Open Diff: What car are you constantly defending?

First, second, and third-generation Mazda Miatas. Photo courtesy Mazda USA.

It happened again today. After two days of harping by a reader on the Mazda Miata's "blandness," I felt compelled to chime in, speaking in defense of "the finest British roadster to ever come out of Hiroshima, Japan," in the words of our own David LaChance.

Those who've driven a Miata in a proper sporting manner understand that car may be many things, but bland isn't one of them. Its styling may be too "cute" for some, and it may be slow in a straight line, but its balance and handling are sublime. Few cars in the Miata's price bracket allow a drive to carry speed into a corner with equal confidence, which is why it's become the most-raced car in the world.

Make a mistake (like gently lifting off the throttle, at the limit, in mid-corner), and the Miata corrects your stupidity with a slap on the wrist. Larger and more powerful sports cars (an air-cooled Porsche 911 or a Chevrolet Corvette, for example), would counter with a punch to the face, followed, perhaps, by a kick to the teeth.

And therein lies the beauty of the Mazda Miata: It trains you to drive faster cars in a proper and smooth manner. Master the MX-5, and stepping into a Dodge Viper serves up little drama. Both cars will do exactly what you tell them to, as soon as you issue the command, but learning to go fast in the Miata keeps you from making mistakes that might come with dire circumstances in the Viper.

The Chrysler K-car is another example of a car that requires constant defending by its fans. No, they weren't fast and they weren't sexy, but K-cars were exactly the right product (affordable and economical family transportation) at exactly the right time for Chrysler.

The same can be said for the oft-reviled Ford Mustang II, which outsold the plus-size 1971-'73 models by a substantial margin. No, the four-banger Mustangs weren't fast, but they looked good, they were priced right and they sipped gas, all of which were major selling points for the average consumer in the mid-1970s. T

Off the top of my head I can also name the "unsafe at any speed" Chevrolet Corvair, the Yugo GV, the Trabant and even the Pontiac Aztek, which has become ironically collectible among younger buyers. What car (or most likely, cars) do you find yourself most frequently defending?

from Hemmings Daily – News for the collector car enthusiast http://ift.tt/2eJl8tX