Haven't owned any ****ty cars yet.
2 BMWs
2 BMWs
What is the worst car you ever owned?
- Thread starter Stonemason Jason
- Start date
1985 Yugo
2002 VW TDI
2002 VW TDI
Can't say out of 700+ cars, any one of them were really bad, and I've had Yugo, Pinto, Excel, K-cars, Geos, Fiats, Smarts, etc. There were those I didn't really like, but that's a personal opinion.
Out of 71 cars owned** over 40 years:
WORST actors:
83 Renault Fuego,
86 Capri 5.0 H.O.,
92 Mazda 626 DX,
95 Chevy S-10 2.2l X-tended Cab,
96 Ford Escort 3Dr LX,
14 Nissan Versa Note 5dr 5spd
______________________________________________
My 1988 Yugo GV 4 speed was one of the Five BEST and most enjoyable 'around town' cars I have owned.
** xL spreadsheet
WORST actors:
83 Renault Fuego,
86 Capri 5.0 H.O.,
92 Mazda 626 DX,
95 Chevy S-10 2.2l X-tended Cab,
96 Ford Escort 3Dr LX,
14 Nissan Versa Note 5dr 5spd
______________________________________________
My 1988 Yugo GV 4 speed was one of the Five BEST and most enjoyable 'around town' cars I have owned.
** xL spreadsheet
85 Merc Cougar- falling apart at 100k miles. 88 Ford Bronco- love / hate. Loved the look and off roading, constantly had problems of every kind, engine, trans, a/c, electrical, window motors 
ls1mike
$50 Site Donor 2024
1986 Renault Alliance
2002 VW TDI
Nick1994
$100 site donor 2024
2004 VW Beetle TDI. Had the dual mass flywheel replaced, then it was chattering again a month later. So they replaced it again and it still chattered. Constant CV boots tearing, the door panels falling apart, sunroof problems, transmission problems, camshaft wearing out, other electrical problems etc.
My 2015 Genesis was needy too but I was being picky with it’s extended warranty. In a sense it was the best car I’ve owned, my favorite.
My 2015 Genesis was needy too but I was being picky with it’s extended warranty. In a sense it was the best car I’ve owned, my favorite.
Not a car, but a motorcycle. Aprilia Shiver 750. Was always seemingly at the dealer broke down during riding season waiting on parts to be shipped from Italy.
My wife got a 96 Volvo for her travels in sales.
Highlights:
-Door locks wouldn’t unlock. Almost like all the actuators were live. She had to crawl out of a window at the dealership.
-AC would randomly quit. Never found that problem.
-Heated seats activated somehow without being able to turn them off with the switch. This was in Savanna GA in July.
-Alarm would activate while car was parked in our garage.
-Brake rotors pulsated throughout its time with her. Even after multiple warranty and non warranty replacements.
-Weak front suspension components. It ate tires. Parts replaced, alignments, and multiple warranty claims
-Sun roof would run off the track and hang.
-I “loved” (sarcasm) the massive gravel deflector that had to be dropped to gain access to change oil and filter.
I danced and sang the day that one was gone for good!
Highlights:
-Door locks wouldn’t unlock. Almost like all the actuators were live. She had to crawl out of a window at the dealership.
-AC would randomly quit. Never found that problem.
-Heated seats activated somehow without being able to turn them off with the switch. This was in Savanna GA in July.
-Alarm would activate while car was parked in our garage.
-Brake rotors pulsated throughout its time with her. Even after multiple warranty and non warranty replacements.
-Weak front suspension components. It ate tires. Parts replaced, alignments, and multiple warranty claims
-Sun roof would run off the track and hang.
-I “loved” (sarcasm) the massive gravel deflector that had to be dropped to gain access to change oil and filter.
I danced and sang the day that one was gone for good!
I'm 60 and never had a car that broke down and left me stranded. And that's driving mostly rebuilt vehicles as a youth cause my father was a rebuilder body shop owner.
I think the 80,s cars were the worst with the engines barely able to make it to a 100k without something major needing to be fixed then they got to be more reliable in late 90's to about 2010 and again becoming worse with all the direct injection engines.
I think the 80,s cars were the worst with the engines barely able to make it to a 100k without something major needing to be fixed then they got to be more reliable in late 90's to about 2010 and again becoming worse with all the direct injection engines.
Renault/AMC Alliance
Of 40+ cars I have owned, Opel Ascona C takes the title as the worst. It was a product when GM decided to get more "involved" in Opel engineering so they figured it does not need any rust protection. Numerous engine mounts and tie rod ends. But it was rusting so bad that performance was actually getting better due to decreasing weight. The grand finale was when the rear spring went through the floor! Idk what got into me and I got again OPEL, but this time Vectra A and after that Vectra B. A still had rust issues, but things got a bit better. B had serious rust protection. It was a 1996 model and I think it had 12yrs warranty on rust. But in everything else was sooooooo mediocre and underwhelming. I remember that was the time Passat B5 was introduced and I just could not believe those two cars were in the same category.
Toyota Land Cruiser Prado would be another car that just does not want to stop creating issues, although rust was never an issue. But undersized breaks, suspension that cannot handle a high center of gravity and pretty much disintegrates off-roading. The amount of bushings I replaced on that vehicle is ridiculous. And needs pretty much laboratory clean diesel. When I got that Prado I had Lancia Lybra 2.4jtd too. You could put heating oil in it that is mixed with moonshine and still goes 140mph on European hwy's. Put diesel that Toyota does not list in the manual as recommended, and the engine needs to be resuscitated.
Toyota Land Cruiser Prado would be another car that just does not want to stop creating issues, although rust was never an issue. But undersized breaks, suspension that cannot handle a high center of gravity and pretty much disintegrates off-roading. The amount of bushings I replaced on that vehicle is ridiculous. And needs pretty much laboratory clean diesel. When I got that Prado I had Lancia Lybra 2.4jtd too. You could put heating oil in it that is mixed with moonshine and still goes 140mph on European hwy's. Put diesel that Toyota does not list in the manual as recommended, and the engine needs to be resuscitated.
A newbie's first post can sometimes be interesting.
My in laws had an early 80's Cressida that had 2 engines die and electrical problems out the ying yang. FIL is an engineer and strict by the book oil changer -that car was a piece of junk. My dad had an 83 Corolla wagon, this is the car that I learned to drive in. Of course riding my bike was faster...that thing had around 2 emu power if I remember correctly. But it was reliable.
Couple points:
The Yugo, I believe, has Fiat 127 roots. Fiat, though not durable, in those days, at least had a bit of "joie de conduire" / "piacere guidare" (sp?) 'kinda sense, happy in its own skin, happy and nice drive feel. City car limitations, yes, but still... Presumably you found this to be the case?
Re the Nissan Versa Note: in Canada we had, from '15 to '19, the Nissan Micra, the immediately previous generation to what currently is available in Europe, etc. Same powertrain as your Versa Note. I almost bought one. I found the drive quality really nice for a City/Suburban/60mph highway car. Five speed shifted nicely. EPS wasn't bad... I didn't buy it because of the rod-knock issue that Nissan strangely and seemingly never could get rid of. I set my mobile on sound-record, set it under the engine, and then varied the revs. Around 2500, if memory serves, the sound of (if ever so slight) rod knock. Brand new 2017 car... 'Gotta give your head a shake. I swear I would have bought it otherwise. Drove 'real nice. Was $CDN 9,999. 'Real good price.
Anyone who had those loved them despite there problems. A friend of mine has his grandma's 96 T&C and never had an issue until recently. After 179k, the original transmission finally went out. We think it might be it's solinoid pack.
I too have never owned a bad vehicle but some were cared for better than others, with certain maintenance-related repairs required:
1972 AMC Gremlin, a great car in every way except popularity LOL
1965 Ford Mustang, a real darling. Manual trans locked up, otherwise a great ownership experience.
1967 Ford Mustang, originally owned in Cincinnati, was rotted & rusted underneath with tons of sediment in the gas tank. Otherwise a decent car.
1992 Ford Thunderbird, another great car purchased from the original owner, sweet little old lady. Very clean, comfortable and reliable.
1986 Mazda B2000 pickup, a beater with 220k miles, tons of blow-by, had to run 20w50. Only needed a new clutch master cyl over 2 years.
1995 Chevrolet Corvette (2), both excellent cars, no real issues, very reliable and fun to drive.
2006 Toyota Tacoma, best vehicle to date. Rock solid reliable, good on gas (for a pickup), very comfortable and does everything I need. 13 years of ownership and only needed a water pump and AC condenser, otherwise just normal maintenance & wear items.
1972 AMC Gremlin, a great car in every way except popularity LOL
1965 Ford Mustang, a real darling. Manual trans locked up, otherwise a great ownership experience.
1967 Ford Mustang, originally owned in Cincinnati, was rotted & rusted underneath with tons of sediment in the gas tank. Otherwise a decent car.
1992 Ford Thunderbird, another great car purchased from the original owner, sweet little old lady. Very clean, comfortable and reliable.
1986 Mazda B2000 pickup, a beater with 220k miles, tons of blow-by, had to run 20w50. Only needed a new clutch master cyl over 2 years.
1995 Chevrolet Corvette (2), both excellent cars, no real issues, very reliable and fun to drive.
2006 Toyota Tacoma, best vehicle to date. Rock solid reliable, good on gas (for a pickup), very comfortable and does everything I need. 13 years of ownership and only needed a water pump and AC condenser, otherwise just normal maintenance & wear items.
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