I've had 34 cars (including cars I've bought for my partners over the years) I thought I'd start a thread by doing a summary with pictures and compare the top 5, but I think I'll have to make it 6 plus 2 or 3 honourable mentions...Will try and add a ratings table of key features comparing the top 6 in the next couple of days.
Ok, So start with probably the best in terms of a near perfect compromise of features, performance and practicality.
.. and the winner is our 2017 i30 SR (non Premium)
Everything worked as it should. Had Auto cruise control, a must for me from now on. Zippy, Good steering, Brakes and ride. Reasonably economical. Could have done with a bit more boot space but good capacity for the class. Biggest negative was road noise but far from worst in class in this area. Almost perfect. Averaged around 7.2 L/100kms.
.. Equal 2nd place- Our current car, 2019 Toyota Camry Ascent Sport Hybrid. Great cruiser, more economical than SR, roomier and better ride. But, apart from the Economy and Boot space not as far ahead of the SR as I expected. Not as fun to drive, brakes not as nice to use, interior a dust and fingerprint magnet. Infotainment and other interfaces not as user friendly as SR. Things like Auto Cruise don't work as well as Hyundai version. Quieter, much more economical and nicer ride than Calais. Averaging 5.2 L/100kms on cheaper E10 fuel
Equal 2nd place... 2014 Holden Calais V (v6)
Fairly hard to fault really, great looking car, very nice interior. Did everything well. Powerful, Quiet, great brakes. Ride a tad firm on 19" wheels. Thirsty compared to most other cars we have had which were nearly all 4 cylinder, although 9.0 L/100kms was still impressive. Main reason for swapping was I wanted Auto Cruise. SR filled the Calais's boots surprisingly well.
3rd.. 2008 i30 FD CRDi 5 speed manual.
Heaps of character (and Torque) made me smile every time I drove it. Biggest fault probably road noise. Did pretty much everything else as good or better than any other car in it's class. Great fuel economy (averaged around 5.4 L/100 kms)
4th Place ... 1991 Nissan Pulsar SSS - Very sporty and zippy despite only 105 KW motor. Very torquey. Thinking back was very similar to drive to the FD i30 CRDi but quicker off the mark. Probably not quite as torquey. Not a pretty car but has aged quite well. the 1991 Aussie built one we had had better seats than the later imported ones . Not as fancy but more padding so very comfortable. REliable and definitely fun to drive. Interior picture not our car this was later imported version.
5th Place - 1993 Nissan Bluebird SSS 5 speed manual was an interesting car. Styling was a little quirky. The spoiler on the rear helped the look from the back. It was dearer than the opposition at the time but was sportier and had some advanced features for the time. It was quick, relatively economical (around 8 L/100kms) and the SSS had things like a heads up display which required a special windscreen which was very expensive to replace. It was a lovely car but wasn't as chuckable as the SSS Pulsar I had before it. A great cruiser but just lacked the character of cars like the SSS Pulsar and FD i30 CRDi. Pictures aren't our old car but same colour (storm cloud) top picture is same car, known as Altima in USA at the time.
Some honorable mentions..
1990 Mitsubishi Lancer GSR (this was only front wheel drive unlike later GSR's)
Nice car, engine was smooth as silk but not enough torque and the Red paint on ours faded badly (although we didn't have our long enough for that to be an issue)
1978 Renault Virage 1.4 Special
I did around 120,000 kms in 4 years in this car.
Was the bronze colour like one of the photos. My interior, being a special, was dressed up a bit with super comfortable velour covered bucket seats. It was only a 4 speed manual but cruised well. Wasn't too bad on fuel either. I switched the steering wheel for a SAAS gold finger wheel with Gold spokes and a Tan leather rim.
Other cars I enjoyed owning and driving included a 1976 Fiat 128 3P hatch which went like a cut cat and handled like a go cart despite only having 145 wide Michelin tyres. I drove that thing flat out (100mph @ 6,500 RPM in 4th gear every chance I got)
Both our previous Hybrid Camrys were good cars 2010 and 2012 models..
and we can't forget a zippy little 2006 Gets (1.6 , 6 speed manual) or our excellent 1998 1.6 Nissan Pulsar plus 6 speed Manual which we kept for almost 4 years (Trish loved that car)
