Cars Ruined by their own Evolution

 

Time is not always on our side, as the Rolling Stones would suggest.  For the automotive industry, it can be a car’s worst nightmare.  New technology is brought out every year, science dictates new efficiency and safety standards, and manufacturers have to be able to keep up with the latest and greatest in order to sell their products.  As a result, there’s a natural evolution that takes place in the industry.  Just as with every other industry, cars evolve whether it’s a good thing or not.  Most of the time, it’s easy to see trends:  The “why” behind the evolution, if you will.  Sometimes it’s a little bit harder.  Then there those changes that seem to take away some important part of a car.

 

We’re going to look at ten of those cars which had something fundamentally inherent to their character taken away because of trends, regulations, or any other number of reasons.  The cars themselves may be doing well, but somehow, they just aren’t the same as they used to be.

Jeep Wrangler

The Wrangler is an off-roaders’ dream, and it continues to be the only Jeep that has truly maintained that reputation.  That being said, every single Jeep model should be put on this list, but I chose to pick on the Wrangler.  It’s gotten bigger, heavier, more expensive… much more expensive, and while it’s still the “Jeep-y-est” Jeep still available, it’s also become much less reliable than before.  It may be more usable than it ever has been, especially with the addition of the two back doors, but that was never its goal.  You might even say that it has become comfortable.  There will always be some kind of level of modernization that takes place for any car.  That being said, the high price tag along with its increasingly modern touches have made the Wrangler something it was never meant to be.

 

BMW M3/M4

I’m not alone in my opinions that the new BMW M cars are a far cry from what they used to be.  Everyone can also say that their performance levels are truly higher than they used to be because of the computers governing the car, helping to shave off thousandths of seconds from lap times.  That’s great, but they have become numb and disconnected as a result.  The engine is good, the cars still handle very well, and the precision engineering hasn’t gone away at all.  For a true M car, good just doesn’t cut it.  The past four have all been great in their own way, each being the complete package.  The package has been unraveled and “great” has been handed off to the simpler, smaller, and better M2.

 

Honda Civic Si

You can see most of my thoughts on this one by clicking here.  Even more than I thought, the Si has become a complete afterthought.  I’ve never even seen one at a dealership, and I’ve only ever seen three or four out on the road since its debut last summer.  The Type-R has become the one and only Civic to have for any kind of performance, and all of the other trims are so close to what the Si offers that it’s almost obsolete.  It used to be that the Si gave the buyer something special.  That something special was the engine.  That legendary VTEC engine capable of revving to the heavens made the car what it was, and it gave it the performance to set it apart from every other civic.  Those days are over.

 

Subaru Impreza/Legacy/Outback

You can see my full analysis on the Subaru lineup by checking out the article I wrote a few weeks ago.  To sum it all up though, Subaru has changed their identity, and not in a good way.  They used to be a company that was rooted in offering something different.  They still do offer all-wheel-drive in everything except the BRZ, but that alone doesn’t set them apart from every other available option anymore.  The Impreza, Legacy, and Outback – even the Forester – have all become something that isn’t all that different from the average small car, mid-size car, or SUV.  A once outstanding, different product has been reduced to a good product that just competes rather than stands out.

 

Mitsubishi Eclipse

The Eclipse used be a pretty cool car.  The second generation version is still highly valued as a tuner car and is the most recognizable of the entire Eclipse family.  The car had available all-wheel-drive, and though a bit more round and flabby than the first generation, it got a horsepower boost to 210, completely acceptable even for a car today, let alone back in 1995.  It was a really good sports coupe.  The third generation Eclipse was underwhelming and forgettable, and the fourth Generation bulked up significantly and just seemed to wander away from being what its predecessors used to be.  The Eclipse was finally killed off, 2012 being its final year of production.  In recent news, Mitsubishi announced the return of the Eclipse which excited some, until they heard it would be reincarnated as a crossover.  Apparently Mitsubishi thinks the world needs another crossover… I don’t.

 

Nissan Sentra

The Sentra has always been a reliable little car that always got the job done with just a little spunk to liven up the party.  It always looked just a little funky, but where it lacked in power, it made up for in pizzazz.  There was even an available SE-R and SE-R Spec V version that upped the performance into a legitimate sports compact car.  Today, the Sentra has to deal with the stigma that Nissan has created for itself:  Underwhelming, slow, and bland.  You may even add cheap in there as well.  But wait!  There is an SR Turbo version of the Sentra that you can buy right now!  That would be awesome if it didn’t carry with it the un-eventfulness that haunts every other Sentra model, including current Nismo version.

 

Volkswagen Beetle

The Beetle is an icon.  It’s probably the most well-known and loved car the world has ever seen.  It was affordable transport for the average person for years upon years.  Today, it just isn’t that.  There are fewer and fewer on the roads, and not only have they shot up in price, comparatively of course, but they’ve also become bigger.  They’ve also become a little weird.  The nostalgia that comes with owning a Beetle is certainly strong among collectors and lovers of the car, but trying to uphold and reinvent years and years of tradition sometimes fails.  Collectors will always favor the older ones, and new ones don’t really cater to anybody else except those looking for a “cute” runaround vehicle.  The Beetle has simply outgrown itself.

 

Mini Cooper/Fiat 500

The Mini Cooper and Fiat 500 were some of the most legendary cars that set the trend for compact and inexpensive transport in Britain and Italy respectively.  They were popular, perfectly representative of each’s nation, and, dare I say, cute.  Today, you can see glimpses of the past in both of these cars as they have been made larger and more modern to accommodate the world in which we live.  The real problem is that the modern versions have siblings… a lot of them.  It would be a little more excusable if they were good, but they aren’t.  The brands have exploded to try and reach as much of the market as possible.  A good business strategy, but one that will require much better vehicles than the Countryman and 500L, among others.

 

Chevrolet Corvette

A lot of people will hate me for this one but I have to include it.  The Corvette has evolved into a genuinely fantastic  overall car.  I would even classify the Z06 as a supercar.  And for the price, it’s a complete steal!  It’s pretty outstanding!  Why is it here then?  For a brashly American car to become anything other than that, it has to edge closer to its European or Japanese counterparts.  A little more refinement, serious handling capability, and power to boot, the Corvette has just grown up.  A lot of people just wish that never would have happened.  I would take a Corvette over a Charger or Challenger any day of the week, but one thing they still have is a good ol’ kick in the butt straight from Uncle Sam.  Say what you will though.  I like the Corvette, but you do have to admit that it has come a long way – perhaps a little too long – from where it was.

 

There are so many more cars that I could put on this list.  You could probably also make your own list with all different cars as well.  So, tell me… What cars do you think I missed?  What would your list look like?

–SWF