I was there last year, and a couple of years before. It's a great event. There are local rallies, too called Overland Rallies and Workshops. I've been to the Washington event every year. Classes, raffles, trail rides, and great people. Fun times!

Honestly, it's as much a Subaru town as it is a Prius town (I have a '13 WRX). However, when I have friends visit from the Midwest, they're always astonished at the mount of Prius drivers there are. (Note my avoidance of having to figure out how to pluralize "Prius.")

Thanks, but I best Move on.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daihatsu_…

Welcome to Portland, Oregon! We hope you enjoy your stay. After arriving at PDX, you'll be greeted by a fleet of Prius taxi cabs. Want to rent a car? You'll fit in perfectly with other Portlanders by renting a Prius, the unofficial car of Portland. Please remember to obey Portland Prius driving rules by going 40 MPH…

Yeah, things got off to a Rocky start.

The entire Daihatsu brand. While the cars were reportedly pretty decent for what they were, they attempted to get a premium for them when other late 1980s-1990s brands, such as Geo, offered similar cars (Metro, Tracker vs. Charade, Rocky) for far less money. Other pitfalls? They only offered two vehicles: A subcompact…

Mitsubishi had some strange paint names in the 1990s. "Lamp Black," for instance. What the hell is Lamp Black? They also offered Tibet Black on the Precis. Tibet Black? What's the association there?

I owned a '92 Expo LRV. What a practical little pregnant rollerskate. Sliding door, removable rear seat, tons of cargo capacity, and the availability of a manual transmission and AWD. I still cruise craigslist for them. Overseas, you could get them with a 4G63, by the way.

A true competitor to the Jeep Wrangler. Something with outstanding off-road capability, a reasonable price tag, a manual transmission option, and a level of simplicity. In the U.S., the FJ Cruiser and Nissan X-Terra were likely the closest things in recent history, barring the older Suzuki 4x4s. But all of those…

I'd probably more excited if they announce it'll be available with AWD and a manual, but since Canada doesn't get that option, I'm sure the U.S. won't, either.

I'm going to say any GM J body, simply based on the sheer number of badges the platform wore: Chevrolet, Cadillac, Pontiac, Buick, Oldsmobile, Vauxhall, Opel, Isuzu, Holden, Toyota, and Daewoo all had a at least one if not two or three models on the J Body, many of which at the same time.

Ride quality? Refinement?

I heard it is slotting under the Patriot/Compass and not replacing it.

While the diesel would be nice, if they offer it with a manual at all I'll be thrilled.

I'm also kinda diggin' it. Looks almost like a kei car in the pic, actually. I really hope it comes with AWD and a manual trans ...

While the Samurai is a great little "jeep," don't forget about the Suzuki Sidekick/Vitara and Geo/Chevy Tracker, which are a bit bigger, a little less Spartan, a little more powerful, but still very capable. They did feature independent front suspension (which some people swap out for a solid front using either a…

I had a '92 Expo LRV. Great little car. I wouldn't mind finding one again someday. Mmm ...4g63T swap. (They actually were available that way in other markets, and with EVO III drivetrains in the RVR Hyper Sports Gear).

Remember the Daihatsu Charade? It's ok if you don't. Hardly anyone else does, either. Daihatsu thought this small car was going to be big. However, it ended up being, well, just small.

The 1992-1996 Mitsubishi Expo LRV/Plymouth Colt Vista/Eagle Summit Wagon. Super versatile, decent on fuel, available with AWD, available with a manual transmission, and fairly inexpensive. While they weren't lookers, they did so much right but never really took off. FYI, they were sold in Japan as the Mitsubishi RVR,…