Posted by Austin Ramzy Comments (14) Permalink Trackbacks (0) Email This
A scholar in Guangzhou recently told me that 30 years ago journalists went to Hong Kong to try to figure out what was happening in Beijing, now you go to Beijing to figure out what's happening in Hong Kong. I moved to Beijing last week, and I can say that that statement is far from true. But it does point to some realities, like how much more important a role Beijing plays in determining Hong Kong's future. So what was the message one gets in Beijing after watching Sunday's celebrations of the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to China? Perhaps it is best summed up in the line that Hong Kong pop star Andy Lau sang: "Let the world know we are all Chinese." Of course, if you ask a Hong Konger traveling abroad where he or she is from, the first response will most likely be Hong Kong, not China. And Hong Kong people traveling to the mainland still say they are "going to China." A series of polls by Hong Kong University points to that complicated sense of identity. It doesn't seem like such a bad thing; such a distinct town is bound to have a distinct identity. But even from Beijing it's clear the government is concerned about making China not just a tag on Hong Kong's address, but the core of its mindset. That was the point Yan Xuetong, director of the Institute of International Studies at Tsinghua University in Beijing, made in TIME's recent coverage of the handover anniversary. "Hong Kong is still regarded as a special place of China, still regarded as a foreign country," he says. "Hong Kong has returned in name, but not in substance."
On a related note, this week's TIME has one more piece on the anniversary, a viewpoint by Next Media boss Jimmy Lai considering the past 10 years and looking forward to the next 10.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
English Spoken Here (Sort Of)
Posted by Liam Fitzpatrick Comments (58) Permalink Trackbacks (0) Email This
Last week, Hong Kong’s main English-language paper ran a story on the declining pass rates of senior high school English exams, which have hit a 12-year low, even if they are still in the region of 75%. It considered this news important enough for a front-page lead.Whenever evidence has emerged of the declining use of English in Hong Kong since the end of British rule, there have been plenty of people – wealthy, Anglophone expatriates mostly – unable to deal with the fact. Around the breakfast tables of Southside homes, on the decks of weekend pleasure cruisers, they will say, condescendingly, that if the Hong Kong Chinese lose the ability to speak English well, Hong Kong will lose its “international competitiveness” and become – the horror! – “just another Chinese city.” I’m sure the last Romans had similar attitudes, as they watched the ragged hordes swarm through the gates uttering barbarous vernaculars (or, in our case, Cantonese and Mandarin). Don’t misunderstand me. I love the English language, I make my living by writing it. I’m not criticizing it as a language. But any attempt to interpret its declining use in Hong Kong as a sign of cultural, social or economic decay is plainly insulting.Does anyone say that Tokyo’s future is gravely imperiled because few Japanese speak English? Are Bangkok or Seoul living in some sort of irreversible isolation because the locals aren’t walking around quoting Byron and Keats?Hong Kong people are tired of speaking English. To many here, it has simply been the colonizer’s language and they greet its declining importance with unrestrained joy. Being a mercantile sort of place, Hong Kong will continue to speak enough English for the purposes of foreign trade, but why should it speak more? And besides, most trade these days is carried out with China.After 150-odd years of colonial rule, Anglophones are unhappy with the fact that they can no longer use English to address the shop assistant, the electrician, the caddy or whichever menial it is, and expect to be understood in every case. Only they can’t decently complain about a thing like that. So instead, they complain about Hong Kong’s declining “international competitiveness,” when what they really should be doing is signing up for Chinese classes.
Last week, Hong Kong’s main English-language paper ran a story on the declining pass rates of senior high school English exams, which have hit a 12-year low, even if they are still in the region of 75%. It considered this news important enough for a front-page lead.Whenever evidence has emerged of the declining use of English in Hong Kong since the end of British rule, there have been plenty of people – wealthy, Anglophone expatriates mostly – unable to deal with the fact. Around the breakfast tables of Southside homes, on the decks of weekend pleasure cruisers, they will say, condescendingly, that if the Hong Kong Chinese lose the ability to speak English well, Hong Kong will lose its “international competitiveness” and become – the horror! – “just another Chinese city.” I’m sure the last Romans had similar attitudes, as they watched the ragged hordes swarm through the gates uttering barbarous vernaculars (or, in our case, Cantonese and Mandarin). Don’t misunderstand me. I love the English language, I make my living by writing it. I’m not criticizing it as a language. But any attempt to interpret its declining use in Hong Kong as a sign of cultural, social or economic decay is plainly insulting.Does anyone say that Tokyo’s future is gravely imperiled because few Japanese speak English? Are Bangkok or Seoul living in some sort of irreversible isolation because the locals aren’t walking around quoting Byron and Keats?Hong Kong people are tired of speaking English. To many here, it has simply been the colonizer’s language and they greet its declining importance with unrestrained joy. Being a mercantile sort of place, Hong Kong will continue to speak enough English for the purposes of foreign trade, but why should it speak more? And besides, most trade these days is carried out with China.After 150-odd years of colonial rule, Anglophones are unhappy with the fact that they can no longer use English to address the shop assistant, the electrician, the caddy or whichever menial it is, and expect to be understood in every case. Only they can’t decently complain about a thing like that. So instead, they complain about Hong Kong’s declining “international competitiveness,” when what they really should be doing is signing up for Chinese classes.
Laws and the Real World
Posted by Simon Elegant Comments (18) Permalink Trackbacks (0) Email This
Mark Ralston / AFP / Getty
Two events last Friday worth mentioning. The the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, passed a new labor law whose aim, in part, was to improve conditions faced by the country's 100 (or up to 150 depending on who's counting) million migrant workers. roughly at the same time, a mob of hired thugs attacked a group of 300 striking migrant workers in Guangdong province. The workers had been protesting at the Dongyuan County Lankou Hydropower Station construction site over 5 million renminbi (about $800,000) in unpaid salary. This was no minor roughing up, either. The attack left one worker fighting for survival, two missing, and six remaining in serious situation in the hospital. "The first batch of about 50 gangsters came with spades in their hands, and the second batch had axes, steel pipes and sabres, and there were more behind them," the Chongqing Morning Post quoted Liu Gangqing, one of the migrant workers, as saying. "They didn't stop lashing out at us even when the police arrived," said another migrant worker Li Chuanbing. For mirgant workers this sort of incident is all too common --as is the withholding of wages. China's construction minister apparently only learnt about the incident from the internet, which is a sad but accurate commentary on the state of supervision of workers rights by the government. It also underlines that, unfortunately, these sorts of attacks probably won't be affected at all by the new law. It's about enforcement, not legislation.
Sorry, I Can't Find Your Continent on This List
Posted by Liam Fitzpatrick
We were sitting on a friend’s rooftop the other night, sipping wine and celebrating her 30th, when David, a fellow guest, and co-owner of a fabulous Hong Kong restaurant called Aqua, told me that he’d hired a chef who used to work at Tetsuya’s in Sydney. David seemed quite proud of this, but I didn’t know how to receive the news because any of David’s chefs could – in the lovely parlance of the English streets – “have” any of Tetsuya’s boys any day, and I told him so. He probably thought I was high, or being polite, because Tetsuya’s is desirably foreign and Aqua is merely local, and because the person of chef Tetsuya Wakuda is cloaked in the mantle of minor celebrity and David’s chefs are not. Or then again, perhaps it’s because Tetsuya’s is currently at number five on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants List, and David’s isn't even in the footnotes.But that’s my point. Have you seen this list? Does it seem strange to you that the only Asian restaurant to have made it this year is that stuffy old tandoori place in the New Delhi Sheraton, which, for some deeply messed-up reason only known to the compilers, was adjudged the best restaurant in Asia? A Sheraton hotel restaurant is the very best this entire continent – with its ancient and multifarious culinary traditions and two-thirds of humanity – can do? This is from a list that is billed as “the most credible indicator of the best places to eat on Earth.”Ever get the feeling you’re being patronized?The world’s best restaurants do not, apparently, include any Japanese restaurant in Japan. There’s rien in mainland China, nyet nichevo in the culinary capitals of Hong Kong and Singapore. Sweet f.a. in Bangkok, Saigon, Seoul and KL. So sorry, Asian people. Excusez-moi, Monsieur petit Asian Chef.Which restaurants are on the list? Well, what a surprise, there’s a dozen from France (tired looking places with names like Les Ambassadeurs and Troisgros); seven from the UK (the gouty Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, the counterfeit Chinese Hakkasan); eight from the U.S. and there’s even one from Belgium. Pause to take that in for a moment. Belgium out-cooks East Asia.A fatwa upon the publishers of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants List. May they meet with raving Chinese waiters, chopper-wielding sushi chefs and fistfuls of msg everywhere they go.
We were sitting on a friend’s rooftop the other night, sipping wine and celebrating her 30th, when David, a fellow guest, and co-owner of a fabulous Hong Kong restaurant called Aqua, told me that he’d hired a chef who used to work at Tetsuya’s in Sydney. David seemed quite proud of this, but I didn’t know how to receive the news because any of David’s chefs could – in the lovely parlance of the English streets – “have” any of Tetsuya’s boys any day, and I told him so. He probably thought I was high, or being polite, because Tetsuya’s is desirably foreign and Aqua is merely local, and because the person of chef Tetsuya Wakuda is cloaked in the mantle of minor celebrity and David’s chefs are not. Or then again, perhaps it’s because Tetsuya’s is currently at number five on the World’s 50 Best Restaurants List, and David’s isn't even in the footnotes.But that’s my point. Have you seen this list? Does it seem strange to you that the only Asian restaurant to have made it this year is that stuffy old tandoori place in the New Delhi Sheraton, which, for some deeply messed-up reason only known to the compilers, was adjudged the best restaurant in Asia? A Sheraton hotel restaurant is the very best this entire continent – with its ancient and multifarious culinary traditions and two-thirds of humanity – can do? This is from a list that is billed as “the most credible indicator of the best places to eat on Earth.”Ever get the feeling you’re being patronized?The world’s best restaurants do not, apparently, include any Japanese restaurant in Japan. There’s rien in mainland China, nyet nichevo in the culinary capitals of Hong Kong and Singapore. Sweet f.a. in Bangkok, Saigon, Seoul and KL. So sorry, Asian people. Excusez-moi, Monsieur petit Asian Chef.Which restaurants are on the list? Well, what a surprise, there’s a dozen from France (tired looking places with names like Les Ambassadeurs and Troisgros); seven from the UK (the gouty Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, the counterfeit Chinese Hakkasan); eight from the U.S. and there’s even one from Belgium. Pause to take that in for a moment. Belgium out-cooks East Asia.A fatwa upon the publishers of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants List. May they meet with raving Chinese waiters, chopper-wielding sushi chefs and fistfuls of msg everywhere they go.
The New Chinese Dialectic
Posted by Simon Elegant
Xinhua News Agency
Our Beijing Bureau colleague Jodi Xu writes:
China's National Tourism Administration published a list last week of the "most disgusting habits of Chinese tourists." The list was compiled after an online poll, during which as many as 3 million Chinese visited the webpage and contributed their ideas. The result (with accompanying cartoons) read like this:
1. Spitting and nose blowing in public;
2. Smoking in non-smoking areas; coughing in public without covering their mouths;
3. Cutting in line and pushing past the elderly the handicapped and pregnant women;
4. Speaking loudly on phone in public;
5. Graffiti and other marking of historical sites and public facilities;
6. Throwing things at animals in zoos or feeding animals with unsuitable food;
7. Inappropriate public dress (yes, this does mean pajamas, but also singlets and bare chests)
No great surprises, but it does make for an interesting --and surprisingly frank-- self-assessment. Of course, this kind of self-criticism is all too familiar to Chinese, especially the older generation. Chairman Mao started the idea of “Criticism and Self-criticism” at the Communist Party’s 7th National Congress in 1945 and after more than half a century, Chinese have become pretty good at it. There is another familiar phrase in the Communist lexicon, Guanche Luoshi (贯彻落实), which means "to put into practice and carry out." We'll have to see whether that one proves quite as popular.
Xinhua News Agency
Our Beijing Bureau colleague Jodi Xu writes:
China's National Tourism Administration published a list last week of the "most disgusting habits of Chinese tourists." The list was compiled after an online poll, during which as many as 3 million Chinese visited the webpage and contributed their ideas. The result (with accompanying cartoons) read like this:
1. Spitting and nose blowing in public;
2. Smoking in non-smoking areas; coughing in public without covering their mouths;
3. Cutting in line and pushing past the elderly the handicapped and pregnant women;
4. Speaking loudly on phone in public;
5. Graffiti and other marking of historical sites and public facilities;
6. Throwing things at animals in zoos or feeding animals with unsuitable food;
7. Inappropriate public dress (yes, this does mean pajamas, but also singlets and bare chests)
No great surprises, but it does make for an interesting --and surprisingly frank-- self-assessment. Of course, this kind of self-criticism is all too familiar to Chinese, especially the older generation. Chairman Mao started the idea of “Criticism and Self-criticism” at the Communist Party’s 7th National Congress in 1945 and after more than half a century, Chinese have become pretty good at it. There is another familiar phrase in the Communist lexicon, Guanche Luoshi (贯彻落实), which means "to put into practice and carry out." We'll have to see whether that one proves quite as popular.
What's Needed to Solve China's Safety Crisis
Posted by Simon Elegant Comments (13) Permalink Trackbacks (0) Email This
Joe Kahn of the New York Times has an interesting piece in today's newspaper about the safety of Chinese products. He compares China today to the U.S. at the turn of the century, noting that the Food and Drug Administration was created in 1906 in response to a series of scandals over shoddy and dangerous products. The focus of the Made in China story (see here for our most recent and relatively U.S.-centric take) is now shifting to the measures China is taking to address its regulatory problems. I spoke to a number of people recently about this issue and they all repeatedly stressed that they believed the government was extremely eager to address this issue and doing its best to put the right regulations in place. They were equally unanimous in their opinion that the process will take time. One of the strangest things about China's transformation in the last two decades has been the way processes that took centuries elsewhere were telescoped by the unprecedented speed of change and sometimes seemed to happen overnight. That's not going to happen with the government's attempts to striaghten out China's regulatory mess. Listen to Henk Bekedam, who heads the World Health Organization office in China. Bekedam says that reform of the regulatory system has been underway for some time but that there is still a long way to go. China will "get it right at the central level but it will take a while before things get better for the country as a whole."He says many of the safety issues that plague both China's food and pharmaceutical industries arise from institutional problems and institutions take notoriously long time to change.
"There is no government in the world that can be present at every step along the way where things are being produced. The most important thing is to strengthen the whole system, the suppliers must be certified, the workers and inspectors must be qualified. It's the same with manufacturing. The distributors and wholesalers and even the outlets must have basic qualifications. China now has bits and pieces of that system but it is not consistent and that makes the system very vulnerable." Bekedam, a genial Dutch physician, says the sheer number of small manufacturers in China that have grown up during the last two boom decades make the problem much worse. In the pharmaceutical sector, for example, there are about 5000 small companies making drugs, which is "far too many. China has pretty good laws but it's troublesome to follow them up" with so many companies out there. "It's one thing to have a law, another to enforce it," particularly in rural areas, where the central government's say is weakest.
The WHO official also cites a problem that seems to be regularly mentioned in this blog: lack of transparency. It's better to acknowledge the problems exist "even if you have to go through a rough time and admit things were wrong." Take counterfeit drugs for example. "When they get these accusations, (the government) I know they really investigate them and go for the culprit." But in one case he is familiar with, the initial response despite successfully identifying the guilty parties was "don't talk about it. It was like pulling teeth getting it out of them. And this was something they should have come out and said themselves."
As noted here earlier, the government is deeply conflicted about how to handle the useful but too often peskily independent media. Obviously, if they let Chinese reporters do their job and dig up the details about who is behind the factories manufacturing the poisonous toys/drugs/food etc they'd make a big, big start towards attacking the problem. But then, who knows what else might turn up in the process? Better to stay silent....
Joe Kahn of the New York Times has an interesting piece in today's newspaper about the safety of Chinese products. He compares China today to the U.S. at the turn of the century, noting that the Food and Drug Administration was created in 1906 in response to a series of scandals over shoddy and dangerous products. The focus of the Made in China story (see here for our most recent and relatively U.S.-centric take) is now shifting to the measures China is taking to address its regulatory problems. I spoke to a number of people recently about this issue and they all repeatedly stressed that they believed the government was extremely eager to address this issue and doing its best to put the right regulations in place. They were equally unanimous in their opinion that the process will take time. One of the strangest things about China's transformation in the last two decades has been the way processes that took centuries elsewhere were telescoped by the unprecedented speed of change and sometimes seemed to happen overnight. That's not going to happen with the government's attempts to striaghten out China's regulatory mess. Listen to Henk Bekedam, who heads the World Health Organization office in China. Bekedam says that reform of the regulatory system has been underway for some time but that there is still a long way to go. China will "get it right at the central level but it will take a while before things get better for the country as a whole."He says many of the safety issues that plague both China's food and pharmaceutical industries arise from institutional problems and institutions take notoriously long time to change.
"There is no government in the world that can be present at every step along the way where things are being produced. The most important thing is to strengthen the whole system, the suppliers must be certified, the workers and inspectors must be qualified. It's the same with manufacturing. The distributors and wholesalers and even the outlets must have basic qualifications. China now has bits and pieces of that system but it is not consistent and that makes the system very vulnerable." Bekedam, a genial Dutch physician, says the sheer number of small manufacturers in China that have grown up during the last two boom decades make the problem much worse. In the pharmaceutical sector, for example, there are about 5000 small companies making drugs, which is "far too many. China has pretty good laws but it's troublesome to follow them up" with so many companies out there. "It's one thing to have a law, another to enforce it," particularly in rural areas, where the central government's say is weakest.
The WHO official also cites a problem that seems to be regularly mentioned in this blog: lack of transparency. It's better to acknowledge the problems exist "even if you have to go through a rough time and admit things were wrong." Take counterfeit drugs for example. "When they get these accusations, (the government) I know they really investigate them and go for the culprit." But in one case he is familiar with, the initial response despite successfully identifying the guilty parties was "don't talk about it. It was like pulling teeth getting it out of them. And this was something they should have come out and said themselves."
As noted here earlier, the government is deeply conflicted about how to handle the useful but too often peskily independent media. Obviously, if they let Chinese reporters do their job and dig up the details about who is behind the factories manufacturing the poisonous toys/drugs/food etc they'd make a big, big start towards attacking the problem. But then, who knows what else might turn up in the process? Better to stay silent....
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
2005 Used cars _VEHICLES TO AVOID
Here are all the models that showed below-average reliability in our 2004 survey. They are listed alphabetically by make, model, and year.
Audi A4 (4-cyl.) '98-00, '02; A4 (V6) '97-00, '02-03; A6/Avant '99; A6/Allroad '01,'03; A6 3.0 '98, '02; A6 '00; TT '01-02
BMW 3 Series '04; 5 Series '04; 7 Series '97-98, '00, '02-03; X5 '01, '04
Buick Century '04; LeSabre '04; Park Avenue '98, '04; Rainier '04; Rendezvous '02
Cadillac Catera '98; CTS '03; De Ville '97, '00-02, '04; Escalade '03; Seville '97, '99-03; SRX '04
Chevrolet Astro '97-03; Avalanche '02; Blazer '97-03; C1500 '97; Camaro '97, '99, '01; Cavalier Coupe & Convertible '99-00; Cavalier '03; Corvette '00-02, '04; Express 1500 '97-03; Impala '01; K1500 '97-98; Lumina '97, '99; Malibu '97-01, '04; Monte Carlo '99; S-10 '97-98, '00-03; Silverado 1500 (4WD) '02-03; Suburban '97-99; Tahoe '97-99; TrailBlazer '02-04; Venture '97-01; Venture (reg.) '02
Chysler 300M '99, '03-04; Cirrus '97; Concorde '97-99, '02; LHS '97, '99; Sebring Convertible '97, '01, '03-04; Sebring Sedan '02, '04; Town & Country '97, '00-02; Town & Country (AWD) '98-99; Voyager '01-02
Dodge Caravan '97-98, '01-02; Caravan (4-cyl.) '99; Caraven (V6) '00; Dakota (2WD) '97-99; Dakota (4WD) '98-02, '04; Durango '98-00; Grand Caravan '97, '00-02; Grand Caravan (AWD) '98-99; Intrepid '97-99; Neon '97-02; Ram 1500 '97, '02; Ram 1500 (4WD) '98-01; Ram Van/Wagon 1500 '99; Stratus (4-cyl.) '98-00; Stratus Sedan (V6) '97 '02, '04
Ford Contour (V6) '97-98; Escape '01; Excursion '01, '03; Expedition '03-04; Explorer '00; Explorer (4WD) '98, '02; F-150 (4WD) ;04; Focus '00-01; Focus Wagon '04; Ranger (4WD) '97, '01-02, '04; Windstar '97-01
GMC Envoy '02-04; Jimmy '97-01; Sierra 1500 '97; Sierra 1500 (4WD) '98, '02-03; Sonoma '97-98, '00-03; Safari '97-03; Savana 1500 '97-03; Suburban '97-99; Yukon '97-99
Honda Passport '97-99
Hyundai Sonata '00; Tiburon '03; XG350 '04
Infiniti M45 '03
Isuzu Rodeo '97-99
Jaguard S-Type '00-01, '03; XJ Series '98, '00; X-Type '02-03
Jeep Grand Cherokee '97-02; Wrangler '98, '03
Kia Sedona '02
Land Rover Discovery '00-01, '03; Free-lander '02
Lexus GX470 '03
Lincoln Aviator '03-04; LS '00, '03; Mark VIII '98; Navigator '02-04
Mazda B-Series (4WD) '97, '01-02, '04; MPV '03-04; RX-8 '04; Tribute '01; Mazda '03-04
Mercedes-Benz C-Class (4-cyl.) '02; C-Class (V6) '01-04; CLK '99-00, '02-04; E-Class '99, '01-04; E-Class (AWD) '00; M-Class '98-04; S-Class '00, '02-03; SL '03
Mercury Cougar '99-01; Mountaineer '00; Mountaineer (4WD) '98, '02; Mystique (V6) '97-98
Mini Cooper '02-03
Mitsubishi Eclipse '97
Nissan 35OZ '03; Armada '04; Frontier '04; Quest '04; Sentra '02-03
Oldsmobile 88 '98; Alero '99-01; Aurora '97, '01; Bravada '97-00, '02; Cutlass '97-99; Cutlass Supreme '97; Silhouette '97-01
Plymouth Breeze '98-00; Grand Voyager '97, '00; Voyager '97-98; Voyager (4-cyl.) '99; Voyager (V6) '00; Neon '97-00
Pontiac Aztek '01-03; Bonneville '98-02; Firebird '97, '99, '01; Grand Am '97-01; Grand Prix '97-98; Grand Prix SC '99-01, '04; Sunfire Coupe & Convertible '99-00, 03; Trans Sport/Montana '97-'01; Montana (reg.) '02
Porsche Boxster '01, '03; Cayenne '04
Saab 9-3 '03-04; 9-5 '99
Saturn Ion '03; L-Series (V6) '00-02; SW Wagon '00; Vue '02-04
Volkswagen Cabrio '99, '01-02; EuroVan '03; Golf '97-03; Jetta '97-03; New Beetle '98-04; Passat (4-cyl.) '98-99, '01-02; Passat (V6) '97, '99-01, '04; Passat (AWD) '00-01, '04; Passat W8 '03; Touareg '04
Volvo 960 '97; V70/Cross Country '98, '01; Cross Country '99-00; V70 '02; XC70 '03; S60 (AWD) '04; S80 '99-03; S90/V90 '97-98 '03-04
Audi A4 (4-cyl.) '98-00, '02; A4 (V6) '97-00, '02-03; A6/Avant '99; A6/Allroad '01,'03; A6 3.0 '98, '02; A6 '00; TT '01-02
BMW 3 Series '04; 5 Series '04; 7 Series '97-98, '00, '02-03; X5 '01, '04
Buick Century '04; LeSabre '04; Park Avenue '98, '04; Rainier '04; Rendezvous '02
Cadillac Catera '98; CTS '03; De Ville '97, '00-02, '04; Escalade '03; Seville '97, '99-03; SRX '04
Chevrolet Astro '97-03; Avalanche '02; Blazer '97-03; C1500 '97; Camaro '97, '99, '01; Cavalier Coupe & Convertible '99-00; Cavalier '03; Corvette '00-02, '04; Express 1500 '97-03; Impala '01; K1500 '97-98; Lumina '97, '99; Malibu '97-01, '04; Monte Carlo '99; S-10 '97-98, '00-03; Silverado 1500 (4WD) '02-03; Suburban '97-99; Tahoe '97-99; TrailBlazer '02-04; Venture '97-01; Venture (reg.) '02
Chysler 300M '99, '03-04; Cirrus '97; Concorde '97-99, '02; LHS '97, '99; Sebring Convertible '97, '01, '03-04; Sebring Sedan '02, '04; Town & Country '97, '00-02; Town & Country (AWD) '98-99; Voyager '01-02
Dodge Caravan '97-98, '01-02; Caravan (4-cyl.) '99; Caraven (V6) '00; Dakota (2WD) '97-99; Dakota (4WD) '98-02, '04; Durango '98-00; Grand Caravan '97, '00-02; Grand Caravan (AWD) '98-99; Intrepid '97-99; Neon '97-02; Ram 1500 '97, '02; Ram 1500 (4WD) '98-01; Ram Van/Wagon 1500 '99; Stratus (4-cyl.) '98-00; Stratus Sedan (V6) '97 '02, '04
Ford Contour (V6) '97-98; Escape '01; Excursion '01, '03; Expedition '03-04; Explorer '00; Explorer (4WD) '98, '02; F-150 (4WD) ;04; Focus '00-01; Focus Wagon '04; Ranger (4WD) '97, '01-02, '04; Windstar '97-01
GMC Envoy '02-04; Jimmy '97-01; Sierra 1500 '97; Sierra 1500 (4WD) '98, '02-03; Sonoma '97-98, '00-03; Safari '97-03; Savana 1500 '97-03; Suburban '97-99; Yukon '97-99
Honda Passport '97-99
Hyundai Sonata '00; Tiburon '03; XG350 '04
Infiniti M45 '03
Isuzu Rodeo '97-99
Jaguard S-Type '00-01, '03; XJ Series '98, '00; X-Type '02-03
Jeep Grand Cherokee '97-02; Wrangler '98, '03
Kia Sedona '02
Land Rover Discovery '00-01, '03; Free-lander '02
Lexus GX470 '03
Lincoln Aviator '03-04; LS '00, '03; Mark VIII '98; Navigator '02-04
Mazda B-Series (4WD) '97, '01-02, '04; MPV '03-04; RX-8 '04; Tribute '01; Mazda '03-04
Mercedes-Benz C-Class (4-cyl.) '02; C-Class (V6) '01-04; CLK '99-00, '02-04; E-Class '99, '01-04; E-Class (AWD) '00; M-Class '98-04; S-Class '00, '02-03; SL '03
Mercury Cougar '99-01; Mountaineer '00; Mountaineer (4WD) '98, '02; Mystique (V6) '97-98
Mini Cooper '02-03
Mitsubishi Eclipse '97
Nissan 35OZ '03; Armada '04; Frontier '04; Quest '04; Sentra '02-03
Oldsmobile 88 '98; Alero '99-01; Aurora '97, '01; Bravada '97-00, '02; Cutlass '97-99; Cutlass Supreme '97; Silhouette '97-01
Plymouth Breeze '98-00; Grand Voyager '97, '00; Voyager '97-98; Voyager (4-cyl.) '99; Voyager (V6) '00; Neon '97-00
Pontiac Aztek '01-03; Bonneville '98-02; Firebird '97, '99, '01; Grand Am '97-01; Grand Prix '97-98; Grand Prix SC '99-01, '04; Sunfire Coupe & Convertible '99-00, 03; Trans Sport/Montana '97-'01; Montana (reg.) '02
Porsche Boxster '01, '03; Cayenne '04
Saab 9-3 '03-04; 9-5 '99
Saturn Ion '03; L-Series (V6) '00-02; SW Wagon '00; Vue '02-04
Volkswagen Cabrio '99, '01-02; EuroVan '03; Golf '97-03; Jetta '97-03; New Beetle '98-04; Passat (4-cyl.) '98-99, '01-02; Passat (V6) '97, '99-01, '04; Passat (AWD) '00-01, '04; Passat W8 '03; Touareg '04
Volvo 960 '97; V70/Cross Country '98, '01; Cross Country '99-00; V70 '02; XC70 '03; S60 (AWD) '04; S80 '99-03; S90/V90 '97-98 '03-04
2005 Used cars _bad bets
Audi A6
BMW 7 Series
Chevrolet Astro
Chevrolet Blazer
Chevrolet Express 1500
Chevrolet S-10 (4WD)
Chevrolet TrailBlazer
ChrysLer Town & Country (AWD)
Dodge Dakota (4WD)
Dodge Grand Caravan (AWD)
Ford Windstar
GMC Envoy
GMC Jimmy
GMC Safari
GMC Savana 1500
GMC Sonoma (4WD)
Jaguar S-Type
Jaguar X-Type
Jeep Grand Cherokee
Land Rover Discovery
Lincoln Navigator
Mercedes Benz C-Class (V6)
Mercedes-Benz CLK
Mercedes-Benz M-Class
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Oldsmobile Bravada
Oldsmobile Cutlass
Plymouth Neon
Pontiac Aztek
Volkswagen Golf
Volkswagen Jetta
Volkswagen New Beetle
Volvo S80
2005 Used cars _best bets
Acura Integra
Acura MDX
Acura RL
Acura RSX
Acura TL
Buick Regal
Chevrolet/Geo Prizm
Chrysler PT Cruiser
For Crown Victoria
Ford Escort
Honda Accord
Honda Civic
Honda CR-V
Honda Odyssey
Honda Prelude
Honda S2000
Infiniti G20
Infiniti I30, I35
Infiniti QX45
Infinite QX4
Lexus ES300, ES330
Lexus GS300/GS400, GS430
Lexus IS300
Lexus LS400, LS430
Lexus RX300, RX330
Lincoln Town Car
Mazda 626
Mazda Millenia
Mazda MX-5 Miata
Mazda Protege
Mercury Tracer
Mitsubishi Galant
Nissan Altima
Nissan Maxima
Nissan Pathfinder
Subaru Forester
Subaru Impreza
Subaru Legacy
Subaru Outback
Toyota 4Runner
Toyota Avalon
Toyota Camry
Toyota Camry Solara
Toyota Celica
Toyota Corolla
Toyota Echo
Toyota Highlander
Toyota Land Cruiser
Toyota Prius
Toyota RAV4
Toyota Sequoia
Toyota Sienna
Toyota Tundra
2006 Used cars _VEHICLES TO AVOID
Here are all the models that had below-average Used Car Verdicts in our 2005 survey, covering 1998 to 2005 models. Listed alphabetically, by make, model, and year.
Audi A4 Avant '99, 01; A4 sedan '98-00, '02; A4 sedan (4-cyl.) '01; A4 sedan (V6) '05; A6 Avant '99-00; A6 sedan (V6) '98-00, '02-05; A6 sedan (V6), Turbo) '00-01, '03; A8 '04; Allroad '01-03; S4 '00, '04-05; TT '03
BMW 3 Series '04; 5 Series (6-cyl.) '04; 5 Series (V8) '98-00, '04; 7 Series '98-04; M3 '02-03; X5 (V8) '01-02, '05
Buick LeSabre '05; Park Avenue '98; Rendezvous '02; Terraza '05
Cadillac Catera '98; CTS '03; DeVille '00-03, '05; Escalade '03; Seville '98-03; SRX '04-05
Chevrolet Astro '98-03; Avalanche '03; Blazer '98-04; Camaro '00-02; Cavalier Coupe & Conv. '03-04; Cavalier Sedan '03; Cobalt '05; Colorado (2WD) '04; Colorado (4WD) '04-05; Corvette '05; Equinox '05; Express '98-04; Impala '01; Malibu '98-01, '04; Malibu Maxx '04; Monte Carlo '00-01; S-10 (2WD) '98-99, '02-03; S-10 (4WD) '98, '00-03; K1500 '98; Silverado 1500 (4WD) '03; Suburban '98-99, '03; Tahoe '98-99, '03; TrailBlazer '02-04; Uplander '05; Venture '98-02; (Venture (ext.) '03
Chrysler 300 (V8) '05; 300M '99, '03; Concorde '99; LHS '99; Pacifica '04-05; PT Cruiser Turbo '03; Sebring Convertible '01-02, '04; Sebring Sedan '02-03; Town & Country '00-03; Town & Country (ext., AWD) '99, Town & Country (ext., FWD) '04; Town & Country (reg.) '98; Voyager (4-cyl.) '01-03; Voyager (V6) '01-03
Dodge Caravan (4-cyl.) '98, '01-03; Caravan (V6) '98, '00-03; Grand Caravan '00-03; Grand Caravan (4WD) '04; Grand Caravan (AWD) '99; Dakota (2WD) '98, '05; Dakota (4WD) '98-00, '02, '05; Durango '98-01, '04-05; Intrepid '98-99, '03-04; Neon '98-99; Ram 1500 (2WD) '99; Ram 1500 (4WD) '98-02; Ram Van/Wagon '99; Stratus Sedan (4-cyl.) '98-99; Stratus Sedan (V6) '02-03
Ford Contour '98; Econoline '01; Excursion '03-04; Expedition '03-05; Explorer '02-05; Explorer (4WD) '00; Explorer Sport Trac '04; F-150 '04-05; Focus Sedan '00; Focus Wagon '00, '05; Freestyle (AWD) '05; Mustang (V6) '05; Ranger (2WD) '04; Ranger (4WD) '01; Taurus Sedan '05; Windstar '98-01
GMC Canyon (2WD) '04; Canyon (4WD) '04-05; Envoy '02-04; Jimmy '98-01; Safari '98-03; Savana '98-04; Sierra 1500 (4WD) '98, '03; S-15 Sonoma (2WD) '98-99, '02-03; S-15 Sonoma (4WD) '98, '00-03; Suburban '98-99; Yukon XL '03; Yukon '98-99, '03
Honda Passport '99-02
Hummer H2 '03-04
Hyundai Accent '00; Sonata '00-01; Tiburon '03; Tuscon '05; XG300 '01
Infiniti QX56 '04-05
Isuzu Rodeo '99-02
Jaguar S-Type '00-04; XJ Series '98-00, '04; X-Type '02-04
Jeep Grand Cherokee '98-03, '05
Kia Sedona '02-03; Sorento '05; Sportage '01, '05
Land Rover Discovery '99-01; '03-04; LR3 '05; Freelander '02; Range Rover '03
Lincoln Aviator '03-04; LS '00-01, '03-04; Navigator '01-05
Mazda B-Series (2WD) '04; B-Series (4WD) '01; MPV '03-04; 6 Hatchback '04; 6 Sedan (V6) '03, '05
Mercedes-Benz C-Class (4-cyl.) '02-03, '05; C-Class (V6) '01-04; CLK '01-05; E-Class Sedan '01-05; E-Class (V8) '98; E-Class Wagon '01-02, '04; M-Class '98-03; S-Class '00, '02-04; SL '04; SLK '02, '05
Mercury Cougar '99; Mountaineer '02-05; Mountaineer (4WD) '00; Mystique '98; Sable Sedan '05
Mini Cooper Base '02-03; Cooper S '02
Nissan 350Z '03; Armada '04-05; Quest '04-05; Titan '04-05
Oldsmobile Alero '99-02; Aurora '98, '01; Bravada '98-00, '02-03; Cutlass '98-99; Silhouette '98-03
Plymouth Breeze '98-99; Grand Voyager '00; Neon '98-99; Voyager (4-cyl.) '98; Voyager (V6) '98, '00
Pontiac Aztek '01-03; Bonneville '98, '00-03; Firebird '00-02; Grand Am '98-02; Grand Prix '98, '01; Grand Prix SC '00; GTO '04; Trans Sport Montana '98; Montana '99-02; Montana (ext) '03; Montana SV6 '05; Sunfire '03-04
Porsche 911 '02, '04; Cayenne '04-05
Saab 9-3 '03-05; 9-5 Sedan '99-00; 9-5 Wagon '99, '01
Saturn Ion '04; L-Series (V6) '00-'02; Relay '05; Vue '02-03; Vue (AWD) '04
Volkswagen Cabrio '99, '01-02; EuroVan '02-03; Golf (4-cyl.) '98, '03-04; Golf (4-cyl., turbo) '01; Jetta (4-cyl.) '98-02, '05; Jetta (4-cyl., turbo) '01-03; Jetta (4-cyl., turbo-diesel) '02; Jetta (V6) '99-03; New Beetle '98-04; New Beetle Convertible '05; Passat (4-cyl.) '98-02, '05; Passat (V6) '99-01; '04; Passat Wagon (V6) '03; Passat W8 '03; Touareg '04-05
Volvo C70 '00, '04; Cross Country '98-01; S60 (AWD) '03, '05; S80 '99-02; S90/V90 '98; V40 '00; V50 '05; V70 (FWD) '01, '03; V70 (AWD) '98; XC90 '03-05
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