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Yugo. Are they the worst car of all time?

2

Comments

  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,976
    ...One mile in every 5 on interstates is straight for a reason, so I guess you can kind of pull off and fiddle with the electronics. If there's an interstate in close range and you're not crashing and burning too fast!
  • rea98drea98d Member Posts: 982
    One mile in every five is straight because, in order for the US gov't to constitutionally build a interstate highway system (roads are the states' jobs), they had to make it for national defense, so we have a straight mile every five to land our fighters and bombers on in case we ever get invaded. As for Lucas electronics, from what I can tell, many Jag owners complain more about Bosch components rebadged as Lucas than they do about components actually made by Lucas!
  • dpwestlakedpwestlake Member Posts: 207
    Lucas, Prince of Darkness jokes
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    I like the idea of fighter jets landing on freeways. We could cut down traffic by attrition (smash 'em faster than Detroit can build 'em).
  • spokanespokane Member Posts: 514
    And Lucas/TRW? Oh, no. Sorry I asked.

    But thanks, dpwestlake, the "Prince of Darkness" fact sheet was what I needed to forget the frightening thoughts of Lucas allied with Boeing or TRW.
  • dpwestlakedpwestlake Member Posts: 207
    Ever been in a Lada? even in third world countries their value fluctuates depending on how much gas is in the tank.
  • lokkilokki Member Posts: 1,200
    Sure, they break all the time, but they were a lot easier to fix than Japanese cars, and parts were readily available... unless the other guy had his car locked up for the night.
  • corsicachevycorsicachevy Member Posts: 316
    I just got through reading the posts from #1 to #58 and I can't believe that BOTH satisfied Citation owners have found their way on to Edmunds.
  • lokkilokki Member Posts: 1,200
    Would be the Plymouth K car that our company had as a company car during the late 80's. It was really slapped together in the crudest way. I remember tearing a shirt sleeve on the ragged edge of the trim on the driver's door one day. We had a ton of trouble with that car as it fell apart.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,976
    a 1981 Reliant, for something like $600.00, back in late '89. At the time he was driving an '80 Chevy pickup with a 350, and he just wanted something better on fuel. I think it lasted about a month, and then he sold it to a wholesaler for about $200.00. Sad thing was, the guy who sold him the Reliant also had a '66 Catalina for sale, for about the same price. Wish my uncle had picked that one, instead ;-)
  • dgraves1dgraves1 Member Posts: 414
    corsica - If you count the Pontiac Phoenix version, that's three. When I married my wife, she had a Phoenix. It was actually quite reliable and a very practical vehicle. With the V6 engine, it actually moved out pretty well.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 25,976
    ...seems to me that if the X-car was one of those unfortunate circumstances where it was designed pretty well, but just poorly put together. If it had been better built, I'm sure it would've been a formidable car in the marketplace for longer than just the first 2 or 3 years. Honda, Toyota, and Datsun really didn't have anything in this size range yet, and the K-cars, while in general may have been better-built (but probably not much!)were just too fuddy-duddy back then. I have an auto encyclopedia that has a couple of factory photos of a later-model Phoenix sport model...I think it was called an SJ or something like that. I thought it was a nice looking little car...almost a bit like a "poor man's" Grand National. Well...almost ;-)
  • jlflemmonsjlflemmons Member Posts: 2,242
    We had one of these bought new in '81. The round trip to work was 75 miles, so I ordered one with the 2.5L 4cyl and standard tranny, a 4spd. The first thing we noticed about the car was how incredibly quiet it was on the highway. I mean, almost spooky. Actually was a pretty good little car, but very rare as it was a Brogham (sp) so it had all the little niceties but with a stick.
  • merckxmerckx Member Posts: 565
    I also remember my 1981 Citation as being eeriely quiet-it was an unexpected niceity it had.The engineers probably spent far too much time on this though.American cars often seem to stress the shallowest qualties.Look at the new Cadillac CTS.Really dramatic styling,but something tells me it won't have dramatic steering,tracking,or absense of rattles...
  • ghuletghulet Member Posts: 2,564
    I've been watching the 'Lets Make a Deal' marathon on Game Show Network (sad, I know, but this show is kinda entertaining). You would not believe how many Chevy Vegas they've given away on this show, I've seen at least ten already (including lime green and powder blue).
    The only foreign/sports car they gave away so far was a Lancia Beta ($9000 new in 1975, about the cost of a basic Cadillac), which were awful cars.
    Other bad cars on this show: lots of Buick Skyhawks (similar to Nova).
    Cool cars=71 Malibu convertible, 73 Firebird Esprit, 71 Monte Carlo, all given away.
  • dweezildweezil Member Posts: 271
    Actually, the Pontiac 6000, Chevy Celebrity, Buick Century and Olds Ciera were all stretched versions of the X body[and the Century and Ciera had an incredible run from 1982 until 1996]identical wheelbase and interior room as well as engines and transmissions.
    GM didn't expect the demand for the Xs and at one point had factories running 24 hours, so the opportunity for sloppy workmanship was always there.
    I loved mine in spite of it being thrashed when I got it and with 82,000 miles on the odo.I had driven my folk's Ciera and was totally impressed with the quiet. The Citation was the same.
    I have to disagree about this being a "shallow quality".Not only does it add to the overall satisfaction, it's important on long trips to reduce driver fatigue. And if you live in a major city that rive home is a lot easier if you can shut out the noise.
    Of course I have had a thing for quiet cars since the old "Quieter Than a Rolls Royce" Ford ads of the mid sixties.We had a 66 Mercury back then and it was eerie riding in it.I don'tmind feeling tar strips and broken pavement as well as road irregularities, I just don't want to hear it; it irritates me, I also don't want to hear someone elses blasting bass,bad radios thumping out Kiis FM style drek etc.Anything that can prevent an incident of road rage is a good thing, with all due respect.
    There's also the element of just being alone with my car, the two of us, even though there's a busy noisy world out there, ready to wipe us out at any moment.{hey, it's L.A...it's ALL fantasy here}:-+
  • spokanespokane Member Posts: 514
    Dweezil, at the risk of going too far off topic, I will say I also sat up when I heard the "Quieter than a Rolls" claim for the big '65 Fords and Mercurys. While Ford was airing those ads, I had an opportunity to attend a lecture by a Rolls-Royce representative. When asked the inevitable question, he replied, "We must consider the quality of noise. It really isn't proper to compare a jukebox with a grand piano." I very much liked the big Fords and Mercurys of that era but also enjoyed this "rebuttal."
  • dweezildweezil Member Posts: 271
    That is a scream!!!THX for the laugh.Never thought about it that way.Hype is GOOD!!! Dave
  • aniryuaniryu Member Posts: 61
    Happens to be an Audi CS 5000. Uhh, more than $5,000 ($$$) worth of worthless transmission fixtures, because the darn thing broke all the time. I finally DUMPED it and bought my second worst car of all time--a '96 Honda Passport. Then I proved that I was one of the most stupid people of all time by trading it in for a *gasp!!* '98 Isuzu Rodeo. I still have my Rodeo, and I have been lucky. 100,000 miles (yes, 100,000) and no problems at all, but still. What the heck was I thinking? AN ISUZU?!!!!

    Now, my two other cars are better. I bought a RX 300 not long time ago in 2000, and I also bought a 2001 Camry in April. Ahh. Toyota is the only way to go.
  • crossedrealitycrossedreality Member Posts: 72
    ok, you traded a Passport for a Rodeo? :P
  • aniryuaniryu Member Posts: 61
    That's what I said. How stupid am I?
  • speedshiftspeedshift Member Posts: 1,598
    I bought a car at night once, partly because it was a pretty dark blue, drove it home and parked it in front of my house. The next morning I looked out the window and realized it was dark brown.
  • aniryuaniryu Member Posts: 61
    Mwhahahaha! That is funny.....:)
    Eeek. I can't believe I bought a black car, and BLACK SUV! Somebody just shoot me.
  • crossedrealitycrossedreality Member Posts: 72
    I like black cars. If I could get a magically self-cleaning one, I would never have a reason to look at red/metallic blue again (my other favourites).
  • aniryuaniryu Member Posts: 61
    Black looks nice if clean, but scratches show up 10 times more on a black car than say, silver.

    I currently a white car and a gold car.
  • ghuletghulet Member Posts: 2,564
    I just bought a black car, looks great the two days a month it's clean, bad otherwise (it's used). My last car was metallic blue (kinda light), it looked great most of the time, as did the previous silver car. It's a bit tough to pick out colors on a ten-year-old car, though.
  • aniryuaniryu Member Posts: 61
    I think silver is the best color, if you aren't planning to wash your car every two days.

    For me, right after I get out of the car wash, in two hours, my car looks the same as it did before the car wash.
  • focusmatt2focusmatt2 Member Posts: 106
    Does anyone remember the Yugo variants they produced for a brief while during the last years of Yugo's presence in the US?

    I believe they made a Yugo convertible. Ack! I personally think the Yugo is such an interesting car... I would be the type of person to put a Ford Fiesta engine or a little Honda engine and somehow retrofit the car to be reliable.
  • focusmatt2focusmatt2 Member Posts: 106
    I was under the impression that Yugos were partially-government owned factories making budget cars off of an old Fiat design. Can anyone refute or back up the claim that Yugos were Fiat designs?
  • merckxmerckx Member Posts: 565
    I believe the Yugo was a Fiat 128. I know the first Russian Lada was a Fiat 124,a really neat RWD sedan from 1967.
  • focusmatt2focusmatt2 Member Posts: 106
    They still made a Lada SUV that looked like an extremely large Yugo with monster wheels up until like 1998 or so.

    I saw a picture of it in a British car magazine, and I just had to laugh.
  • ghuletghulet Member Posts: 2,564
    I do remember seeing one of these at the 1988 Chicago Auto Show (and thinking, 'why?'). I don't think I've ever seen one on the street.
    A friend of mine had a Yugo in high school (it was almost new, as I graduated in 1987); the car was junky but kinda fun to drive (my mom had an automatic Camry at the time, so anything quirkier was fun!). I don't know if the Yugo was based on an old Fiat design, but I don't think it was based on the 128; if memory serves, the 128 was slightly larger than a Yugo, and had a very short trunk (these were sold in the U.S. late 60s-early 70s). Wasn't the Yugo just a Lada renamed for the U.S.?
    Is the 124 the same as a Strada (sold in the U.S. late 70s-81)?
    I don't know why anyone would want to put ANY money in a Yugo for any reason, just my opinion.
  • wonderwallwonderwall Member Posts: 126
    no, yugo was a zastava renamed for the u.s. zastava was a yugoslavian automaker. when i was in hungary back in 1998 i saw a four door notchback zastava. it looked like the u.s spec yugo from the front and had a second set of doors and a trunk.
  • dweezildweezil Member Posts: 271
    did a feature on the YUGO convertible not too long ago. I don't think it was ever built , but the prototype is still in the hands of one of the Yugo execs here in the US.....hmmmm why not hide out in Brazil like others who committed crimes against humanity????
  • egkelly1egkelly1 Member Posts: 30
    ..as a "LADA" (a Russian-built Fiat 128.) Both cars share a common lineage-they were the result of Communist regimes unable to develop their own low-cost cars. Yugoslavia and Russia both bought the FIAT 128 chassis design, and FIAT engineers constructed the Zavastia (Yugoslavia)and the Togliatti Works (Russia). There are two problems: both cars used hot-rolled steel for the bodies, which resulted in very rust-prone vehicles.Second, the electrical gear is made on 1930's era machinery (fabric insulation on the wires) resulting in a high proportion of short circuits. You can see the remains of many dead LADAS in Jamaica, rusting away on the sides of the roads-Jamaican cab drivers say that LADA means "lord have mercy on you"-I guess they didn't last too long!
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Yes, a Yugo convertible (called a "cabrio" for gawd's sake) was actually built in 1990 and imported into the US. I have a picture of one. Price was double that of the sedan, almost $9,000. The top was a power top, too. Probably went down once.
  • dpwestlakedpwestlake Member Posts: 207
    The top probably went down on its own on the coldest day of the year never to rise again.
  • lleroilleroi Member Posts: 112
    most unique classics.While many classic cars owe their desirability to the fact the companies no longer exist;the Yugo could be the only one made in a country that no longer exists.Unless cars were manufactured in the Austro-Hungarian Empire this may be true.I'm not going to count the Soviet Union as I view this as a mere name change accompanied by some down-sizing.
  • focusmatt2focusmatt2 Member Posts: 106
    There's a sort of upscale trendy hardware / cookware store next door to my apartment, and in the parking lot last night there was a blue Yugo with an American flag hanging on top.

    I just had to laugh. I suppose it's a good thing; it shows that America is okay with differing opinions and diverse backgrounds.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Yeah, well, America is okay but Yugos aren't okay. If I had the time and money I'd seek out and destroy every one so that others might not suffer.
  • ghuletghulet Member Posts: 2,564
    using 'Yugo' and 'classic' in the same sentence? Shame on you.
  • lleroilleroi Member Posts: 112
    any LeCar.The YUGO is one of the most misunderstood vehicles to ever come out of YUGOSLAVIA.It was a truly cosmopolitan effort.Italian designed,Croat engineered,Serbian reliability and Bosnian marketing.The cost of ownership is minimal 12"tires-you should see the look I get at Sears,when I show up with the sales brochure asking for the$9.00 tire.I get all my spare parts off old FIATS.
    The Yugo is a classic by any definition-limited production,extinct,exotic origin,unique style and a name that stirs controversy.The YUGO inspires much more fevor then a 300 SL Gullwing coupe and there are probably less Yugos in running condition.Anyone can drive a 57 T-Bird,any model Cord,Duesenberg,etc with pride ,but it is the complete lack of pride in driving a YUGO that separates the the serious collector from the sea of conformity.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    That's true...you can stall to the beat of a different drummer.
  • lleroilleroi Member Posts: 112
    around does make me nervous at times.Stalling ,no problem.I can usually jump start with a cellphone battery or get a jogger to tow me up to speed.
  • northstartnorthstart Member Posts: 41
    Over here in England the Yugo was regarded as an old mans car. They were cheap and often driven at about 30mph by senior citizens. However, about six years ago, I was offered one with a clapped out engine, but otherwise roadworthy for about $60. Just for a laugher I bought it and replaced the engine with a Fiat 2000cc Twin-Cam unit and 5-speed transmission.

    With it being an old Fiat model, the Yugo accepted the transplant with ease. On the road, the car was great. Shocked motorist just gazed in amassment as none had every seen a Yugo go that fast.

    I kept it for the summer and had loads of fun shutting down much faster, expensive cars, but come winter, it had to go for something that wasn’t so basic and with a lot more comfort.

    All-in-all, it wasn’t the worst car I’ve ever owned, (that honor goes to GM’s midsize European model the Vectra) but I wouldn’t want another car that basic. EVER!
  • rea98drea98d Member Posts: 982
    Yeesh! You know Chevy's in a bad shape when Yugo can make a better car!
  • northstartnorthstart Member Posts: 41
    The car I had, a Vectra handled so badly that I was forced to plan my rout careful when the weather was bad. The under-steer was frightening when driving in the wet.

    Ironically, the car it replaced (the Cavalier) handled quite well, although it must have taken a lot of work to produce a car ten times worse that the one it replaces. I’ve now went back to a old Ford which starts every morning handles well and is cheap to run.
  • focusmatt2focusmatt2 Member Posts: 106
    What kind of Ford?
  • northstartnorthstart Member Posts: 41
    Well it was a purchase of the heart rather than a sensible one. During the early 80’s, Fords European Flagship was the Granada, (no relation to the American Granada) however a new car was well beyond my bank balance.

    Then, a few years ago, after the experience with the Vectra I decided to look for a used Ford, I thought something sensible like a Mondeo (I think its called the Contour in the USA) however, after much searching I spotted the Granada a fully loaded 1983 Ghia X so I thought I’d take a look for old times sake.

    Needles to say, I took a test drive, found it had a very good history, and through the idea of a newer sensible car right out the window

    I still have the car and use it daily. It can be seen at www.geocities.com/johnsautos
  • focusmatt2focusmatt2 Member Posts: 106
    Yes, the Granada wasn't nearly as freaky as the 90's-era Scorpio!
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