Initial perceptions can cloud your judgments. Trying to analyze something like a car can often be distorted by how you think it’s going to drive versus the reality of how it actually behaves behind the wheel. What are some cars you’ve been surprised by (for better or for worse) after taking a spin around the block?
Way back in the nineties, my former college roommate was constantly going to any of those manufacturer-sponsored driving events he would get invites to in the mail or, later, online. One that he inexplicably got notified about was for Cadillac cars; he didn’t seem to fit the demographic other than being a serial test-track-event visitor, but it was too tempting not to go. Ostensibly, the idea of the event was to show GM’s “standard of the world” was now trying to be more of an enthusiast brand and not just for those with an average age approaching deceased.
Naturally, he drove all of the cars there and claimed that the hosts had no problem with attendees driving the living crap out of the vehicles. One of the 1996 or so cars he sampled was that latest STS Seville, supposedly Cadillac’s true “Euro fighter” sedan:
Also, he took a spin in the almost comical soon-to-be-discontinued Fleetwood Brougham, the D-Body full-frame sedan that under the skin dated back to the “downsized” 1977 GM cars:
My ex-roommate’s response was that the big Brougham drove better than the modern STS; this had me checking to see if my phone was broken or if the connection was somehow compromised. However, after later driving used examples of similar cars, I know exactly what he meant.
You see, the STS looked the part of a BMW beater, all clean and crisp and almost German in styling. You expected the driving experience to mirror the exterior. It didn’t. Oh, it didn’t drive that badly, but it was as if someone had taken a front-drive Bonneville or even a Grand Am and tried to improve it in any way they could. They succeeded in making it better than those cars, but in terms of things like steering feel, ride, seats, and interior finishes, it was still a far, far cry from the refinement of a BMW E34 or later E39. Don’t even ask about the bank-vault feel of a Benz W124. You couldn’t help but be disappointed at what you thought was going to be a legitimate autobahn cruiser.
On the other hand, the “whale” Caprice-based Fleetwood Brougham seemed to be a bit of a joke; it looked more like a McMansion or even a gaudy banquet hall on wheels than it did a motor vehicle. The fact that it could move at all and go around corners would be shocking to you; it did. Here’s our man John Davis with an early model (a 1993) of this final rear drive bodystyle.
Equipped with FE2 Ride Handling Suspension, I was taken aback by its roadholding ability. It was like running a cop car in a Liberace suit, which is essentially what it was. Your expectations were so low that it was surprising how far you could push this delightful traditional Cadillac barge and have it come back for more. No, it was not even remotely a “sport sedan,” but it drove way better than you would have imagined.
Any other examples? Let’s see … I remember the Ford Transit van I rented was surprisingly nice to drive; it was bigger than the Chevy Express vans I’d been given the keys to before but felt far smaller.
Mitsubishi 3000GT? If I knew it was going to feel like the big touring coupe that it is, I might not have been let down. Instead, I assumed it would drive like an RX-7 or Z32 300ZX, and it does not.
How about you? What cars have you driven that were either far better or far worse than you ever imagined?
Top graphic image: Motorweek screenshot
Better: Last gen Chevy Impala. One of my favorite rental cars to get, was sad when they were discontinued. Jeep Wrangler JL, way better than the JK I test drove to buy. Recent Nissan Altima, was getting my pilots license & still returned 40mpg+.
Worse: Toyota Tacoma, previous gen. One of the most uncomfortable to drive rental cars, on par with the F-250 I got at the counter in Des Moines once. Just bounced you around unlike a Colorado. The newer Frontier wasn’t great either. 1/2 ton trucks also got basically the same gas milage & rode way better.
Get out of my head! I was going to nominate the gen Impala as well. Yeah. I was always thrilled when I got one of those as a rental. My worst vehicle was the predecessor to the Tacoma with a V6 and the Xtracab. And sadly, I owned it. But I only lost $2500 or so in depreciation when I sold it 5 years and 60K miles later. I probably could have hated it for a very long time.
Here one car that I was shocked on how well/fun it was to drive the 2012 Toyota RAV4 with the V6. I was not expecting it to be that fast or fun.
In college, I had a Volare Premier station wagon that handled and rode shockingly good. Years late I got an old 27 foot Travco motorhome and drove it from Fort Lauderdale to northern Wisconsin. It went down the road so nice that you had to constantly remind yourself that you were driving a building and could wipe out several cars if you tried changing lanes like you normally would.
It’s interesting how much a person’s perceptions coming in shape how they feel. When we bought my wife’s 2015 Legacy from a friend’s grandma I had very low expectations and have found it to be a surprisingly decent all around car that does almost nothing wrong and can even be pushed hard on twisty roads and it is happier to do it than just about any other bland midsize sedan I’ve driven.
Yet every time I’ve driven a WRX I’ve been a tad disappointed, probably because I came in with high expectations. I’m always impressed by their chassis tuning but so much of the rest of the driving experience feels crude and not very cohesively engineered. Like they’re fun and very capable, but when my in-laws Honda Fit has better steering and brake feel…
Being a loudmouth dummy back around 2003 when a buddy told me he bought a ’91 Miata, I exclaimed “Why? That’s a girl’s car.” His response was to let me drive it and I was SMITTEN. Then, a few years later I bought it from him and still own it!