Zastava Koral - Criticism and Response

Criticism and Response

Along with other Central and Eastern European vehicles marketed in the West during the 20th century — such as the Lada and Škoda - the Yugo was subjected to derision by critics who pointed to its use of old-generation Fiat technology and to alleged issues with build quality and reliability. The Yugo was voted Car Talk's worst car of the millennium.

Defenders of the vehicle have counter-argued that the Yugo's reputation suffered due to an issue that also appeared with initially inexpensive cars as the Chevrolet Chevette, Rambler, Crosley, and others — dealers were finding that too many owners were considering inexpensive cars as "disposable", and were failing to perform basic maintenance such as oil changes.

One critical maintenance issue specific to the Yugo 55 & 65 (the 45 was a 903 cc pushrod engine, with a timing chain) was the need for regular replacement of the interference engine's timing belt — every 40,000 miles (64,000 km). In a non-interference engine, timing belt failure does not cause further damage to the engine. In an interference engine, however, timing belt failure disrupts synchronization between pistons and valves, causing them to collide with one other (hence the name interference engine), thus potentially destroying the engine. Though this requirement was stressed in owners' manuals, it was frequently overlooked by owners.

The factory also stresses the need for 89-octane fuels for the low compression engines. Some Yugo owners have reported that regular oil changes and appropriate maintenance allow the cars to remain dependable and trouble-free.

In 1989, 31-year-old Leslie Ann Pluhar, driving a 1987 Yugo over the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan, died when her Yugo went over the bridge's 36-inch (910 mm) railing during 50 mph (80 km/h) winds. The incident was widely publicized, with the make of car prominently identified. Many retellings claim that the car was physically lifted and blown off the bridge. However, a lawsuit by the family of the victim made no such claim, but proposed that the wind contributed to a loss of control that ended with the car going off the bridge. Expert testimony disputed whether the winds were a major factor. Another proposed explanation is that a collision with a guardrail on the bridge's median "launched" the car onto the opposite guardrail.

Owners of the Yugo and related models in the former Yugoslavia benefit from a ready supply of inexpensive spare parts due to general continuity in the car's design; local mechanics' ready familiarity with the Yugo also lowers the cost of ownership. All parts for the Yugo are readily available in the United States.