Did anyone ever own one of the ten worst cars ?

Go to bottom of page to see cars.


http://www.thestreet.com/story/11381094/1/10-worst-cars-of-all-time.html

I never owned any of these but I did have at one time a 73 amc hornet.which always seemed to have something wrong with it.

No, never the exact model shown. They list the '71 Vega at #5; I had a '74 model that I bought in early '75. I never encountered the oil leak problem that was widely reported, but I did see just a little of the body rust, around the rear window. Then someone hit me in traffic, requiring body work and a paint job, and rust was never a problem again.

I did shop for the '74 Mustang (also on the list) when it first came out, but I decided against it. The 4-cyl version had no acceleration at all, and the dealer couldn't get one with a bigger engine. Instead, I bought a '74 Pontiac Ventura V8 (similar to Chevy Nova) as the new car in December '73 and added the Vega as a second car just over a year later. By early '79, I had worn out the Vega and again shopped for a Mustang, which had again changed styling. The 4-cyl engine was still pathetic, but the V-6 with 5-sp manual was fine. At that time, the Mercury Capri was the same car with different tail light housings, so I got one of those instead.

I was surprised the Pontiac Fiero didn't make that list. I had the first-year '84 model that I bought in '86 when the Ventura finally died. My Fiero was great (until my wife dinged it up), but they had tremendous publicity for catching on fire. I used to say that "Fiero" was Italian for "engine fire."

The only car I ever owned that from my experience deserved to be on a worst car list was a 1965 Simca. Bought it in '68 and went through two engines in four months.

I don't have the patience to go through the list.

But the worst car I ever owned was an 82 R18, by Renault, with a very small engine (I think 1,200 cc or so) and an automatic transmission. In any kind of moderate grade, I swear it would have gone up faster if I'd gotten out and pushed.

Funny story, though. One time I'm coming out of a friends house, find the blue R18, open it with the key and go in. As I'm about to put the key in the ignition, I suddenly realize the interior is beige. My car had grey interiors. Sure enough, someone parked a nearly identical car right behind mine and I mixed them up. I got out, locked the car with the key, and got into mine.

The thing is, that model's driver side door could only be locked from the outside using the key. So indubitably my key opened at least one other car.

I didn't see a list.

I was looking to have the whole list load on one page but option not offered. It is well worth the time interesting info on each car. On a side note two identical toyota camrys paked about 4 spots apart. Man told me his car was being robbed. Elderly woman got out of car and was confused that her possessions were not in vehicle. She had the wrong car. Her key opened up both cars. I have never saw or heard of anything like this.

Quote: DJTeddyBear

I didn't see a list.

Wait to page to fully load. List is below story. 10 pages

My dad had a Vega. What a piece of crap. Metal painted
dash, no room, sounded like you were in a tin can when
you were driving it. Almost couldn't make it up hills by
itself without a running start.

Quote: EvenBob

My dad had a Vega. ... Almost couldn't make it up hills by
itself without a running start.

I can't speak for all model years, because I didn't drive all of them. If you compared the 4-cyl '74 Chevy Vega to a 4-cyl '74 Ford Mustang (both with manual transmission), the Vega had one heck of a lot more acceleration available. Both cars were terrible with automatic transmissions. The V-6 Fords were much better, again provided you could find one with manual transmission.

Same issues were true in Ford vs. Chevy 4-cyl compacts that I compared again in '79 and '84 model years. The only time I opted for the Ford product was that '79 Mercury Capri with V-6 and manual, even though I much preferred the Ford styling to Chevy in each of those years -- performance outweighed looks in the final decision each time. In '84, I opted for a Chevy Cavalier 4-cyl with manual. It was fine, until my son wrecked it. I got a used '86 Chevy Cavalier 4-cyl automatic as a replacement, mostly because I didn't have time to really shop around. I was never satisfied with the automatic with the same engine that I had in the '84 manual.

I had the '74 Vega, 2.0 aluminum 4 banger. It did not suffer from most of the problems that plagued the '71 version. And after I dropped a 327 v8 into it, it did not suffer from any acceleration problems either.

Funny that Doc mentions a Fiero. I also had an '86 Fiero, but it was the SE package with a V6, which did not suffer any of the issues associated with the 4 cylinder version. That was actually a pretty nice car, although no trunk space. It was definitely a different time back then though. We lived in the country and I needed to take my 2 kids and the neighbor's 2 kids to the school, 1.5 miles down the road. 2 in the seat, 1 on the floor, and 1 sitting on the shift console did the trick. Today, that would be at least a $250 fine, not to mention it is much more obvious now, how incredibly stupid it was.

Missing from this list:

The Subaru 360. The only car to receive a "Not Acceptable" from Consumer Reports.



The Renault Alliance/Encore. Actually a good design, undercut by some of the worst reliability ever seen in an automobile.

Quote: EvenBob

My dad had a Vega. What a piece of crap. Metal painted
dash, no room, sounded like you were in a tin can when
you were driving it. Almost couldn't make it up hills by
itself without a running start.

My friend had a Vega die on him in Kansas. Just stopped on the highway and would not start. Got towed 140 miles. Luckily the mechanic there had the solution. He added a quart of oil. Seems there was an interlock that was not calibrated correctly. Since Vega had an aluminim engine and a tiny radiator, this was a seftety feature LOL


How did the 1970's Volkswagon Rabbit not make the list. The diesel engines were a piece of shit, engine failures were always blamed
on the driver running low on oil. After many reported the car had recently been serviced, a few failures on the way home even, and
the Rabbit was dead and so was the reputation of German engineering and reliability. Got about 40MPG but gas was a hell of a lot cheaper then. LOL

My parents had a diesel Rabbit in the 70s. It was a 1976 model I think. I don't remember many problems with it. Teenage drivers beating it to death, too. No acceleration but it got great mileage. Had an extra tank in the back that gravity-fed the main tank. You could drive it for like two weeks before the fuel gauge started to move.

I'm surprised the Chevette didn't make the cut.

" I'm surprised the Chevette didn't make the cut."

How about the Corvair? Sold mine after a gust of wind blew me into a different lane on a Texas Highway.

No, I did not use the money to but a Pinto. LOL

My parents had a Cimmeron. What a piece of garbage. I was in a high speed chase in high school and I was driving their car. I got home and the next day the engine was shot. How the AMC Pacer did not make the list is beyond me. Now that that was beyond a piece of crap!!

My daughter has an orange Pacer that she drives sometimes. Amazingly people are always asking her if she wants to sell it.
It is not mint in anyway either. LOL

I test drove an Aztec. It made me have a sad.

Buzz, how old is her car?

1976 I believe

My priest had one(of course he got it for free) and then he passed it down to his son to drive. I was only in it twice and i felt like I was in a covered golf cart. BTW I had a Ford Taraus that was such a piece of junk it qualified for the lemon law!

I once owned a Pinto.

I currently own a Chrysler LeBaron GTC Convertible. I've owned it, in every way, for 10 years. it has 197700 miles on it and has a few issues. One of the issues may be solved. The junk yard finally got a 94 leBaron in stock and I need part of the dash. There's a curved section that has the lights and wiper controls on it. I managed to break a couple of pins and now the running lights won't come on. Also the headlights work, but I have to basically short 2 pins so the lights come on. It's been like this for almost a year. The horn does not work.

Another problem is the snow shield. The one I have on it is from the wrong year and it's not the exact fit. The snow shield was damaged in Yosemite when I pulled over a large stone left at one of the camp sites. The shield be came cracked and eventually fell off while driving. The snow shield protects the serpentine belt from snow. If snow hits the belt, the belt comes off. Like I said it's sort of protected but I need the proper part to secure it this winter. Last winter it might have slipped off once or twice. The summer before the belt slipped off many times in the rain.

Next up is the convertible top. It's in pretty good shape, but one of the pins stripped out. This pin keeps the top latch tight. This pin was stolen out of my car during my 22 day winning streak at the Majestic Star Casino in Indiana. I later found out that this pin, a fancy bolt costs $127.00. While the hole is stripped, there's a way to fix it. The rear window is complete, but the lower edge has come undone from the fabric. This means rain and snow gets into the top's storage area. All the drainage works and any water eventually drains out.

The main issue is the driver's door. While the car was dent free, the door slipped 2 years ago and the locking mechanics broke. The from QP was damaged, but I've fixed that. The driver's door is permanently locked. If I open it, I may never get it closed again. This is fine in the summer when I can just hop into the car when the top is down, but on rainy days and winter, you either climb in through the driver's window or the passenger door.

So, next November I renew my license. I'm not sure if I have to take the road test, but if I do, this car won't pass the initial inspection. The reason I haven't already junked the car and get my $495 back is because the car runs so well. This car handle blizzards like a tank. It purrs. There's not one knock, ping, dink or rattle. My mom said the cars runs better than my sister's 2001 Mazda.

Wish me luck at the yard. The site, "victory auto wreckers" has a 1994 leBaron, but they can't tell me if it's a convertible and I'm not sure if the hard top has the same dash. I might even take all the connectors and wires while I'm there. I also need a driver's side mirror adjustment switch.

Quote: wroberson

I once owned a Pinto.

I currently own a Chrysler LeBaron GTC Convertible.

And the difference between the Pinto and the Lebaron
is what exactly. Two different ways to spell j-u-n-k.

Quote: wroberson

I once owned a Pinto.

Quote:

I had a nightmare the other night. I was stuck in a toll line behind a pinto and in front of an
Audi 5000. (J. Leno on the tonight show.)

Pinto (gas tank rupture) Audi 5000 (stuck accelerator)

Has anyone ever visited one of the top 10 most cluttered and horrible websites of all time?

That was painful; I only got to the 3rd car.

Quote: buzzpaff

" I'm surprised the Chevette didn't make the cut."

How about the Corvair? Sold mine after a gust of wind blew me into a different lane on a Texas Highway.

No, I did not use the money to but a Pinto. LOL

I had a buddy in high school who had a Corvair. This was the mid 80's so the Corvair's reputation as a deathtrap, and a POS, was already well established. Anyway he bought one for $100 and fixed it up. He was all proud of it and came over to take me for a ride. We figured we'd try to pick up some chicks in his slick ride. Not so much.....we come around the first corner on the highway and he drifted over about 2 lanes onto the shoulder. I yelled at him what the H*LL was he doing...he said "it's not me it's the car...i think the wind blew us over there". I said, "whatever just keep it on the road". After this happened about 2 more times in one evening. I insisted he let me drive. He was right... it was the car. I spent the rest of the evening just keeping it in a lane. Any gust of wind over 15mph if you were going at any kind of speed and you were in big trouble. Scary car. I've never been in one since; and not planning on it.

Quote: vendman1

After this happened about 2 more times in one evening. I insisted he let me drive. He was right... it was the car. I spent the rest of the evening just keeping it in a lane.

"The Corvair was not intrinsically unsafe. As long as owners maintained the eleven pound differential between its front (15/19lbs) and rear (26/30lbs) tires, the Corvair's handling remained friendly and innocuous. But Americans were (and are) not known for monitoring their vehicle's tire pressure. Gas station attendants of the time had a mantra: 24 pounds all around. They became unwitting co-conspirators in the Corvair's fall (spin) from grace.
With incorrect tire pressures, a rapidly cornering Corvair driver could easily find the vehicle's back end heading towards the front. The average US driver was simply not prepared to handle that eventuality. Could GM have done more to avoid the oversteer stigma? Yes. GM saved six dollars per car by not making the front anti-sway bar standard. And who knows how much (little) the effective rear camber-compensating spring adopted in 1964 cost."

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/04/in-defense-of-the-chevrolet-corvair/

Quote: EvenBob

"The Corvair was not intrinsically unsafe. As long as owners maintained the eleven pound differential between its front (15/19lbs) and rear (26/30lbs) tires, the Corvair's handling remained friendly and innocuous. But Americans were (and are) not known for monitoring their vehicle's tire pressure. Gas station attendants of the time had a mantra: 24 pounds all around. They became unwitting co-conspirators in the Corvair's fall (spin) from grace.
With incorrect tire pressures, a rapidly cornering Corvair driver could easily find the vehicle's back end heading towards the front. The average US driver was simply not prepared to handle that eventuality. Could GM have done more to avoid the oversteer stigma? Yes. GM saved six dollars per car by not making the front anti-sway bar standard. And who knows how much (little) the effective rear camber-compensating spring adopted in 1964 cost."

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2007/04/in-defense-of-the-chevrolet-corvair/

Just read the article. Interesting. But the car is still a POS. :)

I'm going to have to defend the Chrysler LeBaron against the Pinto even though Chryslers are known to start smoking from the tailpipe a few years after purchase. The cause is a shunt. It wears out and the car starts burning oil. You have to tear apart the engine to replace it and since it's old enough to bypass the air quality test, why bother.

My LeBaron 1994 has'nt required any severe engine work or transmission work. I'm pretty much driving the original engine and trans. The only things I've had done was a tune up a few years ago. I replaced the shocks myself. And the serpentine belt. I think the most expensive repair I had was the tune up or brakes when I had the rotors replaced.

The car has always started and runs well. Plus the gas tank isn't known to burst.

It's a solid car and over time it faces the same issues as most any car will have.

Don't get me started on the cost to own issue.

While you're still making 300.00 per month car payments and another grand in insurance every year, I'm about to spend another 20 bucks for a few pieces of plastic and a few nuts and bolts to help get me through the winter. My insurance is only 318 per year.

It's an honor to say I own the worst car of all members on the site.

I had a 1975 gremlin x.....along with the pacer, its hard to believe they are not on this list.

Quote: CrystalMath

Has anyone ever visited one of the top 10 most cluttered and horrible websites of all time?

That was painful; I only got to the 3rd car.

That was terrible. I only clicked the link to see if the russian-built Lada was in there, but lost patience on the third car page. Just another "list" to build click counts for the owner I guess. Twitter's full of those.

I had a 96 Neon. Notorious was its head gasket failures that Chrysler refused to admit. In the spring of 2001 the head gasket blew, 1 month out of warranty. After a letter to Chrysler, they paid my repair gear. But it was too late. It was sold a year later.

I also had an 86 Lebaron that died after 80,000 miles. Very sad car indeed. I drove down a long hill, the brakes overheated, and I ended up almost driving into a lake when the brakes failed -- luckily I knew to gear down and then apply the emergency brake with a dose of strong prayer. Then the timing belt went.

Well, that site did indeed suck. What a chore to look at the list. However, the list itself was very interesting.

First car: 71 Chevy Vega hatchback(used in 78 for 600). Lasted 2 years.
We kids drove a 72 Gutless Cutlass for high school. Don't know what dad paid.
2nd car: '80 Pinto hatchback (dad got a "deal" from one of his salesmen). Lasted 2 years.
3rd car: 85 Dodge Daytona. Loved that car. Wore it out in the mountains living in Washington.
4th car: "92 Chrysler Lebaron sedan. Loved that car.
Really, really wanted a Pontiac Aztec in 1998, was it? First year it came out, anyway. Outsized husband could not ride comfortably in it. (We ended up with a Mercury Mountaineer - one that SHOULD have made this list!) I thought the back end was incredibly well designed; it was set up so you could sit comfortably on the back bumper with the tailgate either opened or closed, had the first extra outlets in the back I'd seen, extra set of stereo speakers wired in the back, and could purchase an optional setup that made the open hatch plus material into a camper. Had a towing package for a boat, had some kind of arrangement for an extra 12-volt battery so you'd have power enough to run the fun stuff. Great cockpit with everything in reach. I didn't care that people thought it was ugly; it was a great idea ahead of its time. (Look at the picture now and compare it to where a lot of SUV's went styling in the next 10 years.)

Quote: boymimbo

I had a 96 Neon.

Was it white? I had a 96 Neon too. Bought it new, and sold it 1 year later, and bought a Honda. Nothing went wrong in the 1 year though. Only Dodge I ever owned.

Quote: wroberson

Chryslers are known to start smoking from the tailpipe a few years after purchase. The cause is a shunt. It wears out and the car starts burning oil. You have to tear apart the engine to replace it

I must say, this post has piqued my curiosity.

I am a competent mechanic, and am completely unfamiliar with this "shunt" thing you are talking about.

What and where is it, specifically, and how / why does it cause an engine to smoke?

Details, please.

I can't find the same article I was reading and I may have been confused. There was some valve that opens and closes and allows air to move around. It may have been valve seal. Any leaks are toward the bottom of the engine and I believe it's a P/S leak as I recently ran low on power steering fluid. I was reading that white smoke is most likely a gasket and the smoke is steam, while blue smoke is oil and could be worn valve seal or PCV valve. "Removing the rocker arm" sound over my head and better left to a professional.

It's been time for a new car for some time. I've just been putting it off. I would rather keep the car than buy a new one and hope that I onlu have to take the written test and eye screening, again. Illinois usually sends a letter letting drivers know what they have to do to renew. I may even be able to renew by mail as it's bee a long time since I've had a moving violation.

Quote: ontariodealer

I had a 1975 gremlin x.....along with the pacer, its hard to believe they are not on this list.

One of the bravest posts of all time.

It was a white Neon, yes... bought it off my cousin.

Quote: MrV

I must say, this post has piqued my curiosity.

I am a competent mechanic, and am completely unfamiliar with this "shunt" thing you are talking about.

What and where is it, specifically, and how / why does it cause an engine to smoke?

Details, please.

I think he means a valve guide and/or valve seals. I had one of the aforementioned Chrylser 3.0L V-6 engines. In a 91 LeBaron and my buddy had the same motor in an early 90's Dodge Daytona. They both started smoking at about 80K miles. It was a common failing of the engine. The only solution was a complicated valve job on the motor. Although, if you kept oil in them, and didn't mind a little blue smoke they ran forever. My buddy is a huge Mopar guy and he has worked on these motor's a lot. I could ask him for lots of technical details if you are really interested.

http://www.allpar.com/forums/topic/32901-30l-v6-smoking-problem/

I have a slightly modded (ok its heavily modded) pinto mini stock race car that is actually pretty good. Now of course I wouldn't ever buy a stock one for the streets, but with some motor, suspension, and fuel cell relocation mods they are pretty fast and handle well.

It was nice to hear about other peoples cars. Drive safe!


Well, my 95 LeBaron Convertible now has a mechanical problem. The reverse is going out. When I put the car in reverse, the car makes a whining noise. Occasionally if I hit the gas to hard with in drive, the tranny makes a similar noise, just not as loud. Once out of 1st gear, the car drive fine with no noise. So it's coast back out of the garage and parking spaces, and light on the gas when in 1st. This all came up within the past week. Add the electrical issues and 193K mileage and it's just an unsafe vehicle.

I'm already shopping as I should replace the car as soon as possible. The end of the convertible era is coming to a close. I'm really hoping to put it off until the very last minute, or before the snowfalls. It's been a nice drive. I can sell the car to a junkyard for $365. The car I am looking at is a 1998 Grand Prix Sedan. 84,135 miles. The KBB and Edmunds value is $3,270 and I can get it for $1,790. I will charge it to a credit card and pay no interest.

It's actually a perfect storm kind of thing going on. My mom died recently, my credit rating has improved, my insurance renews in November, two trips to Vegas coming up in November and December, car experiencing more problems and winter is a few blocks away. My birthday is in November. And of course Christmas. I generally expect situations like this to happen in April as they had historically. Right around tax day.

I qualify for decent financing on a new car, but I'm not ready to sign a contract putting my spending on hold for 7 years.

Had two Vegas. First one was red. The second was green with racing stripe and mag wheels. The rule was one tank of gas----one quart of oil. In hindsight, two dung heaps.

Quote: wroberson

Well, my 95 LeBaron Convertible now has a mechanical problem. .

Just one?

Quote: EvenBob

Just one?

It's been a very reliable car.

I got my new car.

When I went to check out the Grand Prix at a dealership, the car would not start. I guess the battery was dead. So, I left. I stopped at a few other dealerships. I picked up a top of the line Ford Taurus SES with all the gizmos. Power sun roof. Power seats. 6 CD, CD changer. Power adjustable pedals. Clean inside and only a little rust. The car only cost me $1595 O.D.T. No taxes, no title transfer fee, and no license transfer fee. Just $1595. I ran a KBB and Edmunds check and as a clean vehicle, it comes out $3295 retail. $2200 private party sale value. So, I can put the car up for sale and maybe even make $1000.00.

Just happy to get out of the death trap I was driving. No more worries...

What year Taurus is it.

It's a 2000-2004. Wroberson, be prepared to sink a couple of grand into this car and don't think that you can get anywhere near $2200 for it. I wish you many miles of trouble free driving but I'm also a realist when it comes to cars.

Did you just walk on the lot and buy it? At the very least I would have put it on a lift for a closer look. I also would have run the codes on it. Some auto parts stores will do it for free. Good luck.

Quote: 1BB

It's a 2000-2004.

When he mentioned the rust, I was thinking late 90's.
Taurus is not my choice, I'm a GM guy. I have a 97
Saturn that has not a spec of rust and still gets 40mpg.
It was 2 years old when I got it and I had no idea it
would last this long.

Quote: EvenBob

When he mentioned the rust, I was thinking late 90's.
Taurus is not my choice, I'm a GM guy. I have a 97
Saturn that has not a spec of rust and still gets 40mpg.
It was 2 years old when I got it and I had no idea it
would last this long.

That '97 has plastic body panels, no? I think it was 2009 in Vegas when I got a free rental upgrade to a Vue. We enjoyed it but the gas mileage wasn't there. Then again, you should see how I drive.

Quote: 1BB

That '97 has plastic body panels, no?

The bumpers are plastic, which cars aren't. Rocker
panels too, probably. Saturn
started to go downhill about 2000 or so, the ones
before that are pretty good. When I went to the
dealership for service, they had a board with
hundreds of pics of owners that had gotten 300K
and 400K out of their Saturn's.

Quote: wroberson

I got my new car....Clean inside and only a little rust.

That made me smile, how much rust were you hoping for?

I have a Rolls Canardly
It rolls down hills but canardly get up 'em