Three Very Underrated Cars.

Honda Accord Coupe

This is a car that gets overlooked a lot for the Civic, but the reality is the Accord Coupe has been sitting there all along being everything the Civic should be. But pick up a V6 manual coupe from 2008 up until now and you’ll be having a lot of fun.

They do suffer the usual Honda faults of more road noise than you would expect and awful speakers, but as a drivers car enough there’s enough power to have fun wether you go with the four cylinder or the V6. The manual gearboxes are a delight, the pedals are in the right place to rev match and the steering feel and weight is what all cars should be aiming for.

Handling wise all you want is some sticky tires and if you’re feeling like you have to do something, a slightly stiffer rear sway bar takes out the inbuilt understeer there for the normals.

I parted recently with a 2009 Accord Coupe and I still miss it.

Nissan Juke.

Cognitive dissonance is the mental struggle of holding two conflicting opinions at the same time, and the Juke is the clearest experience I’ve yet had of that yet.

It’s an SUV that’s fun to drive through twisty roads.

For some bizarre reason Nissan made the Juke a taught handling tall car. It’s a bizarre choice because to achieve that it requires very stiff suspension and sway bars. The end result is something with steering that is quick and precise for a twisty road and an enthusiastic driver, but is a bit too bouncy to drive around town doing normal SUV stuff - such as changing lanes without signalling and shouting at the kids to quit flipping off police cars.

Don’t buy one, but if you get the chance to throw it down a mountain road that’s an experience you won’t forget.

Also, you would have to look at it every time you went to get in it.

V6 Camaro.

A V6 in something perceived as a muscle car has been frowned upon by people that define a car by its engine for decades. However, the 335 horsepower and 284 pound-feet of torque is not to be sniffed at in the new models. The real key to enjoying a base Camaro is to not think of it as a “muscle car”. Instead, think of it as a “quick and fun daily driver”.

Chevy has been working on handling and it’s got plenty to keep you moving rapidly through the curves without falling off the road, and then when you want to just get around town and take care of business it’s pleasant and compliant. As a rear wheel drive manual at around the thirty grand mark, it might even work out as the best American car for the money.

#blogpost