Americans don’t seem to understand car sizes. As a tall guy you’ll fit in a modern Fiat 500 just fine. Or any other not-ancient European car. Northern Europeans are, on average, taller than Americans. So, cars designed for the EU market will fit tall people.

Mine does 4500-5000 rpm at German Autobahn cruising speeds. It has 380k (km) on the odometer now. No problem at all, and it’s an Italian built French car. Higher RPMs are mostly bad for fuel economy.

There are more vans like that available in Europe that, that have not been made by VAG.

I’m Dutch. For me bikes are what cars are to most average people; a mode of transportation to get from A to B. Not for sport or hobby. I got my first car at age 27, because I never needed one before. Even then I didn’t need a car, I just wanted a car. Probably hard to imagine for people in countries with poor…

There are loads of quality options that are <$1k. I would not go so far as to call $1k high end though, but I guess it’s all a matter of perspective.

Even for a quality non-E commuter bicycle $1k is an average price. Someone who thinks a new decent quality human powered bicycle for adults should cost $200 lives in the 1970s. Or can live with a bike made of the worst type of Chinesium.

Every comparison is allowed. This one is merely misplaced.

That Peugeot 3008 is a compact/midsize crossover. About the most boring and the most lucrative market segment out there. Everything by every brand in that segment is ‘irrelevant’. Compared to other crossovers in its segment it stands out. The looks are somewhat different, but have you seen the interior?

I have a 20 year old 380k km (236k miles) Italian built Peugeot parked outside. Which has been my daily driver for the last 8 years, and which will do roughly 2k Kms just this Christmas period. Which it does without complaint. And, other than scheduled maintenance and obvious maintenance like brakes/tires/belts, very…

Agreed about the Scenic. Not a car I’d like to own, but it has been an extremely influential and thus important car on the European market. The proto-crossover.

Agreed about the Citroen. First thing I thought of when reading this list. The Saxo VTS is a car I’d love to own, even today. It’s one of the best, if not the best, cheap low weight hot hatches of the 90s. Clean ones are appreciating in value quite a lot already.

The contour and mystique were certainly modified, the whole rear end was different and I assume the interiors and drivetrains were as well. But, like you said, they certainly were closer to the Mondeo than the Cougar was.

Agreed. In in most civilized countries, trucks like that would be taken off the road by the first police officer that spots it.

True. But in Europe a US-style pickup truck is a bit of a clown car with a very niche demographic. In the US they are replacing minivans.

True. But I guess you can use any random market-correct car for filler roles. Why pick a rare one that is also somewhat sought after?

I would guess the more expensive ones don’t have the NA 2.0 16V engine. They’d have a 5 cylinder or a turbo, or both.

Cheap too, frequently.

Downside of the UK is that the steering wheel is on the wrong side. This Fiat has it on the correct side for the US.

I’m in Europe, and can confidently say you’re wrong. These are quite rare and rather sought after had it had a different engine. The car in this ad has a less attractive engine, but given the condition it is still not a cheap car (for a 1994 car).

I love those, but the transmission? I'm sure it's great, but it would be too much of a compromise to me.