Fifty Ugliest Cars of the Past 50 Years

Business Week ^ | Damian Joseph

[DogByte6RER]

Fifty Ugliest Cars of the Past 50 Years

A Half-Century of Automotive Eyesores By Damian Joseph

Considering how many new cars are rolled out every year, it's no surprise that a few might be just plain homely. There's a chance that certain styles might become fashionable with a dash of retro hip. (Well, maybe not from the 1970s.) But for the most part, the following 50 cars will never be anything but design duds.

[irishtenor]

Sounds dirty, don’t it?

[Daffynition]

Hotlinking never pays.

[writetolife]

Ramblers have got to be in there somewhere.

[niteowl77]

I agree completely with your assessments of the VW Thing and the Subaru WRX.

(DW drives a Subaru Legacy sedan that is hands down the best overall driving/handling/SHTF family car we have ever owned. I wanted a WRX. I didn't get one, but the Legacy is still nice.)

I grew up a Mopar guy, and even I can't abide the looks of K cars, although we had a Dodge of that ilk that never gave us more trouble than the occasional serpentine belt (and finally a head gasket... long after we tired of the car itself). And yes, Saabs have been oddly ugly, even compared to Volvos; it is almost as if the Swedes have a total two people at any given time working as product designers, and they both specialize in furniture.

My personal long-time styling pet peeve has been Buicks, Buicks and Buicks: toothy grilles, pointless phony orifii and puckered butts apparently appeal to enough people to justify keeping that division and letting Olds & Pontiac roll to oblivion, but I can't fathom why.

Mr. niteowl77

[Fresh Wind]

74 Vega is missing (I had an orange one...with racing stripes!)

Let me guess. The racing stripes were needed so it could race past the entrance to the local junkyard?

[Fresh Wind]

A low radar profile doesn’t help that car much. Any cop that sees one will pull it over just on principle. They KNOW it has to be speeding!

[MortMan]

I’ve always kind of liked the El Camino...

[mad_as_he$$]

Edsel was over 50 years ago.

[mad_as_he$$]

Ouch! Did you have to go to a prom in it?

[mad_as_he$$]

Looks like it is about to spit.

[steelyourfaith]

Edsels were produced in the 1959 and 1960 model years. They were ugly.

[mad_as_he$$]

Thanks for making me not feel as old. They are right on the 50 year mark. Very ugly car. There is a guy in town here who has four in various states of decay.

[paulycy]

There are some questionable choices here I think.

[Daffynition]

So true. It needs to borrow the cloaking technology from the F-117. A few 'shutes would help too. ;)

[steelyourfaith]

There is a guy in town here who has four in various states of decay

LOL. I'm right there with you. I remember them, too.

[3D-JOY]

I have looked at all the posts and do not see anyone mention the Studebaker that did not know if it was coming or going...pea green and awful.

[GSP.FAN]

Nah it was Ireland everybody drove a shitty car and we do not have proms..

[mad_as_he$$]

Ahh. Still embarrassing in Ireland though I take it.

[mad_as_he$$]

Ahh. Still embarrassing in Ireland though I take it.

[namvolunteer]

I had one and the brakes went out at 50 mph as I approached a traffic light on old Route 3 near the Mass-NH border. Nearly killed everyone. Here's a whole page full of Ramblers http://www.hubcapcafe.com/ocs/pages01/nash6001.htm