Car Spotlight-Dodge Dynasty (1988-1993)

The entire car industry (specifically the design departments) was flipped upside down when they got their first look at the 1986 Ford Taurus.  While the average 1980s car looked like a moving box with edges so sharp they can give you cuts, the Taurus was very aerodynamic and futuristic, with rounded edges, a comfortable interior, and even a digital dashboard to further give owners the impression they were driving "the car of the future."

Meanwhile, across town over at Chrysler, top executives and engineers were scoffing at the Taurus, claiming the car was "too radical" for the public to chew and swallow.  They assumed that consumers would continue to prefer traditional boxy cars that has been a standard for American cars since the late 70s.

To "compete" with the new Taurus, Chrysler took their "fail safe" K-platform, enlarged it to appear mid-sized, and slapped all these boxy panels on it. (perhaps as a middle finger to Ford)  The end result was the Dynasty sedan.


So what was the verdict?

Why don't you take a look at these two pictures...one is the Dynasty and the other is the Ford Taurus.  Both are the same model year and priced about the same.  






...Yeah, it seems that at arrival, the Dynasty already looked like a twenty year old car.  Despite it's inferiority design wise, the Dynasty still found it's group of buyers.  These people include:

• families who haven't exactly warmed up to the Taurus's aerodynamic design
• people who refuse to buy anything that isn't a Chrysler product
• OLD PEOPLE!

Now with that being said, the Dynasty wasn't really that bad of a car (although it does like to eat automatic transmissions for breakfast).  One thing I hear that owners like about the Dynasty is it's smooth ride, thanks to it's innovative front struts that reduced ride harshness, as well as seats that felt like the couch in your grandma's living room.  To be honest, I would consider the Dynasty as one of the last "land yachts" to be sold to the public.  

In the long run, Chrysler was dead wrong about aeronautical cars being a fad, as the Dynasty (as well as most of Chrysler's boxy cars) was phased out in 1993 and replaced by the super sleek Intrepid.  

Link to a bunch of old people explaining why they like their Dynasty 

Link to an incredibly hot chick selling Dodge Dynasty hubcaps

Link to a bunch of teenagers making a Dynasty fly!

Car Spotlight- Kia Borrego (2009)

I have seen three Borrego's in my lifetime and all of them were
in this copper-orange color.
(photo credit-car and driver)

Okay so picture this, it's 2009.  The housing market was collapsing, banks were failing, businesses were closing, the war in the Middle East was dragging on, and gas prices were sharply increasing despite starting the year at under $2.00 a gallon.

At this time, the auto industry was facing record-low sales as consumers were wary of making such a huge investment in a car that may or may not even be made anymore.  Those who did get a car (most likely on risky credit) were buying gas-sipping compacts, under-powered minivans or those DARN HYBRID cars.

So how did Kia Motors of South Korea respond to this new desire for a fuel-efficient family hauler? With a body-on-frame full size SUV that gets around 16 miles to the gallon...

When the truck first came out, I didn't understand why Kia chose to sell this car.  They already had similar sized crossover SUV called the Sorento that had more or less the same features and capacities...but at a smaller sticker price.  I was not alone, as I remember reading an article by Motor Trend where the staff was given one as a long term test vehicle, and they came to a similar conclusion.

Despite being the wrong vehicle at the wrong time, the Borrego wasn't bad for what it was.  It seats up to seven people, can tow up to 7000 lbs, and the maneuverability was pretty good for it's size.  It would have made a decent vehicle for road trips up to the cabin, towing the pontoon boat, or (realistically) ideal for rich housewives who like to take up more than one parking space at the Sam's Club.

But again...it was a vehicle that was fifteen years behind the times.  It was a truck that no one really asked for, especially in this economy.  The Borrego was pulled from the U.S Kia lineup after barely a year on the market.  Production of the Borrego continued however, as the truck is still being sold in middle-eastern nations where gas and oil are about as common as urine.    

  

Car spotlight- Ford Festiva (1988-1993)

The Festiva was so basic, that having a passenger-side mirror
was considered an option...

The car I'm talking about today should not be confused with the 1978-1980 and 2011-present Ford Fiesta.  No, this is the Ford Festiva (fes-teev-ah), a completely different small car.  Imagine the word "festive" and replace the "e" with an "a" (just like when Oldsmobile replaced the  last "e" in Achieve with an "a" to get this depressing car).

In the mid 80s, Ford was on top of the world.  Their Escort "world car" was selling plentifully around the world, the game-changing Taurus mid-sized sedan was turning heads everywhere, and Ford was well into development of another vehicle that will turn the car industry upside down (the Explorer)  Yes, it was a great time to be a Ford dealer.  Around this time, the was a dramatic increase in college graduates looking to buy their first car or their first "new" car.  Looking to capitalize on this new demographic, Ford went ahead and offered a simple and affordable car called the Festiva.

Because Ford was pretty exhausted with developing the Escort and Taurus, as well as having their hands full with the Explorer, Ford pulled a GM move by dumping the responsibility of developing and assembling this new car to their Japanese partners, Mazda and Kia.

Gotta love that optional air conditioner!
And Get a load of that automatic seat
belt!
(photo credit-moibibiki.com)

The origins of the Festiva itself is actually quite confusing.  The car was originally developed by Mazda as the 121 sub-compact and was marketed mainly toward those who lived in city settings (specifically Tokyo) where cars are taxed based on size and dimensions.  Mazda would then enter a contract with Kia Motors of South Korea to assemble the 121 and sell it as the Kia Pride.  When Ford came along and asked to sell the car in the United States, it would be the Korean derivative that would wear the Ford emblem.  So whenever someone in America pops open the hood or look closely at the V.I.N plate, it will say "Manufactured in South Korea by Kia Motors."

The Festiva went on sale in the U.S in 1988 and sold fairly well.  Like Ford had hoped, the Festiva sold well among college graduates and new drivers.  The Festiva was also quite popular with individuals who had long commutes, as the car got very good gas mileage (35 city/42 highway).  The only drawbacks to the cars were it's laughably small wheels that wore out frequently and it's very poor crash test ratings (but don't worry, Ford put motorized seat-belts in the Festiva so that nobody forgot to buckle up!)

The Festiva sold well enough for Ford to keep the Festiva through the 1993 model year.  At this point, the vehicle underwent a major re-design.  Because the new Festiva looked completely different from it's predecessor, Ford decided at the last second to change the name to "Aspire."  To sum up that car as briefly as I can, many people agree that it was probably the worst possible name to give that particular car...

Even after it was re-designed, several markets continued to sell the original version of the Festiva, specifically in emerging markets.  Kia sold the Pride virtually unchanged until 2000.  China sold their own version of the Festiva as the "Donfeng Yueda" in the 1990s and early 2000s.  Iranian car-maker S.A.I.P.A STILL assembles and sells several different variants of the Festiva to this day, including a 5-door hatchback, 4-door sedan, station wagon, and even a pickup (why anyone would buy a Festiva to haul things is beyond me.  I bet the towing capacity of one is pretty laughable).

An Iran-built SAIPA pickup truck at the Factory. Even the people
that built it looks as if they don't understand the point of making
a pickup truck based off a Festiva...
(photo credit-Technically Jurisprudence.blogspot.com)

And if you thought a pick-up Festiva rose eyebrows, there was an unofficial "Festiva SHO" or "SHOgun."  California-based Special Editions Inc, a coach builder took seven Festivas and mounted the 3.0L DOHC V6 typically found in the Ford Taurus SHO in the Festiva.  Along with the engine swap, Special Editions also widened the wheel displacement (to prevent rollovers) and added a unique body kit to differentiate the SHOgun from regular Festivas.  Jay Leno owns SHOgun #3 and you can see a video about that one here.  I read an article on Leno's official website (for which I couldn't get the link on here for some reason) that this was the car he drove to his first day of hosting the Tonight Show back in 1992.    

Jay Leno with his 1990 Festiva "SHOgun." He even went
ahead and added NOS to the engine...well then!
(photo credit-flatout.com.br)

Car spotlight- Jeep Comanche (1986-1992)

1988 Comanche with the "Eliminator" trim
photo credit-Hemmings Motor News

There has always been a pattern when it comes to introducing small trucks and S.U.V's.  An automaker usually introduces a pickup truck one year, and an S.U.V variant would then follow the next year.  This was not the case for Jeep.

In 1984, American Motors introduced the Cherokee compact SUV, which was innovative for being offered in a 4-door configuration rather than just having two doors like GM and Ford were doing.  Realizing how big the compact pickup truck market was becoming, AMC chose to offer a pickup version of its Cherokee.  

Called the Comanche, the truck was introduced in 1986 at a critical time.  American Motors was in the midst of sinking into bankruptcy, and the only thing keeping it afloat was it's Jeep division.  So in a way, the Comanche was a good way to add in some extra cash.

One thing that car historians tended to overlook was how powerful these trucks can be.  While the Ford Ranger and Chevy S-10 pickups were struggling to crank 150 horsepower from their catalytic-converter strangling engines, Jeep introduced a new 4.0 liter Inline 6 engine equipped with fuel injection (which at the time was a new way to transfer fuel).  This made the truck not only more powerful, but also more fuel efficient (but then again it's still a truck, so the milage still sucked).

One thing I find unique about this truck was the way Jeep labeled their trim levels.  On a typical car, and we'll use the Toyota Corolla as an example.  To differentiate each of their models, Toyota used two and three letter combos such as "CE," "S" or "XR." (have no idea if any of these words stand for anything).  Jeep used more conventional, if not, more exciting words to describe it's various Comanche models, such as Pioneer, Chief, Laredo, Olympic (for the 1988 Seoul games) and my favorite one, "Base"

Even though the Comanche may very well have been the most modern truck at the time to wear the Jeep badge, the timing couldn't have been worse, as after just one year on the market, American Motors went under and all their assets were bought up by the Chrysler Corporation.  At this time, Chrysler's Dodge division introduced it's own mid-sized pickup, the Dakota.  So basically, what was meant to be the Comanche's main competitor was now it's step sibling.

Couldn't find a good image of the Comanche's interior.  So I
found this image of the Cherokee SUV (which is more or less
the same thing)

The Comanche and the Dakota ended up being sold side by side at the same dealership.  Even though the Comanche had several advantages over the Dakota, the Comanche never really took off and pretty much sat in the shadows of the Dakota.  This was due mostly in part to the Dakota's lower sticker price and Chrysler's efforts to make Dodge it's "truck" brand and Jeep, it's "SUV" brand.  The Comanche has grown to be so much of a nuisance that dealers were begging Chrysler to pull it from the lineup.

After limping along for several years, the Comanche's death clock ran out in 1992 after only a few thousand trucks were sold the previous year, becoming the last pickup truck to wear the Jeep badge of honor (insert patriotic music here...)
 

 

Car Spotlight- Oldsmobile Achieva (1992-1998)

A boring car in a boring color.

Oldsmobile was always remembered as being "your fathers car" or "your buddy Mike's first car after granny got thrown into the old folk's home."  And by the 1990s...it was still that way.  Just the name "Oldsmobile" can be a dead giveaway to being a boring car meant for old people.

The Achieva was no different from the rest of the Oldsmobile family at the time.  One thing that confuses me the most was where Olds got the name.  It sounds like someone sneezed as they were pitching the name to some top GM executives, and the name stuck...

Like most GM sedans at the time, the Achieva was just another half-hearted attempt to fill a void in a market segment.  Sure, one could get an Achieva with two doors and a stick-shift, but what kind of old person would buy that?  Even the commercials for it were uninspiring... I mean...who would think  that spending most of a commercial showing a bar graph and not the car itself would convince people to buy this car?

The answer to that was well...old people.  Old people who have been driving Oldsmobiles for decades. The Achieva was the car that they bought after retirement, and all the kids have moved out.   At this point, the only places these people would need to go to are the grocery store and church.  Even today, I still see Achieva's on Craigslist with under 100,000 miles.

After almost 90 years of building cars for Grandpa,  Oldsmobile finally realized that they aren't going anywhere if they continue selling such uninspiring cars like the Achieva.  So after selling most of their inventory of 1998 Achieva's to rental fleets, Oldsmobile discontinued the car along with some of it's other well-known but tired nameplates such as the Eighty-Eight, Ninety-Eight, and Cutlass.

Oldsmobile would then focus on making cars that were designed by European engineers...because THAT is what convinces people top buy cars...right?  Well, apparently not, because GM would kill the Oldsmobile brand in 2004 due to low sales and the fact that GM already had several other marques that could easily fill in the void that Olds left behind.    



  

Car Spotlight-Suzuki Kizashi (2010-2013)

2011 Kizashi Sport Limited
photo credit-Super Car Club

Never had I ever heard of a car that sounded more Japanese than the Suzuki Kizashi.  Just say the name to yourself..."Kizashi"...just listening to yourself pronounce that word sounds like something someone would mutter during a fight with a samurai (the Japanese warrior, not the Jeep-looking truck from the late 80s that tipped over all the time).  According to the car's Wikipedia, the word "Kizashi" translates to "something great is coming."  That was the mentality Suzuki had when they introduced the vehicle to the public in 2010.  The Kizashi was meant to usher in a new era or "rebirth" if you want to put it in another way, for Suzuki's car division.

Prior to this, the Suzuki lineup consisted of the SX4 compact hatch and sedan, the trusty but outdated Grand Vitara SUV and it's extended variant, the XL7, and the Equator pick-up (which is more or less a Nissan Frontier with a Suzuki badge.)  Suzuki also offered two sedans, the Forenza and the Verona.  These cars were built by Daewoo Motors of South Korea.  The Forenza and Verona gained a reputation of not being the most reliable cars ever built. (see my post about the Daewoo-built LeMans and Daewoo's attempt at selling their own cars in the United States)  The Kizashi was Suzuki's way of saying "Hey, we're starting the new decade with a clean slate and an all-new car!" hence the source of the vehicle's name.

The Kizashi was definitely a forward-thinking car.  Even though it only came with one engine to choose from (a 2.4L 4 cylinder), consumers did have the option of having one with a 6-speed manual transmission, which was unusual as manual transmissions are becoming less and less common on U.S roads.  A CVT automatic transmission was also available on the Kizashi (but I would avoid the CVT transmission at all costs...REGARDLESS of brand).  Suzuki even offered an all-wheel-drive Kizashi, which could be placed in the same  size category as the Subaru Impreza and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.

interior of a Suzuki Kizashi
photo credit-thoughtyoumightask.com

The car was very well received by the press, who commended Suzuki for reinventing themselves and distancing themselves from the lousy Daewoo's it replaced.  Automotive review site Edmunds compared the Kizashi to similar sized European cars such as the VW Jetta and Volvo S40 in both performance and looks (full Edmunds review here).  The durability and reliability of the Kizashi was also proven to be good when writers from Motor Trend Magazine drove two Kizashi's (and an Equator pickup to haul supplies) from Japan to Los Angeles via Siberia, Alaska, and Canada. (link)

So one would think that an all new car that got such praise from the press would sell like hotcakes, right?...RIGHT?

While the Kizashi may have looked promising to Suzuki, the Kizashi was a victim of bad timing.  The car debuted in the midst of one of the worst economic recessions the world has seen since the 1940s.  At this time, several consumers were hurt financially and faced foreclosure of their homes, repossession of their cars, and literally drowning in debt.  The recession was especially bad for automakers, who ended up losing so much money that they had to get on their knees and begged their governments for bailout money.  Due to their already small and fragile presence in the U.S, Suzuki was pretty much crushed by the recession sledgehammer.

Another problem was that Suzuki was facing a shrinking dealer network.  Even before the Kizashi's release, dealers and consumers were wary if not, unsure of the brand's future.  Due to quality concerns with the Forenza and Verona, Suzuki left kind of a bitter taste on consumers tongues.  Over time, several dealers were dumping their Suzuki franchises, making it harder and harder to buy a Kizashi.

By 2013, a strong Japanese yen, a weak model offering, and a continuously shrinking dealer network forced Suzuki Motors of America into bankruptcy and out of business, killing the Kizashi in the process (but motorcycle and ATV production remained, thankfully)

My personal reflection of the the Kizashi was that it was an obscure car from an obscure brand with an obscure name (damn...I should buy one!)  It definitely had potential to being a serious contender in the American compact car segment.  And I know that first hand as I had the privilege of driving one.

STORY TIME PEOPLE...SIT THE HELL DOWN! 

It was January of 2013 and I was at work cleaning rental cars.  A blizzard swept through town the night before so the lot was still covered in snow.   I was literally digging out cars out of the snow when I "struck silver" (by that, I mean found a silver AWD Kizashi covered in snow).  I didn't recall ever seeing one come across the shop before.  To be honest, this was perhaps the first time I have ever seen a Kizashi up close, as the last Suzuki car dealership in my town closed up two years prior.

Upon finding out it had AWD, I stopped digging it out and hopped inside to see what it could do.  Lo and behold, the Kizashi managed to climb out of it's snowy grave like it was nothing, which is saying a lot for a car with a low ground clearance.  Edmunds was spot on with saying how well the car handled, even in the snow.

Cleaning the car's interior was also fairly easy as the dirt, snow and "mystery stains" left by the previous renter came out without much effort.  The interior itself did look like it was inspired by European engineering.  In fact it even SMELLED like it was designed by european engineers (but that was because there was a melted Toblerone in the glovebox next to the heater vents).

The only critique I had about that car was that it took me almost 20 minutes to figure out how to open the gas lid.  There was no lip to pull it open and I couldn't find a release lever.  Turns out you had to push the opposite end of the door to open it.  Upon figuring this out, I reacted to the method with a "WHAT THE HELL!"

A silver Kizashi similar to the one I drove, only mine had South
Dakota plates on it.
photo credit-All Suzuki Images