Are you sure you're not thinking about some other lens? The 18-105 is one of the best kit lenses Nikon has ever made, and it's not just me saying it. Quoting Thom Hogan, "the" guy to listen to on all things Nikon (and not just Nikon):
"For its price, this is actually quite a well rounded lens. The most visible fault for most will be the barrel distortion at 18mm and perhaps some softness in the corners at 18mm and f/3.5. Beyond that, it falls into what I'd call the "very good and no noticeable flaws" range on almost everything."
You can read the rest
here.
Yes it's a weaker lens at 18 mm than at the rest of the range, maybe weaker than the 18-55 VR, and it does have more distortion throughout - which is expected from an almost 6x zoom that goes from reasonably wide to low-medium telephoto, but it's still a cracking sharp lens, and not very heavy. The plastic mount and lack of true AF override are the main negative points for me.
That said, I replaced both my 18-55 and 18-105 kit lenses with the 16-85, because of those extra 2 mm at the wide end (and the metal mount, VR II, true AF override, and better quality throughout)...
I believe Jambo might have something to say about the Canon 17-85 vs. the 18-55 IS, too...