and the ex traded it in on a new 01 XJ. Wheeled it stock at the Badlands and Haspin a few times until a 4.5" lift on 32"s. Divorced, she wanted it so I had no argument(she took payment). It is still going strong albeit with some moderate body damage from years of wheeling.

99XJ i have now. Have ran Rockport, Haspin and Turkey Bay with it. Runs awesome without any problem. Got a manifold/exhaust leak and last trip to TB, I went between two trees that was a little too tight and smashed in my passenger door and broke the glass. It's unfixable, but at least it closes. Rear door has a dent. As well as the front fender on that side. Been too lazy to check it all out for wheeling trip to Turkey Bay again next month.

03 Ram-daily driver. 4.7 liter. I get about 15-16 a gallon, which I hear is great for this engine. No complaints. Rides like a Cadillac. Thinking of trading her in and FINALLY getting that TJ I always wanted though.

 

[98JeepXJ]

First car: 90 Cavalier, 2.2, Auto. The only thing that car could pass was a gas station. It got like 23-24mpg hammering it around town, and 35-40mpg on the highway. 95hp with an auto made for some very slow going on the hills around these parts. It left me sitting quite a few times with various ignition and electrical problems. I was afraid to drive that thing across town for fear of something going out on it...

Current: 98 XJ Limited, 4.0, Auto, 242. The only thing it won't pass is a gas station. 13-14 mpg taking it easy around town, 20 maybe 21mpg on the highway if I'm lucky. 200hp/235tq in a relatively lightweight machine means that it'll smoke most any ricer from a red light. The only time it's ever left me sitting was my fault because I left the lights on and killed the battery. I'd drive it across the country tomorrow with no worries...

 

[w_howey]

First, 62/63 Chevy II(before the Nova) Nice car, guy bought it from his granny, smacked it up and patched two together, hence the 62/63. Had the awesome power plant of a 250, I-6, and the PowerGlide. 0-60 in a week. I lived at the bottom of a hill. I had to climb it everyday for school. Took 20 minutes to get to school, only 12 to get home. Fire Engine Red God I miss that car.

Worst: I can't really call any car I owned worst. I grew up as PWT, so I learned to fix everything. I looked at any problems a car had as a bargaining chip.

The ugly:

82 Concord wagon(like the Eagle, without 4x4, or the Hornet without the 318)
76 Hornet wagon. Got it given to me when the front fenders fell off theConcord,
82 Dodge Omni 024, all the bad Omni parts in a hatchback.
86 Ford Escort Diesel, Yep real live diesel, No no parts were available.
86 Ford Ranger, probably most reliable truck I have ever owned
88 Ford Ranger, V-6 auto tranny, just plain bad idea
88 Monte Carlo SS, all the bad stuff about a carb, in a really,REALLY heavy car
87 Buick Skyhawk wagon, pretty much turned me off GM cars
91 Chevy Lumina 3.1 not even my wife could kill it
83 Chevy Malibu The last GM car I will ever buy
84 F-150 Longest damn truck I have ever owned
88 F-150 Nicest ride from a p/u I have had
88 XJ Rust is eating the poor girl
90 XJ Not even my wife can kill this one
88 MJ probably the next trail rig, can't decide if I want to cut her up
91 Geo Metro Great commuter car, only good below 70
84 Toyota Cressida Great for beating around, and drinking oil.


Now, I feel unbelievably old!!!!
I'm sure I have forgotten a few in here.

 

[casm]

64 Triumph Herald drophead. Yes, I know Sir Lucas the Black Knight

*Drools* Herald or Vitesse? I'd kill for either one, but if it was a Vitesse that would be Too. F***ing. Cool. Clamshell hoods, dual slant-lights, suicidal swing-arm suspension... I miss my Herald.

 

[MG_43]

The reason the British don't build televisions is because they haven't figured out how to make them leak oil.

Worst car: 76 Ford F-150 4X4, 6 mpg and wouldn't pull the hat off your head, the reason I will never own another Ford. 63 MGB fun to drive but don't go farther than you feel like walking, another Lucas mess.

I work part time for Avis car rental so I get to drive just about all the new cars, not really impressed with any of them, we also rent H3's (a square box on a Tahoe frame).

I've owned over 70 cars and a few favorites were
68 Z28, 71 Monte Carlo SS 454 LS6 one of 1700 built, 1970 Olds Vista Cruiser, 40 Ford Coupe 283 powered, 65 Mustang bought new ($2945) out the door Hi Po 289 4 speed, 64 Falcon Sprint, 50 Mercury (great cruiser) Just a few.
But I love my 92 XJ.

 

[Jeffro600]

First: 70 Ford F100....had a raced up 460, short wheel base and WAY too fast for any 16 year old to be driving. Remember my first day driving it...friends dared me to fishtail it down a dirt road at about 60 MPH...after nearly taking out a mailbox, a rot iron fence and a couple dogs i parked it for a week! Never could explain to pops why i would go through a set of rear tires every 5000 miles. Was lucky to see 5 MPG, but would pull ANYTHING. Not sure if i would call it the worst car ive ever owned, but it was close....between the maintenance and upkeep, it put me in the poor house REALLY quick on a minimum wage budget.

Sold that after about a year of beating it to death and bought an 88 Toyota 4X4...best truck ive ever owned hands down. Still kick myself to this day for selling it. Bought it with 150,000 miles, and between me and trading it off to my dad over the years, we managed 400,000+ miles on the original engine and it still ran like a champ.

Some other less honorable mentions:

Neon green 85 Toyota Corolla(hey, it was only 100 buck!)
89 Geo Metro
68 Mustang (6 cylinder that leaked more oil than a harley!)
74 Datsun 240Z (Insanly fun to drive!)
93 Ford Taurus
97 Dodge Status (PURE JUNK!!!)
00 Mazda B3000

93 Cherokee (the new money pit...)

Best: My current ride...2004 Mazda 3s. Super comfy, awesome styling, quick and sporty and gets great gas-mileage. Ive had it for about a year now and can honestly say, its the best car ive ever owned. For a new car, i dont think youll find a nicer car for under 20,000 bucks.

 

[8Mud]

You didn't mention the ugliest and most fun. Had an old Dodge Valiant station wagon, that me and my brother cobbled together from our racer buddies discards. 392 Dodge hemi, spider intake, giant Holley (it wouldn't idle below 2000 or so), load flite manual shift auto tranny, welded D-60 rear with a custom Helwig spring pack, torsion bar front suspension, with coil over shocks. 10.50 X 16 town and country snow treads in the rear, really skinny tall snow treads in the front. Two glass packs in a row at the end of each collector, to quiet it down (it was built to be a surprise). The paint was faded red and rust and the tail gate had tendency to pop open under hard acceleration, pelting whomever you were racing with empty Coors cans.
The snow treads had tendency to throw chunks, when aired down and under hard acceleration.
Spent many a happy weekend, dirt roading in Death Valley (way before it was a national park) at 80+ miles an hour.
Funny part of it was, the Police wouldn't often give it a second look, unless I was firing it up some. It just looked like a junker.

 

[BCParker]

Favorite and Current: 1997 Jeep Cherokee Country- Will drive til it rusts out or gets wrecked beyond repair.

First Driven: 1992 Dodge Grand Caravan- ugly, slow, but comfortable and could haul a lot of crap

First owned: 1989 Mitsubishi Galant: good economy car, cornered well, I loved paying less than $10 for a full tank

Worst (Tie) 1997 Civic, 1998 Chevy Cavalier- the civic had more squeaks and clunks than my jeep, ran it into a tree in the snow at ~35mph, air bag didn't go off, damn near killed me. Cav- small, slow, never had a mechanical problem, but It never had a chance- friend lost control on a highway in MI at about 75mph in the snow with me passed out in the back seat, rolled several times, totaled.

Honorable mention: 2001 Olds Intrigue: smooth ride, heated leather, plenty of power, FAST

 

[zfinger]

First owned and worst car: 98' KIA Sephia, towed it twice the first week I had it. paid 2700 with 56k, sold if for 2200 with 86k, and the tranny went the next week. Absolute junk

Best: 93 Geo Prizm I payed $550 for. 76k and it was perfect. It was a textured rad spraypaint, was beat hard by the last owner, but it wouldnt break. I drove it from ME to VT all winter and beat it so hard. Couldnt kill it till' I hit a tree at 60, and as far a safety, I was so surprised. Firewall held strong and kept me safe.

Favorite: 92 Nissan 240sx. Never had to tow it, even drove it home with a blown headgasket, drifting a few times along the way trying to seize it up. Now shes being rebuilt for 400HP

Current: 97 Cherokee, towed twice in 3 months. Once for a belt, one for the starter. I love it, its comfy and fun but not 100% reliable vs. the Geo. Worth every penny of the 3,000 I spent on it. but has the highest miles of all at 176K.


I would buy another Geo(Toyota motor) in a second, and a Nissan

 

[Cottontail]

First---1986 Mitsubishi Colt---hand me down from my parents
Worst---1992 GMC Sonoma---just didn't like it...kept it 9 months
Favorite---1996 Grand Cherokee---my brother had one, I drove it then bought my own within the month.

I have owned since turning 16 in 1990 (in order):
1986 Mitsubishi Colt
1992 GMC Sonoma
1988 Chevy Cavalier Z-24
1995 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
1983 Chevy K-5 Blazer
1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee
199X Honda Civic
1985 Jeep Cherokee
1990 Honda Accord
1990 Jeep Cherokee

The bolded ones are the ones I still own. I had an opportunity to buy my 1988 Cavaler back 7 years after I sold it. I found it on E-bay of all places! Decided against it.

 

[jonboy]

First - 1968 Ford Ranchero. Was a young punk, raced motorcycles and needed something cheap (it cost $800) that could haul stuff.

Best - 1984 Porsche 911 Carerra. I still have it and it's a garage queen now with only about 110k miles. I've driven it at ~150mph in the Big Sur area of Pacific Coast Highway and have spent plenty of time playing with it at the track. This thing is built like a bank vault and been very reliable. Can you say "oversteer"? 911's are a blast to drive....sideways, but they are not forgiving of mistakes. Great car except for the notchy shifting.

Most exciting - 2000 Subaru Impreza race car. I bought it cheap with a salvage title. The car had rolled on its roof so it had a crushed roof, hood, windshield and left front fender, otherwise it was in great shape with less than 10k miles. This made me a cheap toy and I dreamed to try rally racing with it before I realized how expensive even club rally can be. Did a full cage, stripped interior, low-budget but very good road course suspension, 4 pot brakes, R-compund tires, etc,etc. Had lots of fun with this thing, road race, auto-x and time-trialed it for a few years. The car needed more hp, but handling was awesome and I surprised alot of "real" sports cars on tight tracks. One highlight was when I did a double spin at ~130mph entering turn 9 of Willow Springs with a Mustang Cobra and a VW Golf right behind me. Luckily they missed me.

Most fun - 1991 XJ that's had a few mods over the years and seen lots of fun trails in the west, at places like Moab, the Sierras and JV. I bought it new at the end of '91 and started wheeling easy trails in So Cal after a few weeks. In '94, I added a 3" lift and 31's to do the Rubicon and it's gone downhill from there.

 

[AlbaTiVo]

First: 1980 Austin Allegro 1.3i - Suffered from usual British car electrical gremlins, probably making it the worst car I have had, but still have fond memories with it being my first and all My dad had an earlier version which I always remember having a square steering wheel

Best (Reliability): 1982 Triumph Acclaim - Looked a lot like Honda Civics of the time (was developed with Honda I think), but with it's twin carbs and light weight could hold it's own off the lights.

Favorite (To drive): 1995 Rover Mini Cooper 1.3i - The first (and last) new car I ever bought. Driving it just makes you grin from ear to ear the whole time I sold it before moving to the US, thinking I could pick one up here - how wrong I was. With hindsight I would have paid to bring it over and get it through the Federal regulations.

Current: 2000 Jeep Cherokee Sport - Inherited from my wife in August when she bought her 2000 Land Rover Discovery. So far, in preparation for the winter, I have put on 30" BFG A/Ts - with a Teraflex 2" BB to go on in the next couple of weeks.

Although I have been driving since 1989, these are the only cars I have ever owned.

 

[AZ XJ]

Since I've been 16....and I'm 19 now....

1st) 1991 Ford Taurus SHO, 5 speed, leather, nice car. Rolled it on a back road the second day I had my licence and the 1st day I had my insurance. I had 2 friends in the car and we all walked away with minor scrapes. I came out the worst with minor airbag burns.

2nd) (Favorite-) 1979 Bronco 351m, C6, no lift on 33's. Ran like a champ but was a piece of junk. I learned how to fix stuff and wheel with it. Lots of good memories in that one.

3rd) (Worst) 1972 Monte Carlo 350/350 ran ok until I put a Holley that was WAY too big on it and never ran right after. But would smoke the crap out of the right rear with the dual glasspacks and 1 7/8" exhaust tips just screaming.

4th) 1979 Bronco 400m, NP 435, NP205, 7" National Spring lift, factory rollbar, hp dana 44 front w/ 31 spline shafts, 4.11's and detroit locker, Nodular 9" rear with 31 spline shafts, 411's and detroit locker. 35" bfg muds. This truck was a beast, lots of motor work and a really clean body and interior. Smoked ricers even with the 4 speed.

5th) (second worst) 1991 S10 2.8 v6, 5 speed....uhh it ran kind of...and thats about it. bought it for 200 bucks and sold it for 800.


6th) (current) 1996 XJ Sport 4.0, Aw4, 231, d30 and chry 8.25. 4.5" rustys lift, 32" bfg's, Teraflex sye. It's hard going from the Bronco (detroits) to this (open) but its a much better driver and has served me well thus far.


I like my jeep, but I have to admit that I will always be a Bronco guy. I WILL own more 78/79's.

 

[XJ_ranger]

Another good car I had - 1992 Chevvy Corsica with the 3.1 V6-60. One of the best handling 4-doors I've ever owned... Kept running, no matter what we did to it. Had a girlfriend that went through four wheels worth of brakes every year (two-footed automatic driver...)

Dad had one of thoes, jumped it 2 or 3 feet in the air right before the matrinez /Benicia bridge there on 680 where the dip used to be and just kept on running.

Sold it to my uncle with 200,000 sometihng on it and he is still driving it (as far as i know - dont talk to him anymore)


as for my own cars -

1994 Ford ranger that got 23 mpg on the freeway - (jumped that one too)
nice 4cyl with 8 spark plugs - that got expensive when i swaped them out for double platnums.

went through 3 motor mounts when I was messing around with too much throttle.
did TTB suspention damage after i lost control and hydroplaned into a ditch on the way to Knocksville
repaired it and sold it for more than I paid for it.

Bought my 1992 XJ for 2100 1.25 years ago and it looks and drive less and less like an XJ every day...

alos have a 91 XJ at home.

In my limited expierence, id have to say i like the 92 the most and like the 91 the least - it doesnt start right now.

 

[hillbilly_jeeper]

1st)1961 ford ranchero. Father-son project. 200 inline 6 with 3 1BBL solex carbs. Ran pretty good for a little 6!

Worst)Although i enjoyed it, was a 1966 scout. 12" homemade lift, 35's, chevy 4.3 V6, sm465/np205, chevy axles. Flexed pretty nice. But manual steering with 35's, and ,manual disks no fun. And not having/not putting the money into to do it right made it a pain.

Favorite is a tie between to to currents) 1993 jeep cherokee, 4.5", 33's, lock-right and posi, rock rails, and some rather massive rock rash form last weekend.
1992 Pontiac firebird, weak 305 TBI, but sounds great with the hooker exhaust, GTA disc brake posi rear, GTA big sway bars, GTA rims and 245/50ZR16 rears ans 225/50ZR16 front tires, some minor engine mods(soon to be TPI, carb? 383 stroker? who knows, 2000RPM stall converter, shift kit. Even with the TBI 305, will smoke both rears into 2nd, and handles better than anything i've ever driven.

Favorite not owned by me) My dads 1962 olds cutlas. Built version of the aluminum v-8 that came in it, Camaro t-5, Front disk conversion, Jag IFS posi rear, handles amost as good as my firebird, but sounds awsome with side pipes!

Have owned)
1972 Chevelle 4dr hard top, 350hp 350,
1958 jeep cj-5
1971 datsun p/u with buick v-6, t-5,
1971 datsun p/u, L18 with sidedraft SU's, 5 speed,
2 datsun 510s that never got started on,
1986 nissan 300zx turbo. 86k orginal miles. God i loved that car. Got rear ended, bent the rear unibody.
1994 Ford t-bird, 4.6v8,
1995 mercury coucar, 4.6v8, no mufflers, and would spin the tires hitting second....and now my moms driving it!
1988 subaru GL-10 turbo wagon. Swapped to part time 4x4, running 14PSI of boost, front wheel burnouts all the way through 2nd with the studded tires throwing sparks!

 

[rockwerks]

Where to start.........

63.5 galaxie 500 fastback
69 toyota fj55
76 chevy luv 2x
79 toyota celica gt
81 toyota celica gt
79 chevy blazer 4x4
89 Nissan crew cab 4x4
91 dodge colt (POS)
91 chrysler new yorker
88 VW pickup TD
87 ford courier
78 chevy el camino
64 chevy impala convertible
76 442 convertible
89 ford fiesta
59 bug
89 MJ 2x
76 gmc motorhome
88 XJ 4x
95 XJ 4x
another 89 MJ 2x
87 MJ 4x
96 XJ


Im sure Im missing a few

this list is only drivers not parts rigs add like 5 more xj;s for parts in recent years

First car 63.2 ford galaxie 500 fastback 426, 4 speed, that would also been my favorite.....nothing like doing wheel stand in second gear!

worst 76 chevy LUV.nuf said

best is tough because there are 2 many variables. but Id have to go with my ol 88 xj

 

[bajacalal]

Great responses guys cool to see how diverse peoples tastes are for other cars yet everybody here likes the XJ. I'm starting to notice a pattern here: British cars and underpowered American cars under worst.

I'm glad this thread is talking off again. I can't believe I posted this in June, it seems like yesterday and months have gone by.