Top 10 Worst Cars Ever Made

Have you ever looked at a car and thought to yourself, ‘what in the world were the manufacturers thinking?’ Well, let’s just say that car designing isn’t an exact science. It’s a trial and error process just like with most things in life.

Most times we only see the impressive designs that made it to the assembly line. However, there are those cases when we see a bizarre, odd, ugly car on the streets and we can’t help but wonder who approved such an ugly car to get to production.

Here are the top ten worst cars ever made:

Table of Contents

• Zundapp Janus
• The Briggs and Stratton Flyer
• Reliant Robin
• BMW X6
• Peel Trident
• Ford Pinto
• FSO Polonez
• Pontiac Aztek
• Citroen Pluriel
• Amphicar

Zundapp Janus

This car leaves us speechless. One look at it will have you asking, ‘Now which crazy company would commission such a car, let alone let it get manufactured?’

Built in 1958, this odd car, with a rear facing bench that lets passengers stare at cars behind them, plus the open doors on both ends of the car did little to help increase the car’s popularity back in the day.

The Briggs and Stratton Flyer

The Briggs and Stratton Flyer is termed as the cheapest and most basic car of the 1920s. This car truly deserves a spot on our list for being one of the worst cars ever manufactured.

We aren’t even sure if you can call it a car because it resembles a go-cart very much. It’s an open-end vehicle which exposes you to the elements and had a very unimpressive two horsepower engine.

Reliant Robin

Leave it to the British to come up with a three wheel car! The 1973 Robin never caught on much because people were scared of the car’s instability.

Not surprising, just take a look at the car! The car has been known to tip over when turning at a speed of 25 miles/hour. Come on people, safety first.

BMW X6

The German car maker is renowned for having some of best modern day coupes and convertibles. However, when it came to their X6 model, it seems like they missed the mark.

The non-traditional design leaves a lot to be desired as people aren’t quite sure what to think of the car. Not one to mince his words, controversial Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson called this car out for being, ‘The stupidest car in the world’.

Peel Trident

It seems there were a lot of weird cars invented in the last century. The Peel Trident is a fine example of one of the worst cars of all time. Bizarre is an accurate adjective to describe the car. It pretty much looks like a car from a cartoon or a weird hybrid between a space ship and a child’s car toy.

Ford Pinto

This 1971 hatchback proved to be quite the disaster waiting to happen. The cars were seen as a fire hazard and it was no secret how the car would burst into flames if it collided with other cars.

FSO Polonez

The FSO Polonez has received some of the harshest critiquing from some leading car experts. Jeremy Clarkson comes to mind. He was once heard insulting the car and calling it a car ‘built by communists’. Many share his opinions and think the car was everything but dependable.

Pontiac Aztek

In all of General Motor’s history, this 2001 automobile is definitely among one of their worst models ever. It was so bad that even after scores of revisions the car was still so bad it had to be finally pulled off the market.

The intended hybrid/SUV design never caught on and was quickly dismissed. Good move GM because this car’s design should have been trashed the minute it was designed.

Citroen Pluriel

French car manufacturers Citroen really did miss the mark with this model. You wonder what was going through their minds when they decided to commission this car to be produced. It’s a highly impractical car that leaves a lot to be desired.

An example of just how impractical this car is can be seen in its difficult to assemble and disassemble roof. The roof is not automatic and requires the driver or passengers to remove it manually should they want an open roof.

This isn’t even the worst part. The worst part is once you have disassembled the roof, you can’t even fit all the pieces into the car!

Amphicar

Leading our list of the top 10 worst cars ever made is the Amphicar. If it’s a car let it be a car and not a cross between a car and a boat. The car produced in the 1960s had among some of its major flaws the inability to move fast (top speed being a mere 7 miles/hour).

The car was also known to sink on several occasions. It wasn’t as watertight as manufacturers hoped it would be. As such, only a handful of people bought the car. (About 4000 cars were ever produced).[td_smart_list_end]