Obviously, we all have our favorite cars. But in many if not most cases, those favorites aren’t exactly a single car; if you’re a Mustang person, you know the four-cylinder turbo Boostang and the V8-powered GT are two very different machines, no matter how outwardly identical-ish they may appear, and despite sharing the majority of their components beyond the most important personality- and performance-defining bits.
Few would argue, however, that a turbo Mustang and a proper GT aren’t both fun high-performance coupes and “real Mustangs.” Meanwhile, there are many examples of car models with a vast chasm of desirability between their “best” and “worst” variants. Let’s tall about them!
I’ll let Stephen and The Bish take the reins:
The Bishop
Growing up, we had a Datsun 280Z and a 1990 Nissan 300ZX; loved those cars. But the Z31 sleepy-eye Z? Bluhhh. The very disco 280ZX wasn’t much better. My dad test drove them and declared that they were “great Maxima coupes, but not Z cars”. I think that’s a fair assessment.
Stephen Walter Gossin
I had a thing for first-generation Sebring convertibles for a long time. The 1997 “all Chrysler” model (Chrysler engine and transmission) in base trim was the worst version, and got a four-cylinder engine. All other models got a Mitsubishi engine. The coupes were pretty much all Mitsu-power (except for the base model having the Neon engine), and the Gen 2 and Gen 3 cars were DCX (read: not Chrysler Corp) disasters with the notoriously bad internal-water-pump-equipped 2.7. Fun fact: the 2010 PT Convertible was the last “all Chrysler” (Chrysler brand) 2-door ever sold.
Your turn! What’s the worst version of your favorite car? Or any car you like. Or don’t even like, but you’re impressed by how great the good version is and shocked by how spectacularly low the not-good model goes. We’re not big on rules, is what I’m saying.
To the comments!
Cadillac DTS Early Northstars….blew HGs and costed a lot to fix. Later ones after 06 were MUCH better.
i Had a NorthStar Eldorado. I got lucky – took it up to 175K before i sold it. no maintenance or repair issues.. i was a luck one
74-78 Mustang
Those aren’t the only bad ones. I’d argue they aren’t the worst ones either:
71-73: awful land barges
94-04: just awful
Mach-E: would be fine if it wasn’t called a Mustang. Call it a EXP-lorer, call it whatever, just don’t call it a Mustang.
Nissan Z-cars are things I’ve observed from afar – I respect them, but never felt compelled to own one. I never totally got the outright love for the 240, but I respect what the car delivered for the time. The 280 was cool for it’s day, especially in some of the 2-tone schemes that were present at the time. The 300 introduced in 1990 was something otherworldly when it was introduced. Saying all that, I always kind of dug the one that has been derided here (the 300z introduced in 1983). It was perfect for its time. It was pretty far away from the bantamweight fighter of the 240, but for the masses that wanted a sporty, wedgy, and comfortable GT car, it was spot on. I recall it giving the C3 a decent run during that car’s introduction.
As for the worst of that line, I think that the 280 2+2 was kinda awkward, but the 350 of the early 2000s takes the prize. It may have been a good performer, but outwardly it was an amorphous blob (admittedly like most things during that time). A sports car should stand out, not fit in, IMO.
That G2 hardtop Sebring is delish.
Mercedes lost their way a bit with the SL for a while. The R129 and R230 weren’t awesome.
Saw someone mentioned the 80’s Omni Charger, and the 83 Dodge Shelby Charger is truly tragic. The 1980 Challenger is also pretty bad. But we are talking the worst version of our fave which for me was my second car; a 68 Chevelle SS I bought from my girlfriend’s dad for $600. Awesome car, lots of great memories. So the ’78-83 Chevelle is a the abominatious for me. If I could go back in time for 5 minutes I would probably squander in on slapping the rods out of whoever did that. I know, it was sold as a Malibu in the States but carried Chevelle in international markets so I am counting it. I can even get into the 73-76ish Chevelle as it had a certain muscley charm, but there is a special level of hell for whoever did that and it looks suspiciously like a Jiffy Lube waiting room.
1st gen Acura NSX with autotragic transmission. Especially in the later years when the manual was upgraded to 6 gears and the 3.2L engine. The auto/3.0L just seemed like an insult to a great car.
Tossup between the 390 Cobra with its weird tilt front and rear clamshells and an overly flexible and unbalanced chassis, and Daytona Coupe #2 where the Italian coachbuilders assumed the roofline they were told to make was backward and made the car slower by raising the windshield to be the high point, you know like a Ferrari rather than the aerodynamic experiment that was the Daytona Coupe.
No one talking about the C1 Corvette?
8v n/a Saab 900s are well below the minimum power to make me smile, but any 900 with the Borg Werner 3 speed slushbox is garbage. Swaps are easy if you can find a working 5 speed, but that trans was so bad it transforms a great car into penalty box ,even with a snail helping it go. They’re especially horrible on the highway with such a short final gear and aren’t even durable.
Not my fav but,
The Celica, all good, then ended wrong
I don’t think I have much personal experience here…only that I was disgusted to learn that some E-series vans could come with a 4.2l V6. As if they don’t struggle with the 4.6l V8 a bit.
Even worse, you could get them for a few years with the 300 inline 6.
I had the misfortune of driving a box truck so equipped.
EP3 Honda Civic Si. The guppy looking, lowly 6800 rpm and McPherson struts one built in England. I adore them with their green interior and rally inspired shifter, but they get thumbed down as the worst to carry the coveted Si badge.
I called it the Springtime for Hitler of cars, like Honda wanted it to fail.
If it had 5 doors and a base model with an automatic option it could’ve been the Fit before the Fit, or Honda’s answer to the Toyota Matrix. But as a manual-only 2 door there was no chance for mass-market amortization of the body’s Federalization, as a pricey premium offering it missed the ’90s Civic Hatchback’s pizza delivery/parts chaser market and as if that wasn’t enough Honda launched it with a note of “if it does well we might bring in the full-fat Type R” in order to definitely kill sales to the hard core.
America’s take rate for hatchbacks at the time were low compared to the compact sedans/coupes, even Ford axed the hatch Foci in ’06. They did offer a 5-door civic in the EU, which agreed would’ve been great to see, but again potential sales/price holding it back.
1st Gen Fits actually date back to MY2002 in other markets, but Honda had to make some changes to bring it to market here. I would know as I put an order in on day 1 and waited 4 months to get mine in May of ’06 (07 MY)
The early automatic bmw E3s we’re possible the worst automatic transmission ever made. Seriously, Borg-Warner built such an atrocious piece of garbage that dealerships sold manual conversions to nearly everyone who ever bought one. In fact, the only sorted automatic E3 that I know of is the perfect example that the lane motor museum has squirreled away in their basement.
I’m not one to hate on automatics, my w108 Mercedes had a lovely automatic that honestly made the car much better (even accounting for the quality of 60s Merc manuals), as did more than a few of my old 5s and 7s, but that gearbox was a war crime.
Just want to make sure I read this correctly.
Stephen Walter Gossin, your favorite car is the Chrysler Sebring convertible?
If your favorite car is a mish-mash of Chrysler and Mitsubishi, the Sebring convertible is surely the Eric Trump of this union.
There has never been another automotive journalist in the history of humankind that would choose the Sebring convertible as their favorite car.
You should write a long article about this phenomenon.
Not judging here, I’m just perplexed.
Where would you even find one now? I mean, yeah, the rental garage at Orlando airport when it was new and the Dunder Mifflin employee parking lot in Scranton a few years later, but now?
Remember when Dwight refused to take possession of the Sebring because he liked his Trams am more?
Micheal was so offended, I think it really struck a chord with SWG
The Sebring convertible is my favorite example when you need to demonstrate to someone the meaning of the phrase “cowl shake”.
I’m torn – between the R230 post-facelift SL, the R231 pre-facelift SL, and the current R232 SL.
I’m thinking the current SL – because it’s not only ugly (like the others) but you cannot get an interior that isn’t something-and-black – unconscionable for something that costs well north of $100K – the iPad controller is incredibly stupid for a convertible – and there is no 2 seat convertible on the planet that needs AWD.
Give me a pair of His and His R129 SLs instead – and we can use the change on a pre-owned, non-4Matic E Class wagon for the doggies.
I was in agreement until you requested a R129 :p
My heart says R107 – but my wallet prefers the better mpg, and my backside prefers the power top and performance of the SL500.
Fair. The mpg truly is abysmal.
The 1986 Pontiac LeMans. You know, the less-muscle version of the GTO, right?
WRONG.
The 1986 Pontiac LeMans was actually a Daewoo Cielo. The most evil and shameful rebadging of a car ever.
I learned about this the hard way; I was living overseas in 1987 (no internet and no car magazines) and flew back to the states for business. Arriving about 10 p.m. at night, I went to the Rental Car counter and the Clerk said, “And for you we have a brand new Pontiac LeMans tonight”, to which I replied, “Oh good!” I noticed that the clerk gave me a very weird look, but didn’t understand why…but okay, who cares. I went out to find my car.
I came back after a minute explaining I couldn’t find my LeMans – all the parking spots were filled with little foreign shit-boxes…. And THEN she explained…. when I found my particular shit-box and went to drive away, the headlight know came off in my hand. I have never forgiven GM for the pure cynicism of that rebadging…
I almost had one as a loner when my Cougar (car, just to clarify) was in the shop. I opted for the older grey on grey Escort because at least it was a stick!
My aunt had one of these. The definately POS if there ever was one.
Also the worst version of the Opel Kadett E.
My roommate bought one of these brand new after his ’80 something Civic DX got rear ended by a drunk driver.
1st month or so oil pressure light came on while on 6hr road trip back home. Had towed to dealer…bad sensor.
6mo later, took to dealer for clunking noise at rear brakes…drum brakes were so far out of adjustment, were basically non-functional, and had probably been that way since new.
After that, seem to be ok…he should have got the Dodge Colt he was also looking at.
As a Jeep Cherokee fan, obviously the Fiat era one with the weird headlights and no solid axles and 9 speed automatic is the worst one.
Agreed, but early Puegot powered models are up there.
Disagree as the Peugeot diesels exitance is great for one reason (at least in the US and specifically California). Since diesels generally don’t have the same emissions standards as a gas motor, a diesel vin XJ is a great way to do any engine swap you want without having to worry about passing a referee station.
I’m with the Bishop on this one. I’ve been in a LOT of Zs and most are soooo good in at least one way, but not that one.
I think you need to drill it down more, like an automatic 2+2 Z31. I had a manual with no rear seats, and it was one of the most reliable delivery cars I’ve had (right behind my current C-Max.) Plus it was an excellent GT car, you could drive it any distance and be comfortable when you arrived. Plus with a 20 gallon tank and 30mpg on the highway, I could drive from NC to FL on one tank of gas.
Super Beetle.
Death shake on the highway and handles like an oxcart.
It’s still a Beetle, so it’s still fine, but man.
… And it’s got a dashboard that’s bigger than a pack of cigarettes. Curved windshield? What’s up with that?
The new supra. It’s a fine sports car. Maybe even excellent. It is not a Toyota. It’s a BMW with a very light Toyota overlay. Plus, it is sized for midgets. The real supras were GTs not tiny little track rabbits. That was the mr2. Maybe one day I’ll convince my wife that I really need a mk2 or 3 supra to fill the empty half of our garage.
Clearly, there is one answer that towers above all the others, and it’s the Mustang II. No other car has generated as much hate as the Pretend Pinto, and even Farrah driving one on Charlie’s Angels didn’t make a difference. The engine doesn’t matter, the very body shape is deeply offensive to Mustang purists.
To this day, Mustang IIs are conspicuously absent from Mecum or B-J auctions, unless it’s one that’s full-on Pro-Touring. And even that will sell for 1/10th of the build cost.
While I generally agree with this, the body shape isn’t that bad. It’s certainly, design-wise, prettier than the 71-72 monster block/wedge (though I dig the ridiculous rake of its rear window).
Has anybody else thought of taking a 71-72, coupe, cutting the roof in half lengthwise, mounting the passenger window to the centerline and making a steel cover over the passenger seat to turn it into the USS Nimitz? There’s a rusted out one on my drive to work and I think that every time I notice it.
You mean like how old model car kits often included the option to turn the model into the (usually improbable) “racing version” of the car. I always really liked those.
Ummm, no. My grandfather had a 72 Mach 1, and it looked far better than a Mustang ][.
Came here to put down Mustang LX (1990s era) with the 4 cylinder engine. It had this sad little bent tailpipe hanging out of the back… but that did not stop people from gluing “5.0” badges on the side. This enraged me as a teenager (I’m from Detroit, Dad worked for Ford, later became an auto engineer). What drove me nuts about the fake 5.0 badge was that the only people who would know what it meant would also know that the 4 cylinder with the sad tailpipe, wheel covers and tiny tires was NOT a V8. 30+ years later, still SMH.
I was just going to say “Mustang 5.0 with a 4-cylinder engine” and see anyone knew what I meant. If reading those words together fills you with rage then you must be a Mustang fan.
There was a shit-talking little punk I worked with back in the day who put 5.0 badges on his Escort. All of us puked.
Yes, the ‘limp pipe’ ‘stangs.
Mustang II…the greatest generational automotive letdown ever.
I realize they are total shit, but I would get a V-8 hatchback manual, non-cobra, because it would stand out.
That’s just it, they’re not shit, but perception and image are everything.
A modern-built pro-touring Coyote-equipped Mustang II with all the right parts and pieces would make a screaming car. There’s just too much baggage.
Favorite car: Porsche 959
Worst version: VW Beetle
I’m a VW person, but I’ll give you that one.
An early VW person I’m guessing by the username?
Yep!
Nothing better than a car that tries to kill you every time you take a freeway onramp.
Fun anecdote for you then. Up until the late ’90’s one of the big copper mines in AZ used a 1960 doublecab truck as their explosives truck.
Light the fuse on 500lbs of anfo and pray that you can drive up a steep hill out of a massive hole before you get vaporized.
I met a guy there that bought it and was so very excited to restore it about 20 years back.
Holy shit. That’s amazing.
I hope that little doublecab is living out its retirement with only internal combustion, from now on.
My 4 year old keeps pointing out 911s and asking what’s wrong with that beetle. He doesn’t even understand the joke, his brain is just translating 911 into squished beetle!
Well my favourite car is a Tesla Model S.
To me, the worst version of that would be an early non-founder one from 2012 or 2013 with the 40kwh battery. These are very rare… likely less than 500 made.
Also supercharging capability would not have come standard with these.
And the early Model S units are known for a higher rate of drive unit failures, battery pack failures, door handle failures, touch screen delamination/failures and they had the least comfortable seats of the bunch.
Also the early ones didn’t even have parking sensors.
So definitely the worst Model S is one of the early ones with the 40kwh pack.
Rubber-bumpered MG Midget 1500. Heaviest of the lot, with raised ride height. Burdened with the most emmisions equipment, especially so if for California market. The 1500 Triumph engine was at its limit being enlarged that much and had split half crankshaft thrust washers that would wear so thin they could drop out into the pan. If that happened the likelyhood of a rod through the block was almost guaranteed. Polar opposite to the earlier “chrome-bumpered” cars with the legendary A-Series.