models going buh-bye in 2016

[Bubba1]

Not supermodels, discontinued car models. A few Nissans on the list too. Here they are:

10. Toyota Venza. Camry based crossover. It wasn't much more than a Camry based Highlander with a less room. Buh-bye.

9. Scion Xb: that brick shaped mini minivan that didn't change much over 15 yrs. I understand it has been replaced by the recently introduced iM 4 door hatchback. See 'ya, wouldn't wanna be 'ya.

8. Scion iQ, Toyota's answer to the Smart car, which was a curiosity niche car no one in this country clamoring for to begin with. Good riddance.

7. NISSAN Xterra. It's been around 15 yr with a devoted following, but evidently Nissan feels people are clamoring more for CVT crossovers that hold groceries and can't go off-road. Bon Voyage.

6. Mini Cooper Coupe and Roadster. With so many versions of the mini being sold, it appears Mini is lopping off the small sellers. Hasta la vista , baby.

5. Land Rover LR2 - don't fear, it's being replaced by another slightly bigger overpriced, unreliable, off-road capable Discovery 2. "Ta-Ta" LR2

4. Jeeeaaaag XK. I was surprised Jag was still making XK's after it was replaced by the F. Later, gator.

3.Infiniti Q40. Or what normal people used to call the G37. I believe it's going to be replaced by something Nissan thinks everyone needs. Yep, another new crossover with the highly unique name... Q30. Sayonara.

2. Honda Crosstour. Let's see, ugly, not really a wagon, that no one wanted to buy. Check, please

1. Meredes Benz M class. Well, it's technically going away, but it's more like being refreshed and renamed with typical confusing Mercedes name GLE-series. Auf Wiedersehen.

Thoughts? comments?

[Desert Rat]

Shame that there are so few trail capable vehicles being sold anymore.

Want a body on frame SUV? Hope you like 4 runners and wranglers. Those are your only choices unless you go full size and add in the Tahoe. I won't count the expedition because of 4 wheel independent junk underneath.

[themadscientist]

I liked the iQ. You guys got the lame cheese sandwich version; it's no wonder it didn't sell. It's not fast at all and it's tiny. Americans don't really like that. It's more of a European and Asian market car. In the city it's great and why I entertained buying one.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I liked the iQ also. The ONLY microcompact or whatever you want to call it that actually did things mostly right. No goofy-a** automated manual transmission (yes, a CVT is preferable to a bad single-clutch automanual, especially in a car designed to do nothing interesting ever). No goofy-a** architecture that ruins cargo capacity and versatility. Just a normal car doing things a normal way and shrunk down to a tiny size. The dash was pretty bad, though. If I had a need for a tiny car, the iQ would probably be my choice. Much more appealing than a ForTwo, which is so busy being different it forgets to be a car.

If they'd sold it with a three-pedal manual, it would have been a pretty good option.

As for the xB, rather than agreeing that it didn't change much in 15 years, I would argue that it changed excessively dramatically, to the point of not even being the same kind of car. The 2nd gen wasn't even in the same segment as the 1st gen. The original was an ultrabasic appliance. The 2nd gen was a hipster "mobile device" on wheels with overdone everything. They were not the same size, didn't do the same things, and didn't cost the same. Why Scion felt a need to replace a car with broad appeal with one targeted at a narrow market of kids who can't actually afford a car anyway is baffling to me. I would never buy either generation, but at least the first one makes a case for being simple-but-reliable in an appealing way.

[Jesda]

The XK is such a spectacularly beautiful car. Always tugs at the heart strings (and the wallet, if you own one).

It's timeless.

[themadscientist]

They had sporty models, but not the US market.

http://www.japanesesportcars.com/2011-g ... 17107.html




I dig the IQ for all the right reasons so I don't expect thrilling performance, but I do require the ability to row my own gears. If I want a little screamer, though, I'd grab a Fiat 500 Abarth.

http://www.fiatusa.com/en/abarth/

[nissangirl74]

I don't like the Fiat at all. I tried, can't do it.

[MinisterofDOOM]

The 500's ergonomics are all broken. The wheel:pedals:shifter ratio is all wrong. Completely, hopessly wrong. It's one of the few cars left with a manual and the shifter absolutely does not fall readily to hand. It's way up forward on the dash, almost PAST the steering wheel, instead of down between the seats where it belongs. I'd end up with kyphosis if I had to drive that thing everyday. It's also ugly as crap. Uglier, in fact.

[Jesda]

Dad's Abarth is sooooo much fun to drive. The sounds, the cool interior, the look. All of it comes together to create a sense of occasion and excitement.

Minis and Miatas are sharper handlers and quicker cars but the Fiat has gobs and gobs of character.

I'd say it makes up for my dad owning a beige Camry Hybrid.

[nissangirl74]

The only one that makes me sad to lose is the Xterra. It's no less capable than it used to be. Nissan just stopped marketing it (when's the last time you saw a commercial for one of those).

[OriginalWheelman]

I was hoping it was the Kardashians.

[Bubba1]

Dad's Abarth is sooooo much fun to drive. The sounds, the cool interior, the look. All of it comes together to create a sense of occasion and excitement.

Minis and Miatas are sharper handlers and quicker cars but the Fiat has gobs and gobs of character.

I'd say it makes up for my dad owning a beige Camry Hybrid.

I agree. I test drove a brand new Abarth not long ago, ($50 gift certificate offer ). I agree that it felt a tad odd at first, but I got used to it quickly. I felt the same way the first time I drove a modern Mini. It grows on you quickly. I thought the Abarth shifter felt a tad rubbery, but the car felt tossable and fun overall. I kinda liked the car, but not enough to want to own one.

[MinisterofDOOM]

The 500's styling is so strange. The car looks like it's leaning forward in anticipation of the punchline of an overdrawn joke, and the goofy modern "stacked bubbles" bulging/curving beltline is so strange, especially considering the car's ultratall proportions and tapered sillhouette.

Like most modern takes on classic simplicity, it looks like an injection-molded Fisher-Price exaggeration of itself, which lends it an everpresent sense of "just not quite right..."

[Hijacker]

Time to update the list with Scion. All of it.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Most Scion models are sticking around, they're just getting normal Toyota badges instead.

[PapaSmurf2k3]

The 500's styling is so strange. The car looks like it's leaning forward in anticipation of the punchline of an overdrawn joke, and the goofy modern "stacked bubbles" bulging/curving beltline is so strange, especially considering the car's ultratall proportions and tapered sillhouette.

Like most modern takes on classic simplicity, it looks like an injection-molded Fisher-Price exaggeration of itself, which lends it an everpresent sense of "just not quite right..."

I agree. Its like someone tried to make the mid to late 2000's VW Beetle more masculine.