Consumer Reports says to avoid the Mitsubishi i- MiEV

"This electric car gets the equivalent of 111 mpg. But it's no bargain. The iMiEV is slow and bumpy, and it has a cramped cabin and a limited drive range," they say.

1: It's Consumer Reports...

2: Did they "trash electric cars" or did they trash a variety of cars, a few (2? 5? out of how many?) of which are electric?

Either way, see #1. ;-)

desiv

desiv said:

1: It's Consumer Reports...

2: Did they "trash electric cars" or did they trash a variety of cars, a few (2? 5? out of how many?) of which are electric?

Either way, see #1. ;-)

desiv

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They said to avoid these 5 new cars:

Scion iQ
Chevrolet Spark
Mitsubishi i-MiEV
Toyota Yaris
Jeep Compass

I wish CR would stick to vacuums and wash machines :|

greengate said:

desiv said:

1: It's Consumer Reports...

2: Did they "trash electric cars" or did they trash a variety of cars, a few (2? 5? out of how many?) of which are electric?

Either way, see #1. ;-)

desiv

Click to expand...

They said to avoid these 5 new cars:

Scion iQ
Chevrolet Spark
Mitsubishi i-MiEV
Toyota Yaris
Jeep Compass

Click to expand...

So your post title would have been just as accurate if it had read "Consumer Reorts trashes ICE cars"

If you read the article, the reason they said to avoid them had nothing to do with them being electric... And I agree with their synopsis...

greengate said:

Chevrolet Spark and the Mitsubishi MiEV "Cars to Avoid," (there are 5,) in their recent publication.

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In their defense, all 5 of those cars are crap. The electric drive on the Spark might make it better than the gas Spark, but the rest of the car is still a Daewoo.

I take CR's opinions on cars with a large grain of salt. They originally dissed the Miata, one of my all-time favorite cars. One of their big gripes was "lack of luggage space", or some such. The point of a convertible roadster just floated above their heads, undisturbed and unexamined.

The degree to which CR matches your own taste is more or less proportionate to how much you think of cars as consumer appliances, as opposed to fetish objects or things with with to become emotionally involved...

kubel said:

In their defense, all 5 of those cars are crap. The electric drive on the Spark might make it better than the gas Spark, but the rest of the car is still a Daewoo.

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^^^ this^^^ is spot on.
the reality is an econo box is an econo box regardless of it's propulsion system
when CR loved the tesla they were heroes now that they've trashed some of the "weaker" cars they're now villains?

Crap cars are crap cars period. Electric cars are not some kind of "protected class" that gives immunity.

greengate said:

Chevrolet Spark and the Mitsubishi MiEV "Cars to Avoid," (there are 5,) in their recent publication.

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I'd say they got this correct.

It's just with so few all electric cars out there, it's a shame to not at least give them some credit for being all electric..all of which made me wonder if it weren't the same people working for CR that were instrumental in killing the electric car several years ago...as if the electric car were an invasive plant that needed to be eradicated.

TomT said:

If you read the article, the reason they said to avoid them had nothing to do with them being electric... And I agree with their synopsis...

greengate said:

Chevrolet Spark and the Mitsubishi MiEV "Cars to Avoid," (there are 5,) in their recent publication.

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

I don't get CR, what did they say was wrong about these cars?

As someone so succinctly said here earlier, if a car is a price of crap, making it electric then only makes it an electric piece of crap. It is not worthy of elevated status simply because it is electric...
CR got it right.

greengate said:

It's just with so few all electric cars out there, it's a shame to not at least give them some credit for being all electric..all of which made me wonder if it weren't the same people working for CR that were instrumental in killing the electric car several years ago...as if the electric car were an invasive plant that needed to be eradicated.

Click to expand...

greengate said:

It's just with so few all electric cars out there, it's a shame to not at least give them some credit for being all electric..all of which made me wonder if it weren't the same people working for CR that were instrumental in killing the electric car several years ago...as if the electric car were an invasive plant that needed to be eradicated.

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So is your position that no electric car, no matter how bad, should end up on the list?

Listen, I agree EVs should get credit for their smooth, quiet drive as well as the instantaneous throttle response. That doesn't, however, make them immune from being judged poorly.

Your thread title is misleading and should be changed.

Pretty much any compliance car makes my list of "Cars to avoid". I don't see a problem with the list.

CR got it right. All those cars are terrible. Even with an EV drivetrain to smooth it out, the iMiev and Spark are not good cars.

Zythryn said:

Your thread title is misleading and should be changed.

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Perhaps "Consumer Reports Trashes Trash Electric Cars"?

apvbguy said:

kubel said:

In their defense, all 5 of those cars are crap. The electric drive on the Spark might make it better than the gas Spark, but the rest of the car is still a Daewoo.

Click to expand...

^^^ this^^^ is spot on.
the reality is an econo box is an econo box regardless of it's propulsion system
when CR loved the tesla they were heroes now that they've trashed some of the "weaker" cars they're now villains?

Click to expand...

Agreed. If anything, I think they went a bit overboard in the praise of the Tesla. The expense of bodywork and repairs are things to consider when purchasing a vehicle, and Tesla dings will cost $$$$. And then there are the tires. It might still be the best by their criteria, but their evaluation made it seem nearly perfect. Assuming they are still in business, Teslas in 10 years will be much higher quality vehicles (of course features will get better with technology. I mean they will break less and be even less expensive to operate).