Hurrah! for lazy journalism!

[pogweasel]

Will it ever end?

 

This one's like an autoshite 'best of' collection, save for the Trevor and Hitler's cockroach.

 

http://www.virginmedia.com/motoring/gal ... o-hate.php

 

*despairs*

[Guest]

Oh look, the Suzuki X-90. Why on earth does this get on every crap cars list ever made? They're hardly the most offensive car ever made, I'm sure they drive absolutely fine. They're based on a Vitara so they must do. But Jeremy Clarkson doesn't like them and being hacks, they'll really want to aspire to being him.

 

Though how they can call any car ugly when they're advertising this at the top of the page beggars belief:

 

What a shitter.

[mouseflakes]

Yup - the usual recycled cack.

 

Worth clicking through for this photo though - setting is superb!

 

[pogweasel]

 

 

Uncanny.

[Justin Case]

Don't knock such a thoroughly researched article:

 

'It’s now marginally cooler than it was in the 1980s with Skoda now partnered with Renault. '

 

[Rocket88]

Oh look, the Suzuki X-90. Why on earth does this get on every crap cars list ever made? They're hardly the most offensive car ever made, I'm sure they drive absolutely fine. They're based on a Vitara so they must do. But Jeremy Clarkson doesn't like them and being hacks, they'll really want to aspire to being him.

 

They drive like a complete bag of shite. What's the point in a 2 seater that looks like an off roader, but with no four wheel drive? They are top heavy, slow, heavy, drink juice, and are generally the biggest waste of road space ever made, and thoroughly deserve to be on that list [which is, I agree, a cliched load of old toss] Rank alongside the Volvo 262c as an attempt to makea silk purse out a sow's ear.......

[Guest]

They did both 2WD and 4WD versions of the X-90.And I like the Volvo 262C! (though I admit I can see why most don't)

[garethj]

What's the point in a 2 seater that looks like an off roader, but with no four wheel drive?

Or what's the point in having 4WD when most never use it? Extra parts to go wrong, make the car heavier, worse fuel consumption, more expensive.... When I was in Taiwan it was quite common to see a Mazda (I think) off roader with a big empty space where the rear diff goes. For most people in most climates, 4WD is never used.

[Guest greenvanman]

Oh look, the Suzuki X-90. Why on earth does this get on every crap cars list ever made?

Reliability aside, probably because it's completely pointless and looks ridiculous.

[Negative Creep]

Oh look, the Suzuki X-90. Why on earth does this get on every crap cars list ever made?

Reliability aside, probably because it's completely pointless and looks ridiculous.

Not to mention it was Barbie's car

[Albert Ross]

I saw one once, that had such a fat set of wheels on it, it couldn't achieve full lock............scrubbed on every corner. Piece of shit and no mistake.

[Split_Pin]

I'll second the appreciation of the 340 pic, but that looks like an even earlier one in the background, judging by its colour.The article also describes Ladas as weak. Hardly. Any car that was substantially re-engineered to withstand Russias diverse climate and rough roads it pretty top-gadgey in my book.And they werent all beige, theyre just citing that one becuse its the best colour, particularly with vynl seats in basic 1200L format.

[maximalist]

http://www.blocket.se/vi/19026451.htm?ca=11_s&last=1

 

 

neonbeige

[cros]

Where do newspapers find the wankers they employ to write about cars? Here's an excerpt from an Independent feature on the PA Crestas by Giles Chapman.

 

"The familiar part of the car was the 2.2-litre six-cylinder engine, carried over from previous Vauxhalls. This power unit, mated to a three-speed manual gearbox - just imagine enduring that - meant the car hit 60mph in 16sec and had an 89mph top speed. Even then, that was slow."

No it wasn't you spunkbubble.

[sierraman]

89mph would have been some going in the 1960's on the relatively limited motorway network. I mean even a Lotus Cortina would be lucky to see out 105mph.

[Angrydicky]

Haha, that's as appalling piece of journalism. Those performance figures were very impressive for a family saloon in 1958!

[JeeExEll]

Whenever I see pics like that of a PA Cresta I hear Telstar playing in my head.

Images of "new towns", 60s tower-blocks, modern road layouts, etc.

[wuvvum]

Impressive thread resurrection skillz btw.

[barrett]

Giles Chapman is one of the few motoring journalists working today who are actually capable of original research and critical thought (and spelling). I suspect when you write an old car piece for a non-specialist outlet you have to play to the crowd a bit. Obviously the point here is that '50s Vauxhall cars were pretty embarrassing pieces of kit (fair enough) amd whilst those figures are not what I would call 'slow', they don't compare too favourably to other big six-cylinder cars on the market at that time. A Rover P4 or Wolseley 6/90, for example, would wipe the floor with a Cresta. Ditto virtually anything coming out of Europe.

 

So, yeah, not exactly shimmering journalism but not that far from the truth. You read a lot worse in most major old car rags.

[Asimo]

89mph might have been slow when that Cresta was new but today it is 25% faster than the motorway speed limit.

[dollywobbler]

Giles Chapman is one of the few motoring journalists working today who are actually capable of original research and critical thought (and spelling). I suspect when you write an old car piece for a non-specialist outlet you have to play to the crowd a bit. Obviously the point here is that '50s Vauxhall cars were pretty embarrassing pieces of kit (fair enough) amd whilst those figures are not what I would call 'slow', they don't compare too favourably to other big six-cylinder cars on the market at that time. A Rover P4 or Wolseley 6/90, for example, would wipe the floor with a Cresta. Ditto virtually anything coming out of Europe.

 

So, yeah, not exactly shimmering journalism but not that far from the truth. You read a lot worse in most major old car rags.

 

This is true, but every now and then he seems to resort to ridiculous opinions, like comparing the 2CV with exposed razor blades in terms of safety. 

 

But describing a PA as 'slow' does seem a bit odd. I imagine they felt quite nippy compared to a Westminster, which had a huge 3-litre engine and a tiny Zenith carburettor that looked designed for a motorbike.

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

I knew Giles back in the early 1990's in the Haymarket days - a decent guy and a good writer.

 

The 2.2 (later 2.6) Vauxhall unit was very torque rich and the car wasn't overly heavy.

[dollywobbler]

Of course, the other thing to bear in mind is the editor might well have had a dabble. What a writer writes isn't necessarily what gets published.

[mercrocker]

Its also true to say you can blame some aspects of lazy journalism on a lazy readership......

[HMC]

I can't find anything specific to hand but occasionally a factual error creeps in somewhere and this is used as a reference for subsequent articles and it gets perpetuated and becomes "fact"

 

Slightly irrelevant but feel like quoting The Day Today -

FACT x IMPORTANCE = NEWS

[cros]

If anyone wants to swap a Cresta for my P4 I'll have your arm off.

[eddyramrod]

Ditto my Rover.  Or even possibly my Cadillac!

 

In fact it wouldn't even take a Cresta to get me out of the Rover: a legal, running, 2.3 CF would do it....

[seth]

Impressive thread resurrection skillz btw.

 

Pogweasel RIP!

[Zelandeth]

Mate of mine had an X-90 for quite a while.

 

Vitara with two seats and a heap of weight shaved off.  Thing was a laugh to drive, especially in the summer with the roof panels out.  Low geared and his one at least certainly didn't seem to hang about.

 

It was a car that didn't really make any sense, it was just a bit of fun and I reckon delivered on that.  It's one of those cars which motoring journalists just seem to love to hate because it's the done thing.

[For Fiats Sake]

"all vauxhalls are sh....."

 

apparently, so you are all wrong.

 

I read it on t'ternet somewhere once (or twice) so it must be true.

 

Cresta is this though: