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Whats the worst car ever?


dem00n

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Re Pintos: Several of my friends had Pinto GTs and they were great handling and pretty peppy little cars.The worst cars ever made had to be the Yugo and Skoda imported for North American sale.You would never see a Skoda or a Yugo with over 5,000 miles on it simply because they didn't last that long.People who bought these cars were shite out of luck because the companies that imported them went broke when the European Mother companies wouldn't send parts to fix them nor would honour the warranties. A lot of people were left owing banks a lot of money because the companies declared bankruptcy and of course the bigger investors were first in line so by the time they took what was owing to them there wasn't diddly left.My wife was one of those taken in by the Skoda fiasco as it was being advertised as one of Europe's oldest and most respected car brands.That used to be true at one time as I worked in a saddle shop and cleaned stables for an old gentleman who owned a '58 Skoda wagon-it was 10 years old then and was as solid as the day it was made.

 

A lot of people had problems with the Russian made Lada which was based on the old 60's design Fiat 124 sedan and wagon,they were advertised as being cheap and dependable but many people who owned them were plagued with problems.A buddy of mine and his wife had one and never had one minute's trouble with it and it could go anywhere in deep snow,it was just phenominal in winter weather.Back around the time that the Ladas were popular there were a lot of Russian ships fishing our waters and Russian sailors would come into port and walk all over town looking for broken down Ladas and offer the owners really good money for them in their broken down conditions and after the ships were in town for a few days you could drive down to the waterfront and see the wharfs lined off with broken down Ladas ready to return to the country of their origin.The Russians paid good money for these worn out Ladas because there was something like a 10 year waiting list for one in Russia but there was an abundance of parts and of course they's scrape up whatever parts that they could here.

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This thread is somehow related to Kiss and Rush.

 

Is that a joke aimed at me or do you have a perceived notion that Kiss and Rush have something to do with it? I guess you could relate the song Red Barchetta (by Rush) to this topic because its about a car, but a 50s Ferrari is one of my automobile-related infatuations, so it is in no way the worst car ever.

 

Malchik, you're right on the money! (NO PUN INTENDED!)

 

Worst car ever? Prius, PT Cruiser, something like that.

 

And while DeLorean's were cool, they couldn't take the abuse. And contrary to Dr. Emmett Brown, THEY CANNOT TIME TRAVEL!!! THERE IS NO FLUX CAPACITOR!

 

The real flux capacitor is the one that keeps these threads going!

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No KISS car just mug-holders, seat covers, air fresheners, bottle-heads, decals, license plate frames...

 

Steering wheel covers, air bags, engines (they run on snake-oil...get it!), and the exclusive KISS CD Player, an authentic Gene Simmons knockoff of a cheaper Pioneer unit. To quote Seinfeld, "THE DIFFERENCE IS NEGLIGIBLE!". Oh, and sub woofers, and of course, KISS seat belts with tongue shaped buckles! It's possible....

 

God, it's so "tongue n' cheek"!

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From what we'd see out here, I'd say the Renault Dauphin was about as bad as the Yugo.

 

But not all the odd-named imports were as horrid. In the late 1950s there was a little car from Germany called the Lloyd that had a tiny 1200 cc engine that wasn't too bad, actually - and even was featured in an Elvis movie.

 

Frankly I think none of the Italian cars lasted worth beans, at least not in the 1960s. And much as I liked my AH 3000 and Alpine, I swear that Brit carmakers didn't know how to make a heater that worked.

 

m

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From what we'd see out here, I'd say the Renault Dauphin was about as bad as the Yugo.

 

But not all the odd-named imports were as horrid. In the late 1950s there was a little car from Germany called the Lloyd that had a tiny 1200 cc engine that wasn't too bad, actually - and even was featured in an Elvis movie.

 

Frankly I think none of the Italian cars lasted worth beans, at least not in the 1960s. And much as I liked my AH 3000 and Alpine, I swear that Brit carmakers didn't know how to make a heater that worked.

 

m

I figured you being 'experienced' AND also a previous owner of a British spyder would have an idea of some really BAD cars.

 

I heard something once, that the Brits (or Europeans) build cars with completely different criteria, namely, that sense they don't rely on them for livelyhood, they have no need for reliability. But sinse they are more for hobby and sport, they must be FUN.

 

I also remember having been told once that in many places in Europe, oil leaks are NOT allowed (which pretty much rules out a lot of American cars don't it?)

 

I had a FIAT (Fix It Again Tony) and it was an extremely fun car to drive. The engine could rev to 9000 rpm, and while it was a mid-seventies bucket, would easily outperform or hold it's own against 80's and early 90's BMW's and imports. The manual has a statement that read something like "The Auto Ministry has reported that suspension parts failure is a major cause of injuries and fatalities". After owning it for 2 years, I had a pile of broken suspension parts in my garage, including an A-arm, an idler box, and a trailing arm.

 

Some cars you have a thrill if the tires break loose. Wondering if the car is going to break performing certain maneuvers is a thrill in itself. And the rest of the thrill is wondering if you have the right stuff to fix it to make it to work the next day.

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From what we'd see out here, I'd say the Renault Dauphin was about as bad as the Yugo.

 

But not all the odd-named imports were as horrid. In the late 1950s there was a little car from Germany called the Lloyd that had a tiny 1200 cc engine that wasn't too bad, actually - and even was featured in an Elvis movie.

 

Frankly I think none of the Italian cars lasted worth beans, at least not in the 1960s. And much as I liked my AH 3000 and Alpine, I swear that Brit carmakers didn't know how to make a heater that worked.

 

m

 

Renault Dauphin, I had forgotten about them. As I recall they had a timing gear made of a hard nylon substance which melted if the engine got too hot, which they did.

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My brother had a Vega GT... That was a great car. In 1973, soon after buying a bran new Vaga GT, my brother went to Europe and le me use his car while he was gone. I decided to drive the car to Watkins Glen New York for the Summer Jam Concert with three friends. I loved that car, it was dark green with a big fat white racing stripe down the center of the car, tan vinyl interior and manual transmission... Very peppy and light, had an aluminum motor. Well the car survived the concert trip and my brother had it for many years after that... It did get some nasty body rought twards the end though... I'll never for get my brothers reaction when he cam home from Europe after a month an I had put 3000 miles on his new car... [sneaky]

 

My mother had a candy apple red Edsel with black tuck and roll interior... Loved that car too...

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Actually the Healey was relatively reliable. I drove it to Chicago a cupla times... An "Ex" drove the Alpine across Iowa to Chicago and blew the nice little four-banger engine 'cuz she couldn't realize what the oil pressure gauge was doing.

 

Alas... One might say that was the beginning of the end of that relationship. She nixed the Healey although she could manage the clutch in a downshift quite well. After the Alpine fiasco she said if I bought an Elva I'd found and had a "pay only for parts" agreement with a local tech school to make street legal... she'd be gone. She was gone anyway but the car likely wasn't that good an idea either. <grin>

 

Ah, for the days of one's youth and passions that lasted about as long as some of those cars might run without mechanicking on them.

 

<bigger grin>

 

As for the Chevy Vega... I had one. It was trashed with under 20,000 miles on it. I'd replaced at least a half dozen plastic flywheel covers. Why? They couldn't stand up to running over a jackrabbit and there were oodles of the doggone critters around at the time. The rest of it was about as well made.

 

m

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There is scientific proof that the Trabant is/was the worst car ever conceived/built

 

Rumour has it that paper was a constituent in some body panels' construction :blink:

 

A throwback to the communist regime in East Germany...

 

Not entirely unconnected: the Skoda has come from hero to zero and back again

 

After the VW takeover it has become a very desirable brand recently

 

Regularly topping the polls for quality and reliability...

 

V

 

:-({|=

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in '82 I built a '73 Vega Wagon w/a '69 327ci. engine....300 hp heads....Weiand "tunnel-ram" intake+ 2x 750cfm Holley carbs.......700-1200 rpm cam....Camaro tranny & narrowed Camaro rear end......took 6 months to make it all fit.

1st time I cranked it, the windshield popped out & broke

1st time I drove it, the front suspension gave out

simply cranking it occasionally literally rattled the car apart.

 

that was MY personal worst car

 

had 2 Pintos & both were absolutely un-killable.

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There is scientific proof that the Trabant is/was the worst car ever conceived/built.....Rumour has it that paper was a constituent in some body panels' construction :blink:

Much of it's bodywork was made utilising a material which seemed almost identical in composition to regular hardboard sheeting. I came across one in a North London scrap yard whilst looking for parts to help me in the restoration of my '50s Beetle. I had a good look at it and can confirm it was utter crap! I suppose the upside was it wouldn't rust........

 

As far as the original question goes; there are many different interpretations of 'worst'. This car, the MOHS Ostentatienne Opera Sedan, epitomises at least one of them;

 

4335870296_0e9ee8c1d6_z.jpg

 

P.

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Worst car I ever had bar none was an Alfa Romeo. Absolute pile of s***.

But prior to that, the worst money-pit of a car I ever had was a Citroen. Don't ever buy a Citroen. I paid about £600 and over the next 2 yrs spend at least that every 3 months on repairs. Something was always failing...I will say again, don't ever buy a Citroen.

Through the 1980s I had BMW 2002s; expensive to run but worth it because of the incredible performance - excellent machinery.

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Oh Man, I'd love to have that Edsel. It's so cool I'd love to take that to a car night and tool around in it.

 

On the worst car subject: ANYTHING THAT CITREON made before they wised up would cut it for me. ALL the most butt ugly looking POS's that I can think of. French may know how to do pastries, wine & bread (Fries :rolleyes:). They should stick to what they're good at. [thumbdn]

 

Aster

 

old-citroen.jpg

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Oh Man, I'd love to have that Edsel. It's so cool.........ANYTHING THAT CITREON made before they wised up would cut it for me. ALL the most butt ugly looking POS's that I can think of.......

 

Aster

Wow!

 

It just goes to show that, truly, 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder'.

 

You find the Edsel appealing and call the DS - in the opinion of many car designers one of the true iconic cars of all time - a "butt ugly POS".

 

It takes all sorts, I suppose.............[laugh]

 

P.

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Guest rogerb

90's Ford Explorer's?

 

 

 

 

Ford Pinto?

Never drove one to be honest.

 

I had a Ford Pinto. It was great till it hit about 40,000 miles, then it fell apart. [crying]

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Worst car ever? Prius, PT Cruiser, something like that.

 

You have no idea. While you're mortgaging your house to fill up that gas guzzler twice a week my gas sipping Prius makes maybe two stops a month to fill that little ten gallon tank. And when I sell it for an insane resale value (or drive it into the ground at ~250k+ miles) and get a fully electric model, your simpleton post will be a distant memory.

 

And yes, the PT Cruiser is a pretty sad car.

 

Worst ever is the Pinto. I remember my parents dumping theirs in the late seventies and not buying another Ford until the late nineties.

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