LEAST Safe Cars...

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Al, no doubt you are accustomed to being passed with 127hp.
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The Forenza looks to eek out an "acceptable" rating.
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http://www.safecarguide.com/mak/suzuki/idx.htm

Consumer Reports saw fit to rank the Forenza 17th of small cars. Above the Hundai Accent and behind the Mitsibishi Lancer.

Congrats and good luck. See you in a few years when new-car time comes up again. Consider extending payments on a better, safer car that will last longer. That's not a bad idea.
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127 HP is more than adequate in this car. Don't let that one number fool you. It has a broad and low torque band (between 3,000 and 4,000 RPM) so drivability is excellent. I made one payment on this car, full payment. (I try to stay debt-free.) I believe the car will last quite a long time. The 2.0 litre Opel-designed GM-Holden engine is built like an anvil, and the ZF transmission shares your Audi's German heritage. In the frontal offset crash test the only real problem area was the driver's right foot. The wagon is sprung pretty taut, so handling is OK. It could be quite good with a little better tires. They race the Chevy badged version of this car in the WTCC series in Europe.

http://www.chevroleteurope.com/wtcc/

I think you underestimate this model.
 
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What's up with the ContiExtreme Contacts..you have that too, AJ? Great Conti set in dry/wet handling and quiet too I may add...on my B5 variant at stock size 205/55 in Audi 16's.
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Big Al:

I'd only disagree with one specific thing -- about the Civic. I stand 6' tall, but have short legs and a veeeery long torso. Sidenote: I almost got physically disqualified back in flight school -- I'm at the very maximum sitting height for the ejection seats installed in US Naval aircraft (how I squeaked by -- that's another story
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). Yet I sat just fine in my 88 Civic for over ten years (though I do routinely pass on sunroof options, for just this reason). No can opener required. I'd have gone for another Civic over one of these "less substantial" models, but that's just me.
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Taking about K-Cars..here's a pic of the Sonata-based 2007 Kia Optima/Magentis:

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Notice the "Audi-esque" rims..(not to mention the leggy phat babe).
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CECs rock, like freakin' Rallye tyres. I now use 205/60-16s, so they are no longer part of my package. Consider the 60's, much better ride on my beat roads and they are cheaper with more choices. Currently on G-009s, looking at Yokohama H4S for next time. Dunlop SP5000s are probally the best tire I've owned, CECs are right up there though.
 
How's this for comparison to the AWESOME KIA show-car?

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Why you no like K-I-A car? You buy NOW!
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quote:
I'd only disagree with one specific thing -- about the Civic. I stand 6' tall, but have short legs and a veeeery long torso. Sidenote: I almost got physically disqualified back in flight school -- I'm at the very maximum sitting height for the ejection seats installed in US Naval aircraft (how I squeaked by -- that's another story [Wink] ). Yet I sat just fine in my 88 Civic for over ten years (though I do routinely pass on sunroof options, for just this reason). No can opener required. I'd have gone for another Civic over one of these "less substantial" models, but that's just me.
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You're right. The Civic and the Forenza Wagon both have 39.4" of headroom, at least on paper. . .but the Civic sedan won't haul all my daughters' stuff to college in one trip. And sunroofs are out of the question for me too.
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I like that Safercar site. However, if you really READ the data you find that the latest Hyundai models get good ratings:

'06 Sonata - Excellent (highest rating)
'05 Tuscon - Excellent (highest rating)
'04 Elantra - Acceptable (medium rating, However, it was rated good or excellent in all tests except there was a problem with the IIHS offset test.
'06 Accent - Not yet tested.
'02-'06 Tiburon - Good (2nd highest rating)

Looks like pretty good ratings to me!
 
You know the thing of it is, is not all dangerous drivers drive big trucks and SUV's.

I, for one, have had NUMEROUS close calls with idiots driving Saturns, Nissan Maxima's, Honda Accords, Civics, and worst one's - the Jetta and Passat driver's; and the one that merely got smashed the other day - VW Beetle. You know why?

The idiot decides that the speed limit going up the one-lane ramp onto the highway wasn't fast enough - as that is what I was doing, if not more. So he decides to whip off the side of the ramp, floor it, spinning up so much dirt no one could see, then cut literally right in front of me, and I mean RIGHT in front of me, and I'm driving a 3/4 ton Dodge Diesel with a heavy camper.

Now who's the idiot here?

These little cars think because they ARE smaller that they can whip in and out of traffic like they own the road, run red lights, slam on brakes at the last minute, or weight til the light turns green, floor it, and whip in front of you, just to make a right hand turn 200' in front of you.

I am SO sick of this crap every day, it's no wonder I got totally away from owning smaller cars, I seriously have always been more leary of car drivers then one who drives that big dodge with a camper.

Who I really feel bad for are the 18-wheeler drivers who will give adequate warning that they are going to turn or make a lane change, and I'll be ****ed just when you think a car is going to wait his turn - heck no, he'll rip right up the lane that trucker was aiming for. Just so he could be first to the RED LIGHT!
 
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''You know the thing of it is, is not all dangerous drivers drive big trucks and SUV's.

I, for one, have had NUMEROUS close calls with idiots driving Saturns, Nissan Maxima's, Honda Accords, Civics, and worst one's - the Jetta and Passat driver's; and the one that merely got smashed the other day - VW Beetle. You know why? ''

Yeah, but I don't find them near as threatening as the ones in a big truck so close behind me all I can see in my mirror is the grill. Of course at night, the headlights light up the inside of may car so well I can't see anything if front of me. Oh, but their ego won't fit in anything smaller. the cops should be allowed to shoot them on sight.

Were you going somewhere you would need the camper?
 
My first clue about an iffy driver is that they accelerate harder to beat a yellow light than they do merge onto a busy highway. My second clue is when they stop and there's 25 feet of space between them and the car in front of them. The third will be when, a minute later, they realize this and move up. The fourth will be when the light turns green and they're still sitting there picking their nose. The fifth will be when they're in the far right lane but want to go over to the far left lane. The sixth will be when they stop and wait for someone to let the move over. The seventh will be that they used their turn signal during this moron maneuver but at no other time. The eigth will be when they finally get over to the left lane, they pull right in front of someone going faster than they are and refuse to speed up.

Just another day of Washington, DC traffic, where we have better things to do than engage the brain while driving. Now, where's my cellphone and who can I call now?
 
"How's this for comparison to the AWESOME KIA show-car?"

If they are so bad, why do they sell so well? Oh, wait, I know why...AJ is the smartest person around here because he buys Audi's..the rest of the world jsut doesnt know any better. 'Suppose thats why I see so 'many' Audi's on the roads. I think I actually saw one last month--on the side of the road with the hood up....
 
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