Best driving "normal" cars?
Discussion
As a car person, people are always asking me to recommend what they should get for their next car. I actually find this quite difficult as I am not so interested in "normal" cars. For example, I know that a BMW 325i drives well but wouldn't know about a 318i, an MX5 is good but not sure about a Mazda 3/6 and I love my Impreza WRX but wouldn't know whether an ordinary Impreza is any good. So who makes the best driving "normal" cars? By "normal", I mean your average hatchback/saloon/estate/MPV with no sporting pretensions. In terms of practicality, there is little to choose between most comparable models and styling is very subjective, so it would really have to come down to the drive. Some people don't enjoy driving but by the same token, I'm sure that most people would prefer something good rather than horrible to drive.
Although I have driven lots of makes, the only make I feel qualified to recommend is Volkswagen (post 2005). In my experience, they all drive quite well (not so keen on the old-shape Polo but it's not bad to drive and I haven't really tried the new one). Ford also make cars that are good to drive if you are to belive the press and my experience would not tend to contradict that (with the exception of the awful 1990- Escort). Peugeot used to make some of the nicest driving "normal" cars and having spent a summer delivering 107s/207s/307s/308s recently, I would say that they still drive fairly well despite the looks being a bit of an acquired taste. I have also driven several Suzukis in recent years and found them to drive well for what they are.
Other makes confuse me somewhat. I have never got on with Renaults but understand that they make some excellent driving cars. I like driving my wife's Fiat 500 (and my first car, a Fiat Cinquecento Sporting) but hated the Fiat Grande Punto that I hired a few years ago. The original Mercedes A-Class was a horrible car to drive (especially the A140 Automatic which was dangerously unpredictable) but other Mercedes cars that I have driven (C-Class/E-Class/SLK) have been rather nice to drive.
So what "normal" cars would you recommend to people for a good drive?
Although I have driven lots of makes, the only make I feel qualified to recommend is Volkswagen (post 2005). In my experience, they all drive quite well (not so keen on the old-shape Polo but it's not bad to drive and I haven't really tried the new one). Ford also make cars that are good to drive if you are to belive the press and my experience would not tend to contradict that (with the exception of the awful 1990- Escort). Peugeot used to make some of the nicest driving "normal" cars and having spent a summer delivering 107s/207s/307s/308s recently, I would say that they still drive fairly well despite the looks being a bit of an acquired taste. I have also driven several Suzukis in recent years and found them to drive well for what they are.
Other makes confuse me somewhat. I have never got on with Renaults but understand that they make some excellent driving cars. I like driving my wife's Fiat 500 (and my first car, a Fiat Cinquecento Sporting) but hated the Fiat Grande Punto that I hired a few years ago. The original Mercedes A-Class was a horrible car to drive (especially the A140 Automatic which was dangerously unpredictable) but other Mercedes cars that I have driven (C-Class/E-Class/SLK) have been rather nice to drive.
So what "normal" cars would you recommend to people for a good drive?
This is a good question because nobody wants to drive a bad car i dont think but not everybody can have an Impreza or an Evo. I think 'best driving' can be subjective though because cars which can technically be brilliant and great fun wont neccessarily be ideal or 'drivable' in the 'real world.' And i think most people look for what works best in the 'real world' like why have a 400bhp car for going to the shops on a normal road when you'll barely use a quarter of it anyway. Look nice, drive nice, comfortable, good on fuel and dont break down is what i think are top of the vast majority of car buyers lists.
For example my father has owned his Peugeot 406 from new, on paper its not the best car in the world but it does what he wants it to do and has been just as reliable as anything German in the meantime. Ive had my T reg Mondeo 2.0 Zetec for over two years now and for me it falls into the category of good driving 'normal' car and is still good to drive even at 12 years old. Very good round bends, its hardly slow but it doesnt cost a fortune, doesnt go wrong and is annonymous enough for nobody to want to key it/nick it etc. Im looking at other things myself and am interested in a Focus Titanium, perhaps 56 plate sort of time but most of the ones ive seen are TDCi's and ive never had a diesel.
For example my father has owned his Peugeot 406 from new, on paper its not the best car in the world but it does what he wants it to do and has been just as reliable as anything German in the meantime. Ive had my T reg Mondeo 2.0 Zetec for over two years now and for me it falls into the category of good driving 'normal' car and is still good to drive even at 12 years old. Very good round bends, its hardly slow but it doesnt cost a fortune, doesnt go wrong and is annonymous enough for nobody to want to key it/nick it etc. Im looking at other things myself and am interested in a Focus Titanium, perhaps 56 plate sort of time but most of the ones ive seen are TDCi's and ive never had a diesel.
white_goodman said:
I know that a BMW 325i drives well but wouldn't know about a 318i
Many people would tell you that although less powerful the 318 is a better drive than the 325. The lighter 4-pot engine gives the car a nimble feel and better balance.You don't need a big engine to make a good car. But it sometimes helps!
I get this alot too but as to most of them it is just a car i normally recomend the one that represents best spec for the money (usualy early '00s jags) or the one that is going to cost them the least when they come to chop it in (have talked several people out of brand new alfa's) and then once those 2 criteria are met it comes down to which is best to drive but then when they say well which would I buy the criteria is reversed completely
white_goodman said:
Peugeot used to make some of the nicest driving "normal" cars and having spent a summer delivering 107s/207s/307s/308s recently, I would say that they still drive fairly well despite the looks being a bit of an acquired taste.
The missus had a 307 until it caught fire recently and it was an average drive, in my opinion. Saying that though, my 205 GTi from years back was one of the most fun 'normal' cars I have ever owned. Like rocking horse s
t now though. Autotrader only has 30 205s up for sale, compared to over 4600 206s and 4300 207s, neither of which were particularly engaging when we test drove them prior to buying the 307 a couple of years back.Because we have powerful computers now, most cars will grip and handle well because you run the suspension settings on a simulator, which is why most new cars actually grip and corner exceptionally well.
But as for the whole package, I would choose a 1.8 Mk2 Ford Mondeo. Engine is quite torquey and isn't too thirsty, the car is nice and big, relatively comfortable and well built, the steering feel is nice, they ride nice, and they aren't flashy at all.
But as for the whole package, I would choose a 1.8 Mk2 Ford Mondeo. Engine is quite torquey and isn't too thirsty, the car is nice and big, relatively comfortable and well built, the steering feel is nice, they ride nice, and they aren't flashy at all.
'90s small and medium sized French cars (mostly PSA, I remember 'cooking' Renaults being mostly a bit baggy) indeed had that rather special, fluent way of moving about - especially next to the stolid Golfs (Mk3), Escorts and Astras of the time. Shame Peugeot completely lost it with the -07 generation of cars (although the 206 wasn't anything special either, especially with that driving position). The Citroën DS3 however, is very, very good overall IMO. Not as sharp as the MINI, but a bit more mature and comfortable in return - very well judged balance.
Basic 3-series BMWs can't pull the skin of a rice pudding, but I'd still have them over most if not all cars in that segment because everything else about them - driving position and overall ergonomics, the weight feel of the controls, control of body movements - just feels so 'right' from the off. Again, compare with a Passat and you'll know that one has been made with drivers in mind while the other just seeks to impress you with perceived quality and has 'do nothing (blatantly) wrong' as a mantra on the road.
In spite of its image and the amount of hatred they seem to incite, after 180-odd thoudand miles in MINIs I maintain that, with basic wheel/tyre specifications at least, in terms of overall driving characteristics, any one of the hatchbacks is head and shoulders above most in its class. Much the same applies as with the 3-series, augmented with a cheeky and up-for-it attitude. One of few mainstream FWD cars left where one can actually feel the rear end helping the car turn when driven spiritedly, but never disturbingly so. Like your mate who always gets you in trouble when together, it does goad you onto displaying ehm, cheeky behaviour on the road because it displays its agility with such reassuring precision. It makes you constantly take advantage of gaps in traffic, hunt for the quickest lane onto those fashionable 'turbo' roundabouts over here and burn off nominally quicker cars out of them, just before traffic merges back into one lane again.
Basic 3-series BMWs can't pull the skin of a rice pudding, but I'd still have them over most if not all cars in that segment because everything else about them - driving position and overall ergonomics, the weight feel of the controls, control of body movements - just feels so 'right' from the off. Again, compare with a Passat and you'll know that one has been made with drivers in mind while the other just seeks to impress you with perceived quality and has 'do nothing (blatantly) wrong' as a mantra on the road.
In spite of its image and the amount of hatred they seem to incite, after 180-odd thoudand miles in MINIs I maintain that, with basic wheel/tyre specifications at least, in terms of overall driving characteristics, any one of the hatchbacks is head and shoulders above most in its class. Much the same applies as with the 3-series, augmented with a cheeky and up-for-it attitude. One of few mainstream FWD cars left where one can actually feel the rear end helping the car turn when driven spiritedly, but never disturbingly so. Like your mate who always gets you in trouble when together, it does goad you onto displaying ehm, cheeky behaviour on the road because it displays its agility with such reassuring precision. It makes you constantly take advantage of gaps in traffic, hunt for the quickest lane onto those fashionable 'turbo' roundabouts over here and burn off nominally quicker cars out of them, just before traffic merges back into one lane again.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff