The 50 worst car of all time by TIME magazine
#31
Lexus Fanatic
The majority of these were marketing fiascoes, not necessarily bad cars. The Edsel, Corvair and several others were quite good cars but some bad PR and cowardly manufacturers who left them to twist in the wind were more responsible than their design or build quality. Compared to their contemporaries, some of these could have done quite well had their companies not cut and run.
I didn't agree with everything Ralph Nader wrote in his book "Unsafe at any Speed" (overall, I agreed with about 50% of the book), but in the first chapter on the 1961-1963 Corvair, he was right on the money....it was indeed a classic, poorly engineered, piece of junk.
But I would agree with you that the Edsels were not necessarily bad cars.....they were just restyled late 50's Mercurys with unusual grille designs. But what turned people off on some Edsel models were the transmission push-buttons in the center of the steering wheel.....the Chrysler tranny push-buttons which were shortly to follow were on the dash, where they didn't spin around with the wheel and were always in easy reach.
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-12-07 at 06:08 PM.
#34
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (1)
You forgot price of a loaded Vette in there too. I remember the markup on those things. My dad took me to see one once when I was a kid at the local stealership. They were charging ~$65000 for their purple one on the floor.
I also fondly remember them because some guy tried to race me once back when I had my 300zxTT (my car had all the boltons short of turbo upgrades).
I also fondly remember them because some guy tried to race me once back when I had my 300zxTT (my car had all the boltons short of turbo upgrades).
#37
Oh my godness,, they stuck the YUGO GV up on that list (and for good reasoning) and totally missed that off brand, little French thing... The Renault LeCar. Sadness.... Found this lil gem on ebay. People are trying to sell this thing for like $3500. You be the judge....
#38
Lexus Fanatic
It also had more body roll from the narrowness and high center of gravity, in the ultra-soft French tradition, than probably any other car I have ever driven....though the Kia Amanti comes close.
There was a turbo, bulged-fender, Alpine version of this car that was actually pretty good on the track.
Last edited by mmarshall; 09-13-07 at 05:09 AM.
#39
Super Moderator
And the ones who were stranded when the car refused to start because the computer forgot how to cycle the starter motor.
I am a HUGE BMW fan, but I would NEVER consider one of the early E65/E66 745i/Ls.
#40
Out of Warranty
The Renault redefined your whole concept of body roll. The ultra-soft suspension was supremely comfortable, and surprisingly it managed to keep all four wheels pointed in the same direction - even while heeling on her beam ends. You learned to live in what felt like a permanent state of incipient rollover. Any other vehicle would have killed you for such brazen control inputs, but the little R-4 simply knelt further into its unlimited range of suspension deflection and although it did so with the inside rear wheel often well clear of the roadway, it stuck to the corner like lint on a blue blazer. At the end of the day you expected to get out and find major damage to doors and rocker panels, but although the horizon often assumed crazy angles through the windshield, and the view out the side window was often either brown or blue, depending on your relationship to the apex, you learned to suppress the scream that might frighten le pilote.
That dog-at-a-fire-hydrant cornering stance notwithstanding, it made for a surprisingly quick vehicle when making up time thanks to the navigator's (my) errors. The interior was plush - at least compared to its contemporaries, with soft leather seats and a reasonable amount of room - thanks to the tall cabin and upright seating. It was typically French (read, weird) in all aspects. Its red paint routinely turned to chalk every ninety days, becoming an odd tomato soup color. It went through several dealer-applied re-applications of paint until someone suggested the paint itself might be faulty (again, French), and a final coat of Ford red was applied - ending the paint problems permanently.
At the end of our second (full) season, the Renault went back to Jim's wife - who never knew what we had been doing with her grocery-getter on the odd weekend for the past two autumn seasons. It went on for a couple of years until their growing family needed more room for booster seats and a larger vehicle with actual cargo space was required for playpens and strollers. It seems road rallying wasn't Jim's only hobby.
#42
Out of Warranty
For an interesting tour of Jay Leno's Citroen SM, check this out:
http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/video/...l?vidID=125002
http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/video/...l?vidID=125002
#43
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (20)
#44
Lexus Fanatic
Jeremy Clarkson reviewed the new C6 on Top Gear and was very impressed.
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