What is the most under powered car you drove

matt70iu

Lada Riva, would have been quicker to run past a car I wanted to overtake! Oh and it lost power any time you went through a large puddle!

andrew1300r

brokenarms wrote: »

Peugeot 205 1.1. And a beetle. Both horrible.

Those little pugs were fast for what they were...55bhp & light ..they were far quicker than fiestas / corsa/ etc etc..they could nudge 100mph on the speedo ;)the only other super mini that were roughly same speed were 1.3xl starlets

eringobragh

2004 Citreon Berlingo 1.9 Diesel - wouldn't pull the socks off a deadman....an an alcoholic on diesel.

Ironic thing is if they went for the 1.6Hdi for the fleet it would have cost a lot less to run on fuel.

Ardennes1944

Ex's 1.2 3cyl ibiza

Suasdaguna1

2cv

jca

Austin A40 or the 1400 Renault 18 on LPG.... Truly shocking. Oh wait a school friends Fathers 1500 Hunter also on LPG, ah those were the bad ole days.

jca

andrew1300r wrote: »

Those little pugs were fast for what they were...55bhp & light ..they were far quicker than fiestas / corsa/ etc etc..they could nudge 100mph on the speedo ;)the only other super mini that were roughly same speed were 1.3xl starlets

I had a speedo like that once....

Days 298

Driving instructor had a 1.4 diesel Corsa. Yuck. Absolutely nothing in it. I cringe when I see one.

When he got into my old car which although nothing major he thought I was absolute racing and flooring it. No good sir. Just a proper sized engine with some power to spare for normal driving under the bonnet and not your abomination. No need to floor it to feel like a normal commuter.

To this day I grimace when I hear a diesel corsa. Imaging the poor soul thinking he was racing when in reality a push bike would take em.

Also test drove a 1.4l Golf. Stopped looking at the rev counter. It was beyond a joke I was redlining but still struggling to drive like I normally did in my old 2l diesel. Any car feels like a Ferrari after driving one of them.

jca

Just thought of another one, 08 1.5 Dci Quashquai, aircon kicked in and I thought the engine was starting to seize...

Stavros Murphy

Sitec wrote: »

95 shape 2.0 straight diesel Corolla's are actually dangerously slow. Same with the 1.4 petrol Astra of that era. The 94 Golf 1.9 straight diesel was scary beyond belief. Actually everything around then was underpowered so I suppose they cancelled each other out!

You're not doing it right. I errrm, kept up well with a glanza in one on crap chinese tyres. There's a knack in getting them to shift along. They do though.

chris1970

Citroen dispatch 1…9 straight diesel, funeral slow

Notch000

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

You're not doing it right. I errrm, kept up well with a glanza in one on crap chinese tyres. There's a knack in getting them to shift along. They do though.

I had a 1.4 AUTO Astra, almost forgot about it, F Me it was slow ,but could cruise at 75mph all day long

Stavros Murphy

chris1970 wrote: »

Citroen dispatch 1…9 straight diesel, funeral slow

Now they can also hustle if they need to, but they drink the diesel. Are ye lads pressing the far right pedal or the middle one?

fergus1001

My current 1.4 hdi is like a mixy rabbit in 1st and 2nd but has good vroom after that once you ignore the turbo lag

For Forks Sake

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

You're not doing it right. I errrm, kept up well with a glanza in one on crap chinese tyres. There's a knack in getting them to shift along. They do though.

Constant downhill travel?

Jesus.

Zoney wrote: »

What year is yours? (Did they change the 1.6 engine at any stage?) We've an 05, also 1.6 petrol, and find it nippy enough in the city and cross country. I suppose maybe from a standing start at the motorway tollbooth, you have to stay in lower gears a bit longer if you want to get up to max speed asap (cabin noise isn't that high even at high revs though). Still find she moves along quicker than a lot of other traffic.Find her a joy to drive really - always feels like I can just take off if I want to (and indeed do when leaving towns etc. going cross-country Limerick-Mayo). She doesn't struggle on the hills on the motorway either, even with a fully laden boot (and it's a pretty big one).

03. Everything's based on opinions mate.

I find it dog slow and you have to half kill it on the Motorway if you want it to do anything. The missus' 1.5 CRDI Rio is much nippier, or at least you don't have to wring its neck what with the nice low-down torque the turbo gives you.

The old 1.4 Almera I traded it in for was quicker and that was pretty damn slow too. It was light though, something the Laguna at nigh on 1.6 tonnes certainly isn't. I'm going diesel after this car and staying that way. No more slow, Mickey Mouse petrols.

Like I said, its all opinions mate!

ninty9er

1.6 auto Qashqai. Dear sweet Jesus it'd struggle to rear end a car that stopped dead at a car length on an R road.

I've owned a 1l Corsa B, have to say the current 1.2 is much slower, and the 1.4 mk 2 focus is dire altogether.

Stavros Murphy

For Forks Sake wrote: »

Constant downhill travel?

Constant sideways travvel. It depends on the driver to a large extent. I drove a mates Dispatch back from galway to Dublin once, we occasionally dipped under 130kph but not too much. He said he didn't know it could even do that. If you wring it's neck, there's not too many truly totally slow cars going. The passengers can get a bit whingy though.

Fat Nav

Fiat 600 bambino running on 1 cylinder for 30 miles.
I managed 20mph tops

Mycroft H

A Renault Premium 18 ton rigid with a 220bhp engine. Any sort of an incline, even only loaded to 10t would have you dropped to 3rd and barely keeping 35kmh. A hateful shítebox of a thing to drive. Door seals leaked on the one I drove and the radio didn't work. You'd have a cold leg the entire time too.

Chris_Heilong

Toyota Yaris during my first 2 lessons, also the smallest engine I have ever driven.

greenflash

1.2L petrol Seat Ibiza estate. A hire car for a "family" holiday in Spain. Had to drop down to 3rd or 2nd for most hills and it barely dented the mother in law when I tried to put her out of my misery.

logie101

I drove a Tata Jeep in Spain. I couldn't believe how underpowered it was.

wonski

For Forks Sake wrote: »

Constant downhill travel?

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

Constant sideways travvel. It depends on the driver to a large extent. I drove a mates Dispatch back from galway to Dublin once, we occasionally dipped under 130kph but not too much. He said he didn't know it could even do that. If you wring it's neck, there's not too many truly totally slow cars going. The passengers can get a bit whingy though.

There are plenty of very slow cars, no matter what you do you can't increase their speed / acceleration. There are no magic tricks, are there?

Corsa 1.0 (3cyl, 12v) was deadly slow - had to drive it few times and pulling out on busy junctions was a nightmare.

shedweller

Opel agila 1.something. Wouldn't draw your attention.
Opel astra 1.3 diesel. Ah jaysus it was awful.
Both were loan cars when a ****bag peugeot 206 broke down on me back in the day.
Never again.

Scartbeg

Had a loan of a Citroën Dyane in the 80's, supposedly a deluxe version of the 2CV. I think the engine was about 500cc, felt and sounded like driving a sewing machine. It came perilously close to being blown off the road in a strong wind, glad I didn't have to test its crash protection.

Green Hornet

Yeah, the Dyane should trump pretty much anything else mentioned on here. A friend had one and the engine sounded like a child's hair dryer.

Actually, somebody set the roof on fire one night back in the early 90's. Cops and all came on the scene but I think they kinda thought the whole thing was funny.

ianobrien

Stavros Murphy wrote: »

Anyone else suffered the misfortune that is a Subaru Vivio? 600cc, a gearbox that resembles a lucky dip connected to a air-raid siren and a top speed somwhere around the teens...mother of the divine.

Yes, and it was the four wheel drive version, so that was even slower........

Stavros Murphy

ianobrien wrote: »

Yes, and it was the four wheel drive version, so that was even slower........

The mind boggles,

dr.fuzzenstein

1980's VW T3 Transporter with a 1.6 na diesel engine, it had horsepower, but not sure if one or two.
The only reason it moved at all was the very short gearbox, meaning top speed was around the 120 km/h mark (theoretical only, reached it once or twice).
Tank oil and check the petrol.
Later increased power by turning up the fuel pump, it was still slow, but now I could engulf cars tailgating me with a wall of smoke.
Actually quite comfy and it was good on longer distances, provided you had earmuffs and didn't have to vary your speed, because getting back to to speed could take several hundred miles.

renofan

My K11 micra. Anytime I drive it I have to get it into my head that there'll be no overtaking today :pac:

eisenberg1

toyotaavensis wrote: »

surprised nobody has mentioned a lada - they were ****e

I did:D

shamwari

Moneymaker wrote: »

Dahaitsu Charade 1.0 diesel. 1.0, yes really.

Yep I'll second that. Closer to a whacker plate than a car. When adjusting the tickover speed on the injection pump, you knew you had it right when the dashboard came into focus.

An old Isuzu Gemini 1.5D wasn't that fast either but for its time a very nice car to plod around in nonetheless

murphyebass

Ford focus. 1.4petrol.

woefully underpowered to the point of dangerous imo

Dr. Kenneth Noisewater

My 2nd car, a 00 VW Polo, 1.0l. I know it was a one litre, but it was the slowest yoke I've ever been in. A Micra zoomed by me one night when I was flat to the mat on the motorway. Lovely little car for city driving but once you got out onto an 'M' or 'N' road, forget about it.

jca

shamwari wrote: »

Yep I'll second that. Closer to a whacker plate than a car. When adjusting the tickover speed on the injection pump, you knew you had it right when the dashboard came into focus.

An old Isuzu Gemini 1.5D wasn't that fast either but for its time a very nice car to plod around in nonetheless

Dash into focus... Brilliant!!

spank_inferno

My first car.

Skoda Felicia.
56 bhp.

Still geared quite well so it was ok-ish.

ScrubsfanChris

1.4 Diesel Opel Meriva
After the rental company assured me we were getting a 1.6 Golf

Cogsy88

1.0 litre corsa A. More commonly known as a nova.

noelf

Scartbeg wrote: »

Had a loan of a Citroën Dyane in the 80's, suppostedly a deluxe version of the 2CV. I think the engine was about 500cc, felt and sounded like driving a sewing machine. It came perilously close to being blown off the road in a strong wind, glad I didn't have to test its crash protection.

They were supposed to be impossible to turn over although top gear used a jet to destroy one. Engine was 602 cc if I remember right.
Car was designed before ww2 so crash safety wasn't a priority.....designed for rural farmers

Fozzie Bear

Had a brand new 1.6 Mitsubishi ASX rental on holiday in Cape town 2 years ago. It was freakin whoojus slow and under powered.

My Da had a 1.3 Austin Maestro back in the 90's. Jesus Christ that thing was pitiful. It wouldn't have pulled the knickers off a nun. I remember having to drive Da to the hospital in Galway after he got something stuck in his eye while using an angle grinder (hot metal went through his goggles). Driving home afterwards I overtook a bus on the N17 along a long straight stretch of road. Could see a lorry coming the other way but he was a good 3/4 mile away. By the time I had over taken and pulled in again I could see the whites of the other lorry drivers eyes and Da told me he wished he had got it in both eyes so he didn't have to see his life flash before his eyes....:pac:

CptMackey

A Hyundai getzs. A Kellogg's box on wheels is all it was. I could have got where I needed to go faster on foot

dr.fuzzenstein

My parents had a Daewoo Matiz. Worst, Car. Ever!

road_high

I think one lesson I take from this thread is spend the extra grand or two on a more powerful engine or bhp. Money well spent!

jca

road_high wrote: »

I think one lesson I take from this thread is spend the extra grand or two on a more powerful engine or bhp. Money well spent!

Grand or two..... What planet are you on? Us mere mortals not living with mammy and daddy don't have an extra "grand or two".....

magentis

08 1.6 petrol mondeo it wouldnt pull the socks off a dead nun.

ba_barabus

jca wrote: »

Grand or two..... What planet are you on? Us mere mortals not living with mammy and daddy don't have an extra "grand or two".....

:rolleyes:

Seweryn

One of a decent size cars and of a very high quality built. If you ever drove one, you know what I mean...

Mercedes-Benz W123

200D

... Automatik

road_high

jca wrote: »

Grand or two..... What planet are you on? Us mere mortals not living with mammy and daddy don't have an extra "grand or two".....

Lol. Keep saving that pocket money then

bs2014

Was just about to suggest the nissan serena but Bazz26 summed it up brilliantly!! Voted Top Gear slowest performing car 0-60 in 27seconds! Despite having a shocking big 2.3 engine! I bet people who seen the neighbours driving a serena musta thought it was real quick with its big 2.3 engine, and the ignorant badge on the back to rub it in! Can ya imagine how disheartening it musta been taxing the slow huer of a thing each year, paying over €1000!! BTW new series of Top Gear 2m night!