The worst looking cars? The worst mpg cars? No, just the worst cars period! Here are ten of the worst cars that Detroit ever rolled out. Some of these are the worst from a mechanical standpoint, some from a visual stand point and some just got a lot of bad press. A few are cars that always make everyone's top ten worst, but I think really aren't that bad. The list isn't biased, there are Chevrolet, Fords, Chrysler and AMCs here. It's a compact car made by Cadillac for cryin out loud! Caddys are not compact cars. They are one of the symbols of American excess! Standard engine was a four cylinder (though you could get a V-6) and it looked like a brick with wheels. Time magazine and The Daily Telegraph both called it one of the ugliest vehicles of all time. If it weren't so ( I hate to keep using this word over and over) ugly, it might not have been so bad.
The poor Aztek did get a little love though when Walter White was seen driving one on "Breaking Bad". Maybe I'm mad at the Dodge Aspen because it replaced a car I considered almost indestructible, the Dodge Dart. The only saving grace for the Aspen was the Aspen R/T. Powered by a 360 V8 engine, it could turn the quarter in 17.4 seconds at 86.1 mph. True that isn't earth-shattering, but for the 70s, it wasn't bad and allowed it to run with Camaros, Mustangs and a few Vettes. It really wasn't that bad, but it just looked wrong, like maybe they rushed it into production too early. It started out in the front looking kinda swoopy (think Superbird) but turned into your standard box shape by the time it hit the back. Okay I had one of these tin-cans with wheels. Things would just come off it (window cranks, shift knobs etc).
You didn't measure the quarter mile time with a stopwatch, you used a calender. I once floored it on an open stretch of highway and finally hit 65 mph. On the plus side though, I did take mine through the Blue Ridge Parkway in an ice storm and lived. The experience brought me much closer to God. 1982 Chevrolet Chevette commercial. Are you kidding me? I had two Camaros. A 1969 and a 1982 and I loved them both. The Camaro I am talking about here is the third generation Camaro that you could get a 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engine in. A 4 banger in a Camaro? In the 1982 Sport Coupe, the 2.5 liter was standard! 82 Camaro was slightly modified. It had a L-82 Corvette engine and even though it was an automatic, it would bark the back tires when it took second. Yes I had one of these too.
All the horror stories you have heard about them are true. I once used my driving a Pinto to back someone off though. This one is always on the worst cars list. But I have to admit, I kinda liked them no matter what Ralph Nader said. They were unique looking. A friend of mine had one and drove it for years with no problem. Right up there with the Pinto in my mind. Remarkably, in 1972 you could get the AMC Gremlin X with a 304 V-8 which gave the Gremlin a 0 to 60 of 8.5 seconds. And the gas mileage (not counting the V8) was about 28 to 30 mpg. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the current average fuel economy today is 25 mpg. Maybe reviving the Gremlin would help. The AMC Pacer kind of looked like the Pinto and the Gremiln had a child. At least it wasn't your standard econo-box.
