TIME's 50 worst car list

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  • gwyneth
    Veteran Member
    • Nov 2006
    • 1134
    • Bayfield Co., WI

    #1

    TIME's 50 worst car list

    The descriptions of why each is awful are brilliant. Here's the overall list, broken down by eras. The earliest one, the "Horsey Horseless" is priceless.

    http://www.time.com/time/specials/20...658545,00.html
    50 Worst: Complete List
  • JTimmons
    Senior Member
    • Feb 2005
    • 690
    • Denver, CO.
    • Grizzly 1023SLX, Ryobi BT3100

    #2
    LMAO!

    1933 Fuller Dymaxion
    "Though unworkable, this three-wheeled suppository..."
    "Happiness is your dentist telling you it won't hurt and then having him catch his hand in the drill."
    -- Johnny Carson

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    • gwyneth
      Veteran Member
      • Nov 2006
      • 1134
      • Bayfield Co., WI

      #3
      Although I can think of several that should have been on the list that weren't, the one entry on the list that shouldn't be, IMO, is the Amphicar.

      Sure, it didn't do roads as well as other cars or water as well as other boats, but you still see them a lot around Indiana, for some reason.

      Comment

      • LCHIEN
        Super Moderator
        • Dec 2002
        • 22012
        • Katy, TX, USA.
        • BT3000 vintage 1999

        #4
        LMAO, that was great - made me stay up too late.
        Loring in Katy, TX USA
        If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
        BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

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        • Uncle Cracker
          The Full Monte
          • May 2007
          • 7091
          • Sunshine State
          • BT3000

          #5
          Sorry to see the Gremlin on there... I have fond memories of my '72 Gremlin X, which had a factory V-8 and would haul hiney... The Gremlin was also the first with the Levis denim interior, although mine did not have it. Very unusual.

          Sorry also to see some of the coolest looking cars of their times on this list for mechanical reasons. (Example: the Aston Martin Lagonda and the DeLorean)

          Comment

          • germdoc
            Veteran Member
            • Nov 2003
            • 3567
            • Omaha, NE
            • BT3000--the gray ghost

            #6
            I love those! A friend of mine had a Gremlin--we loaded 6 guys in it and drove from Chattanooga to Atlanta one weekend--one guy sat scrunched up in the hatchback area. There was some kind of a switch for the ventilation that was labelled "Desert Only"--LOL! Lucky we made it home alive.

            Another friend had a string of AMC disasters. Why his family insisted on trying every single new AMC car--maybe to see if one, just one, was alright--after enough rust had been acquired they bequeathed it to my friend...

            Oh, come to think of it he did have another car besides the AMC dogs--a Pinto...
            Jeff


            “Doctors are men who prescribe medicines of which they know little, to cure diseases of which they know less, in human beings of whom they know nothing”--Voltaire

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            • cabinetman
              Gone but not Forgotten RIP
              • Jun 2006
              • 15216
              • So. Florida
              • Delta

              #7
              I had the opprotunity to test drive on the track the Mosler Consulier GT. I must say it was kinda ugly, but it was fast and handled like a go cart. Warren Mosler shouldn't be taken lightly. I've visited his factory, and it's quite a setup. His latest car is the Mosler MT900, see it here. It's very competitive and as good looking and as fast, as anything on the road or track.

              What impressed me the most about his factory was that he used to do light weight body duplications in carbon fiber. They made a duplicate van body that looked just like a Ford or Chevy body, that was redesigned to allow for a full stand up for a 6 footer, and dropped the weight of the vehicle by 1800 lbs IIRC. This was advantage to utility companies and service companies that used vans on a daily basis.

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              • prlundberg
                Established Member
                • May 2006
                • 183
                • Minnesota
                • Craftsman 21829

                #8
                I don't get why the Explorer, one of Ford's most successful vehicles of all time, is on there.

                And why the 1995 model? That's not the year that started the SUV trend.

                I agree with many of the cars on the list, but some seem to be political statements.
                Phil

                Comment

                • rja
                  Established Member
                  • Jul 2004
                  • 422
                  • New Kensington, Pennsylvania, USA.
                  • BT3100-1

                  #9
                  My 1961 Ford Falcon and my 1984 AMC Eagle did not make the list - both maintenance nightmares. The Falcon had a 40,000 mile engine, after which the engine would overheat and burn oil. The Eagle had vacuum operated everything. The numerous vacuum leaks were difficult to track down. The transmission and viscous clutch failed within days of each other resulting in about $2k of repair bills.

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                  • LinuxRandal
                    Veteran Member
                    • Feb 2005
                    • 4890
                    • Independence, MO, USA.
                    • bt3100

                    #10
                    I think I should take some old parts and build the Briggs and Straton one.


                    Then maybe I should monster garage it, and mow my lawn.
                    She couldn't tell the difference between the escape pod, and the bathroom. We had to go back for her.........................Twice.

                    Comment

                    • williwatt
                      Established Member
                      • Aug 2007
                      • 150
                      • Springfield, TN
                      • Sears 21829

                      #11
                      Car Called a Gremstang

                      Originally posted by germdoc
                      I love those! A friend of mine had a Gremlin--we loaded 6 guys in it and drove from Chattanooga to Atlanta one weekend--one guy sat scrunched up in the hatchback area. There was some kind of a switch for the ventilation that was labelled "Desert Only"--LOL! Lucky we made it home alive.

                      Another friend had a string of AMC disasters. Why his family insisted on trying every single new AMC car--maybe to see if one, just one, was alright--after enough rust had been acquired they bequeathed it to my friend...

                      Oh, come to think of it he did have another car besides the AMC dogs--a Pinto...
                      A friend of mine of mine modified his Gremlin by adding the rear section of a Mustang to it so it had a trunk. He somehow retained the rear glass and it still opened. It was a strange looking car and he called it a Gremstang. To make it look even more bizarre, he added wood running boards to it.

                      Bill

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                      • gwyneth
                        Veteran Member
                        • Nov 2006
                        • 1134
                        • Bayfield Co., WI

                        #12
                        Originally posted by williwatt
                        It was a strange looking car and he called it a Gremstang. To make it look even more bizarre, he added wood running boards to it.
                        Evokes memories of the '68 Camaro "Hawaiian Edition" in which GM marketers tried to capitalize on the surfer trend that had peaked several years before.

                        Cane or wicker seats, wood steering wheel, a luggage rack for surfboards, and, unbelievably, fake wood panels glued somewhere on the exterior (probably the doors--they and the trunk lid were the only flat surfaces on that beautiful curved design.)

                        It was a tie-in to a beach movie whose producers also were trying to ride the dying surfer wave.

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                        • LCHIEN
                          Super Moderator
                          • Dec 2002
                          • 22012
                          • Katy, TX, USA.
                          • BT3000 vintage 1999

                          #13
                          As much fun as I had the first time thru, reviewing the list, I get more critical of the author (I assume there's just one) who tries to have his cake and eat it too.

                          For example he castigates the Ford Explorer for setting the trend to oversize, gas-guzzling SUVs and later the Excursion for more such excess. While actually the Explorer was at least a good success in the market.

                          On the other hand he castigates several cars for being underpowered... the Camaro for example, the California Corvette and at least one Jag and several others.

                          You can't berate some cars for being environmentally unconscionable and then berate other cars for being less than testosterone-pumping muscle cars.
                          Loring in Katy, TX USA
                          If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
                          BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

                          Comment

                          • germdoc
                            Veteran Member
                            • Nov 2003
                            • 3567
                            • Omaha, NE
                            • BT3000--the gray ghost

                            #14
                            My neighbor is painstakingly restoring Triumphs--has a '68 and '76 Spitfire, also just got a late-70's TR7. I don't have the heart to tell him it's a piece of junk...

                            FWIW they look fun to drive but I wouldn't want to be in an accident with them. With or without the 5-mph rubber bumpers.
                            Jeff


                            “Doctors are men who prescribe medicines of which they know little, to cure diseases of which they know less, in human beings of whom they know nothing”--Voltaire

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