The Used Car Hall of Shame
2001 Pontiac Aztek
Photo © General Motors
Consumer Reports is out with its “Hall of Shame” for used cars, which is free content. Don’t read the list if you just bought a used car and you’re faint of heart. As CR explains, “These models have multiple years of much worse than Used Car Verdicts in the 1998 to 2007 models.” Definitely shop against that list.
CR also has its 2007 list of unreliable used cars, which is available only by subscription. As somebody who has reviewed more than 350 new cars since 2002 for newspapers and magazines in New England, it’s somewhat reassuring to see cars I’ve pegged as bad live down to their reputations.
Among them:
• Chevy Aveo 2004 & 2006: Sure it’s cheap, but that’s no excuse for being miserable to drive.
• Dodge Magnum Station Wagon 2005-2006: This listing makes me proclaim, “Hallelujah – I wasn’t a sole voice in the wilderness decrying this car.”
• Toyota Camry V-6 2007: I liked the 4-cylinder version of the Camry a lot better and you will, too. It’s less expensive and the performance is satisfactory. Plus, the V-6 Camry is the car that made CR decide no longer to rubber stamp Toyota as a best buy.
• Nissan Quest Minivan 2004-2006: Who says minivans have to be ugly and unpleasant to drive? Apparently, Nissan did for a few years.
• Kia Amanti 2004-2005: Exterior looks were decent, but the rest of this car wasn’t. It handled like a waterbed with a steering wheel attached.
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