Hey now!Has Fiat EVER made a good looking car ?
Agreed. These things are junk right off the showroom floor.lannvouivre wrote:Fiat's down at the bottom of the reliability ratings for cars sold in America right now. I wouldn't recommend buying one unless you don't mind the extra cost of upkeep and downtime.
1970s Fiat was different from modern Fiat, probably.Chiadog wrote:The Fiat 128SL I owned was dependable and a blast to drive
Not really, but my 05 Base has seen better days so I can see that the time may be coming! As I get older, I am less and less satisfied with the Vibes harsh ride and alignment and wheel balance "sensitive" front end! It's the Gen1's incredible utility, simplicity and dependability that makes it hard to part with!vibrologist wrote:chiadog: are you looking to get another car?
You've got that right! And the harsh ride is the one thing that bothers me too.It's the Gen1's incredible utility, simplicity and dependability that makes it hard to part with!
Lannvouvre: which exact model and year is it?lannvouivre wrote:My sister's Elantra GT is an absolute baaaabe. Love that thing. The ride is confident but not rough, and the manual shifter is very precise.
Harsh ride in a Vibe? Maybe because my last 2 vehicles were a 93 Geo Metro and a 78 Dodge B300 camper van. The Vibe feels as smooth as can be to me. Maybe you're due for new struts? My 03 has probably original struts (based on the rotten, torn boots) and feels fine.vibrologist wrote:You've got that right! And the harsh ride is the one thing that bothers me too.It's the Gen1's incredible utility, simplicity and dependability that makes it hard to part with!
The Hyundai Elantra Touring is on my short-list! Can anyone write a quick evaluation on this car?vibrologist wrote:You've got that right! And the harsh ride is the one thing that bothers me too.It's the Gen1's incredible utility, simplicity and dependability that makes it hard to part with!
I would like to try a Hyundai Elantra GT or a Hyundai Elantra Touring.
Can you compare/contrast it to your Vibe for utility, ride,road noise, handling, MPG's, etc?lannvouivre wrote:My sister's Elantra GT is an absolute baaaabe. Love that thing. The ride is confident but not rough, and the manual shifter is very precise.
No, Ben, maybe you need to drive a VW Golf for a day on the same roads as you normally do or we need to wear out our struts as bad as yours!BenWA wrote:Harsh ride in a Vibe? Maybe because my last 2 vehicles were a 93 Geo Metro and a 78 Dodge B300 camper van. The Vibe feels as smooth as can be to me. Maybe you're due for new struts? My 03 has probably original struts (based on the rotten, torn boots) and feels fine.vibrologist wrote:You've got that right! And the harsh ride is the one thing that bothers me too.It's the Gen1's incredible utility, simplicity and dependability that makes it hard to part with!
Hey BenWA, I'm guessing you're not from northern Wisconsin (Washington state maybe?) If it weren't for frost heaves on the secondary roads caused from frost penetration to 4 or 5 feet, I would be OK with the Vibes ride quality. Probably the original struts are not helping anything!BenWA wrote:Harsh ride in a Vibe? Maybe because my last 2 vehicles were a 93 Geo Metro and a 78 Dodge B300 camper van. The Vibe feels as smooth as can be to me. Maybe you're due for new struts? My 03 has probably original struts (based on the rotten, torn boots) and feels fine.vibrologist wrote:You've got that right! And the harsh ride is the one thing that bothers me too.It's the Gen1's incredible utility, simplicity and dependability that makes it hard to part with!
All better except maybe interior space for cargo, but that's to be expected since safety regulations kind of move toward making the structure of the car fatter without making the outside of the car bigger. To be fair, however, you may be better off looking at the KIA Forte5 because KIAs tend to be more reliable and they offer a turbocharged engine that I think puts down more than first gen Vibe GTs while getting better mileage. I can't vouch for interior noise for the KIAs because I have not been in one, though.Chiadog wrote:Can you compare/contrast it to your Vibe for utility, ride,road noise, handling, MPG's, etc?lannvouivre wrote:My sister's Elantra GT is an absolute baaaabe. Love that thing. The ride is confident but not rough, and the manual shifter is very precise.
Thanks Lanny, Sounds like a dcecent Compact! Cargo space is important to me, and especially a flat cargo floor! I can't understand the designers who put an 8" lift-over at the hatch.lannvouivre wrote:All better except maybe interior space for cargo, but that's to be expected since safety regulations kind of move toward making the structure of the car fatter without making the outside of the car bigger. To be fair, however, you may be better off looking at the KIA Forte5 because KIAs tend to be more reliable and they offer a turbocharged engine that I think puts down more than first gen Vibe GTs while getting better mileage. I can't vouch for interior noise for the KIAs because I have not been in one, though.Chiadog wrote:Can you compare/contrast it to your Vibe for utility, ride,road noise, handling, MPG's, etc?lannvouivre wrote:My sister's Elantra GT is an absolute baaaabe. Love that thing. The ride is confident but not rough, and the manual shifter is very precise.
EDIT: Also I think her elantra is a 2014 or 2015. It's pre-facelift where they changed the grill.