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| Nissan never did bring the handsome and awesome S15 to the USA. Perhaps the 240SX line would have sold better if they had the SR20DET in them! |
The Toyota AE86 Corolla was the epitome of classic compact car performance. Lightweight, nimble, RWD with a crisp, classic styling that still looks good today. Toyota has until recently been not doing it right either. They gave us the Scion TC, all 3100 lbs of underpowered image and attitude. Likewise the compact and stylish RWD Celica was reduced to a high strung expensive FWD coupe before being given over to the executioner.
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| The Toyota AE86 is perhaps the most iconic of all sport compact cars. |
Mitsubishi quit making the turbo Mirage which was a cool but undiscovered car and instead brought us the OZ Lancer, fake EVO. Yawn. They also turned the cool DSM Twins into the weird looking lame, heavy, expensive and slow current Eclipse. At least they brought in the EVO which is an ultra capable but a heavy complex and expensive car. Now the EVO will be discontinued and Mitsubishi will be making only electric cars, WTF!
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| After 25 years the AE86 still looks good! |
If our scene is diminishing most of the blame should be focused on the manufacturers. They just don’t make cars that compact car enthusiast want and have ruined popular models by making their styling appeal to no one and letting their size, weight and price creep continuously upward while not necessarily adding to performance.
Listen auto manufacturers, listen real good. I know that most of the people in your product planning departments don’t know squat about cars, don’t even like cars and could be dreaming up cookies for the Keibler elf’s to cobble up next week for all they care about the product, so I am typing real slow so they understand. Fire them all and hire car people to do your planning, you are after all, car companies.
