The worst car you've ever driven...

The worst car you've ever driven...

Author
Discussion

ALTO77

305 posts

141 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
Threads like this can be totally misleading, a BMW 328 is a good car, it's difficult to argue against this, but what happens is people buy older cars with shagged tyres and shagged suspension, then expect it to drive as well as it did when it was new.

Baryonyx

17,990 posts

158 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
The old Astra H 1.3 CDTi hatchbacks we used to have at work were a disaster zone. The only positive they have compared to a newer Astra is that they had a faster steering rack and more steering feel. Everything else was worse, so if you think the current Astra is st, you should try one of those bds!

They had:

1) Floppy, soggy chassis that rolled terribly under load.

2) Dreadful ride and awful damping. Crashing over bumps and wallowing through weight tranfers. This was from new!

3) An absolutely pathetic engine and a dreadful selection of six gears that constantly felt out of puff. Turning left from a junction and going uphill in second was awful, first was too short and the shift to second bogged you into a long wait for a short spell of boost to arrive.

4) Dismal build quality. Awful interior, hideous seats. Rotten smell of cheap plastic. They were st.

The 1.7 CDTi estate with a five speed was a lot quicker and had stiffer rear springs so handled quite a lot better. But it was still st.

Arnold Cunningham

3,758 posts

252 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
Yeh, but same mechanics.

The engine on the Yugo destroyed itself, so I "upgraded" to an uno. Lifted the bonnet and my heart sank to see the same 903cc POS engine. That one blew up even more catastrophically.


Trabi601 said:
The Yugo was based on the Fiat 127, not the Uno.

E65Ross

Original Poster:

34,941 posts

211 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
cerb4.5lee said:
Qubit said:
BMW e46 328ci. Worst car ive ever had, both to own and to drive.
Once upon a time that was a dream car for me and I spent years lusting after one, I do understand that BMW's are boring to drive because of their epic overuse of sound deadening(apart from the diesels) and the lack of excitement, but what made it the worst for you.
Epic generalisation there! Have you tried an M3gts? They're supposed to be pretty good. M3csl was also good judging by reviews.

I think if the worst car someone has driven is a 328ci then they've not driven any BAD cars. As has been said, most likely if it was 2nd hand and a bit worn out.

cerb4.5lee

30,170 posts

179 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Qubit said:
BMW e46 328ci. Worst car ive ever had, both to own and to drive.
Once upon a time that was a dream car for me and I spent years lusting after one, I do understand that BMW's are boring to drive because of their epic overuse of sound deadening(apart from the diesels) and the lack of excitement, but what made it the worst for you.
Epic generalisation there! Have you tried an M3gts? They're supposed to be pretty good. M3csl was also good judging by reviews.
The seven BMW's I've had have all suffered from being pretty boring and lacking in excitement but appreciate they are built to be that way as a luxury car maker, I would like a go in a M3gts/M3csl to see if they do buck the trend.

The standard M3 I had was typical BMW fare but the M3gts/M3csl are built to entertain going from the reviews I agree.

SimonTheSailor

12,543 posts

227 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
A small Perodua of some description, I think a 650cc engine, just seemed so bloody dangerous and under powered - but it was a Malaysian hire car.

Couldn't quite work out why all the other cars at traffic lights would rev their engines so much whilst waiting - then I realised that my size 12 feet would easily cover not only the brake pedal but accelerator at the same time.

k-ink

9,070 posts

178 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
I was given a free Matiz courtesy car for the day. I drove home and refused to use it. Appalling does not come close. The thing has no acceleration, brakes, steering or body control. It is useless beyond all comprehension. A skateboard with three wheels would make a better daily vehicle.

E65Ross

Original Poster:

34,941 posts

211 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
cerb4.5lee said:
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Qubit said:
BMW e46 328ci. Worst car ive ever had, both to own and to drive.
Once upon a time that was a dream car for me and I spent years lusting after one, I do understand that BMW's are boring to drive because of their epic overuse of sound deadening(apart from the diesels) and the lack of excitement, but what made it the worst for you.
Epic generalisation there! Have you tried an M3gts? They're supposed to be pretty good. M3csl was also good judging by reviews.
The seven BMW's I've had have all suffered from being pretty boring and lacking in excitement but appreciate they are built to be that way as a luxury car maker, I would like a go in a M3gts/M3csl to see if they do buck the trend.

The standard M3 I had was typical BMW fare but the M3gts/M3csl are built to entertain going from the reviews I agree.
But that doesn't make them bad cars, it makes them something different from what you may have expected, but they aren't bad at what they're designed to do.

SD_1

7,258 posts

157 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
Vauxhall Astra H 1.4 petrol.

Had it has a hire car for a day and it was shockingly bad. Very uncomfortable seats and driving position, no room in the back, and very underpowered. Had to really push it to accelerate up to speed so as a result it wasn't even economical. Ride managed to be wobbly and crashy at the same time. Think the car was 2 years old at the time with sub 20k so it wasn't shagged.

I have nothing against Vauxhall - I have owned two Astra Gs, driven a Corsa C regularly, and they were substantially better. Genuinely couldn't believe how bad this thing was.

cerb4.5lee

30,170 posts

179 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Qubit said:
BMW e46 328ci. Worst car ive ever had, both to own and to drive.
Once upon a time that was a dream car for me and I spent years lusting after one, I do understand that BMW's are boring to drive because of their epic overuse of sound deadening(apart from the diesels) and the lack of excitement, but what made it the worst for you.
Epic generalisation there! Have you tried an M3gts? They're supposed to be pretty good. M3csl was also good judging by reviews.
The seven BMW's I've had have all suffered from being pretty boring and lacking in excitement but appreciate they are built to be that way as a luxury car maker, I would like a go in a M3gts/M3csl to see if they do buck the trend.

The standard M3 I had was typical BMW fare but the M3gts/M3csl are built to entertain going from the reviews I agree.
But that doesn't make them bad cars, it makes them something different from what you may have expected, but they aren't bad at what they're designed to do.
Agree and I am not saying they are bad as I really like them for what they're designed to do.

E65Ross

Original Poster:

34,941 posts

211 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
cerb4.5lee said:
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Qubit said:
BMW e46 328ci. Worst car ive ever had, both to own and to drive.
Once upon a time that was a dream car for me and I spent years lusting after one, I do understand that BMW's are boring to drive because of their epic overuse of sound deadening(apart from the diesels) and the lack of excitement, but what made it the worst for you.
Epic generalisation there! Have you tried an M3gts? They're supposed to be pretty good. M3csl was also good judging by reviews.
The seven BMW's I've had have all suffered from being pretty boring and lacking in excitement but appreciate they are built to be that way as a luxury car maker, I would like a go in a M3gts/M3csl to see if they do buck the trend.

The standard M3 I had was typical BMW fare but the M3gts/M3csl are built to entertain going from the reviews I agree.
But that doesn't make them bad cars, it makes them something different from what you may have expected, but they aren't bad at what they're designed to do.
Agree and I am not saying they are bad as I really like them for what they're designed to do.
Well, you'd have been bonkers to have bought 7 of them otherwise!

cerb4.5lee

30,170 posts

179 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
E65Ross said:
cerb4.5lee said:
Qubit said:
BMW e46 328ci. Worst car ive ever had, both to own and to drive.
Once upon a time that was a dream car for me and I spent years lusting after one, I do understand that BMW's are boring to drive because of their epic overuse of sound deadening(apart from the diesels) and the lack of excitement, but what made it the worst for you.
Epic generalisation there! Have you tried an M3gts? They're supposed to be pretty good. M3csl was also good judging by reviews.
The seven BMW's I've had have all suffered from being pretty boring and lacking in excitement but appreciate they are built to be that way as a luxury car maker, I would like a go in a M3gts/M3csl to see if they do buck the trend.

The standard M3 I had was typical BMW fare but the M3gts/M3csl are built to entertain going from the reviews I agree.
But that doesn't make them bad cars, it makes them something different from what you may have expected, but they aren't bad at what they're designed to do.
Agree and I am not saying they are bad as I really like them for what they're designed to do.
Well, you'd have been bonkers to have bought 7 of them otherwise!
Indeed! smile

green911

145 posts

208 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
Ladies and Gentlemen, May I suggest the Landwind CV9, which I had the displeasure of as a hire car - There are no words to describe how truly awful it was.

Dads Taxi

58 posts

94 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
A couple stick in my mind.

On holiday in Tenerife, we hired a green Hyundai Atoz. Going up Mount Teide we thought someone would have to get and push, it was gutless, and coming back down again was accompanied by the smell of cooked brakes.

And I was once given a Vauxhall Corsa with the Easytronic gearbox as a courtesy car, which was dreadful in a different way.

Muddle238

3,871 posts

112 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
I have a few to list, excluding some rather ropey old Land Rovers which I don't think would be fair to name them here....

2009 Hyundai i10. Appalling clutch, appalling throttle, poor handling, no performance, nasty plastic bumpers and no intriguing design whatsoever. On the flip side, the current shape i10 is actually a superb little city car.

2010 Corsa. No power whatsoever, it was dangerously slow. Absolute dog of a car, no idea why there are so many littering the roads, god awful thing. Looked like a turd too, inside and out.

2013 Polo 1.4 TDI. It didn't want to go backwards, it was almost hard work trying to reverse, almost as if the brakes applied automatically. Also it sounded like a tractor, shocking refinement. Nothing special to look at inside or out, awful ergonomics of the heating controls (kept resetting to 22 degrees every time you started the car) and generally just dull.

1.2 Fiat 500. Nice to look at, but not a drivers car. Struggled on most inclines, whatever angle. Nice to look at the interior but controls and buttons felt poor, the Panda is a better all rounder

Trabi601

4,865 posts

94 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
I'm intrigued by the 'dangerously slow' posts. Nothing available in the last 20 years or so could be described as 'dangerously slow'.

If you want dangerously slow, you really need to try driving a car with 26bhp.

ch108

1,127 posts

132 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
Trabi601 said:
I'm intrigued by the 'dangerously slow' posts. Nothing available in the last 20 years or so could be described as 'dangerously slow'.

If you want dangerously slow, you really need to try driving a car with 26bhp.
Dangerously slow probably translates to "didn't adapt driving style for something slower than I'm used to driving".

Even hire/courtesy cars I've had including a Matiz and a Ford Ka couldn't be described as dangerous provided they were driven in the manner they were designed for.


skyrover

12,668 posts

203 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
Trabi601 said:
I'm intrigued by the 'dangerously slow' posts. Nothing available in the last 20 years or so could be described as 'dangerously slow'.

If you want dangerously slow, you really need to try driving a car with 26bhp.
Plenty of modern drive by wire systems are so sluggish due to emissions testing that they can indeed make driving hazardous for those not accustomed.

Fiat's have issues with hill starts don't they due to the ECU refusing to allow the throttle to fully open in first gear

robemcdonald

8,715 posts

195 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
Had a Suzuki vitara in Ibiza in 1997 as a hire car. Brand new so servicing (or lack there of) wasn't an issue. I can't remember what engine it had, but everything about it was so terrible I took it back aft a day and got it changed for the then just launched ford ka. The ford was much, much, much better at everything.
I've driven a lot of cars. The vitara was the worst by a massive margin.

Johnnytheboy

24,498 posts

185 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
quotequote all
A Kia Picanto, one of the early ones that all seemed to be bronze.

Hire car in Spain c. 10 years ago.

Never driven anything that felt like it was going to float off the motorway before or since.