Actually, I'm half-tempted to name the Honda CR-Z as my top dud of 2011. That may shock anybody who knows me as both a fuel-economy zealot and the devoted 20-years owner of a Honda CRX. But the CR-Z, instead of a delivering a best-of-both-worlds blend of fuel-frugal sportiness, falls between two stools: it doesn't deliver enough of either attribute. Still, that doesn't make the CR-Z a bad car, just a frustrating one. For bad, I'm going with something completely different - the Infiniti QX56.
Actually, the QX56 is a fine example of what it's intended to be. What it is, however, is a full-size luxury SUV. And since the QX56 is the only new-for-2011 full-size luxury SUV, it gets to be the scapegoat for my disdain for the entire breed. On a planet plagued by poverty, pollution, overpopulation and pending Peak Oil, these rolling monuments to conspicuous consumption are offensive. Vulgar and ostentatious status symbols, they hog gas, accelerate climate change, and increase the harm to occupants of smaller vehicles in collisions. Yet the cruel irony is that their clumsy handling and proneness to fall over negates the "safety" that is the alleged justification for buying them in the first place. -- Jeremy Sinek for MSN Autos
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