The Suzuki Samurai
The Suzuki Samurai may have die-hard fans, but Consumer Reports totally tore the car apart in 1988, when the publication described it as “dangerously unsafe” for roads. Because of its findings, Consumer Reports even demanded that Suzuki recall these vehicles. It was later uncovered that the magazine had made slight changes to its testing method in order to increase the possibility of rollovers, but the brand never really recovered from the very public condemnation. Suzuki withdrew from the US auto market in 2012.
The Suzuki Samurai
The Saturn ION
Between 2003 and 2007, Saturn sold the ION under the GM Delta platform. The car had a problematic automatic transmission due to a “shift flare”, a disorienting shift pattern which ended up scaring a number of drivers. On a downward incline, the car would lurch when the driver stepped off the gas after the transmission downshifted. In addition, the ION had transmission failures, like the engine not shutting off and keys getting stuck in the ignition. No big deal, right? In 2007, GM stopped producing the ION.
The Saturn ION
