Rust in peace: these cars won't be back for 2021
It's that time of year again: Halloween. It is a festival that is centuries old, having started as the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. It is a day when people thought that ghostly spirits returned to earth. After being conquered by the Romans, who adopted the ancient Celtic tradition as All Saints Day, or Alholowmesse in Middle English, Samhain endured as All Saints' Eve and eventually Halloween.
All these centuries later, October is the time when automakers slaughter unpopular cars, when their time as new models on this earth passes never to return.
So, let's remember the departed before they rust in peace.
Acura RLX - A perfectly anonymous car with an equally anonymous name, the RLX is a stark reminder of how far Acura's product development and marketing has fallen from the excellence established by Legend.
Alfa Romeo 4C - Now that America has become a nation of SUV-loving truck drivers, where gloomy practicality trumps sheer fun, pure sports cars like the fun 4C are sadly overlooked.
BMW i8: One would think that such an attractive gasoline-electric hybrid as the BMW i8, with handling to match, would be successful. But $ 147,500 for a car powered by the Mini's three-cylinder engine? Really?
Buick Regal: In Buick's pantheon of cool names like Invicta and Electra, this imported Opel with the blue-haired name was doomed from the start, though its remarkably nondescript personality didn't help.
Cadillac CT6: With a name only a lifeless salesman would love, this flagship sedan was sabotaged by lukewarm styling that lacked the sheer swagger of the Escalade and a cabin too cheap for its station.
Chevrolet Impala: While car buyers don't think about buying a huge SUV, they think twice about buying a large car, even one as good as the Impala. That said, a more inspired design would have helped.
Chevrolet Sonic: With exorbitant gas prices now a distant memory, this fun little hatchback lost its reason for being. However, its platform lives on in the Chevrolet Trax and Buick Encore.
Dodge Grand Caravan: Cheap to buy and very practical, the end of this minivan has come after 35 years, as Dodge focuses on performance-oriented products. Its replacement, the Chrysler Voyager, is on sale now.
Dodge Journey: Outperformed in every way except for its low price and the archaic Ultradrive four-speed automatic transmission, this sad relic of the DaimlerChrysler era is thankfully seeing its end.
Ford Fusion: Ford can blame a lack of buyer interest for killing the Fusion, the absence of a significant upgrade for years has a lot more to do with it. A sad, self-inflicted ending to a highly respected and popular car.
Honda Civic Coupe: While the entire sports compact scene grew out of cars like the Civic Coupe, their time has come and gone, as buyers are unwilling to put up with an iota of inconvenience in the name of fashion.
Honda Fit: Its beauty was in its utility, which was much larger than its size suggested thanks to the flexibility of its seating system. And it was unexpectedly fun to drive, something rarely said about cheap utility cars.
Hyundai Elantra GT: Designed and built in Europe, the Elantra five-door hatchback never enjoyed the popularity it deserved, despite the fact that American car buyers buy hatchbacks in the millions as long as they're in an SUV.
Jaguar XE - Like the X-Type before it, this entry-level British sports sedan never possessed the grace, pace, and space to steal from buyers of the BMW 3 Series.
Jaguar XF Sportbrake: If you thought the idea of a Jaguar pickup seemed a bit far-fetched, you're not alone, despite the fact that this was a fabulously fun alternative to driving to the overwhelming overabundance of SUVs.
Lexus GS: Always the middle child, never as popular as the Lexus LS or ES sedans, Toyota President Akio Toyoda wanted to kill the GS in 2011. Executives saved the car, but sales never improved. Now, Akio fulfills his wish.
Lincoln Continental: Developed using a front-wheel drive Ford Fusion platform for saving money, and without the necessary aura of the prototype that heralded it, the fate of the Continental was sealed from the start.
Lincoln MKZ - This hideously named upgraded Ford Fusion was bound to come out once the Fusion did. Aside from the seniors who liked to buy a Lincoln cheaply, the MKZ was never special enough.
Mercedes-Benz SL: Mercedes-Benz has dropped the two-seat SL-Class, but online reports speculate that the renowned roadster could return as a 2 + 2 by 2022, built by Mercedes-AMG.
Mercedes-Benz SLC: With buyers ignoring everything except SUVs, this cut-price convertible is turning the block for the last time, It still needs the exclusive style, space, and build quality that its older brothers possess.
Toyota Yaris: Americans hate subcompacts, especially when gas prices are low. So while this disguised version of the Mazda2 is fun to drive, the downsized cars are DOA.
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