Cars that I thought would be shit but weren't.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

Jaguar S-Type, when they came out I hated them and thought they weren't real Jags, even preferring the Rover 75.
I didn't drive one until I bought one for Mrs N and I bloody loved it! 3.0 manual with cloth seats, it was lots faster than I ever imagined it would be , ok it was a bit plasticky and rattly inside but the way it drove meant I could forgive it that.
Two of my brothers had quick E34s at the time ( 3.8 M5 and Alpina B10), the Jag could keep up with the B10 and keep the M5 in sight up to about 140.
Turned out it was good on fuel and reliable too- most un-Jag like.

[quietside]

Fuck me, can E34 M5s get away from anything?

[Spiny Norman]

K11 Micra.

For a car with such old giffer connotations I was really surprised by how well they drive.
Light steering, good brakes, smooth, revvy engines and a slick gearshift make for a nippy wee car, especially in town. I don't think I was ever beaten away from a set of lights in either of mine. Frequently I was across the junction and into second before the stop/start brigade had clattered back into life.
Tolerable on motorways too, at least for a couple of hundred miles.

[Spiny Norman]

This was a lot better than I was expecting too. Barring a rather gruff engine and seats that claimed to be leather but didn't appear to be from any animal I'd ever encountered it was quite a nice place to sit and watch the world go past.
Not the most involving drive but comfy and everything worked, even the A/C.

I'd have kept it a lot longer but I got offered a working MOT'd XJ40 for £500...

[MRustbucket]

I remember that '40!

[AutoshiteBoy]

YES! Those Daewoos.Brilliant. And I was pig leather.

[Pandamonium]

Invacar? Oh wait... Wrong forum.

Hyundai X2 Pony.
OK, so boring, but capable as a car, and don't drive too bad.
Had one as my third ever car, would have another.

Hyundai_Pony_front_20081125.jpg (624.42 KiB) Viewed 4860 times

[Spiny Norman]

YES! Those Daewoos.Brilliant. And I was pig leather.

Really??!
I remember the surface looked quite leather-y but the texture felt like cardboard. I'm not a fan of leather seats in cars at the best of times unless it's an old Jag or something but the vinyl in my Dad's old Renault 16 felt more like the real thing than this did.
The little fillets of Wood-u-like all over the dash and doors also enhanced* the quality feel of the interior.

[bub2006]

On a similar "leather"seat topic like yours,my 2004 Kia carens was quickly nicknamed elephants foreskin seating!

[Junkman]

I call sitting in a leather* clad BMW 1 Series as being inside an elephant's arse.
Considering the German car industry's attitude towards gassing humankind, the environment and its creatures, it wouldn't surprise me if they indeed used freshly poached elephant skin.