The worst car you've ever driven...

The worst car you've ever driven...

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Discussion

standards

1,117 posts

217 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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Talbot Horizon. In brown.
The only thing of any amusement was getting all 6 green lights on around the top of the speedo. This meant minimum fuel efficiency apparently and was relatively difficult to achieve.

Edited by standards on Saturday 28th May 22:06

anonymous-user

53 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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The Crack Fox said:
Defender. Drove a brand new one for a day, utterly wretched thing. Looks, great, everything else would leave Fred Flintstone complaining.

And Corsa. I'm just back from 3 days in a new one. Petrol. Weird steering, zero power, noisy and tinny. Completely without charm. Small cars can be flawed, they can be slow, ugly, whatever, but they MUST have charm. The Corsa is as charming as a convicted sex offender.
Agree on both counts. A colleague bought one of the very last Defenders and it's as fking horrible to drive as any knackered old stheap examples I've tried in the past. Fair enough it's a good laugh and a joke to smash around in a field for a bit, but it's got to be one of the most expensive jokes going.

The Corsa needs no further comment biggrin

Poisson96

2,098 posts

130 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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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.
I find 48 bhp from the 60's not dangerously slow. Can be leisurely up at a steep hill when 4 up, but not dangerous. I doubt any modern cars are close.

Trabi601

4,865 posts

94 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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Poisson96 said:
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.
I find 48 bhp from the 60's not dangerously slow. Can be leisurely up at a steep hill when 4 up, but not dangerous. I doubt any modern cars are close.
I'm actually surprised at what you can do with 26bhp, too - away from traffic lights and through roundabouts, I'm often much quicker than the modern machinery around me. Hugely amusing when you go around the outside of someone on a roundabout in a Trabi smile

alec.e

2,149 posts

123 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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ch108 said:
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.
I drive a car with over 400hp and 0-60 in about 4.9 seconds, I also drive a van with 0-60 in 17 seconds.
Anticipation is key!

imck

778 posts

106 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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For many years, my Managers new 1991 MK5? Escort Estate 1.4
No go at all and terrible seats.
Probably exacerbated by the fact the previous Manager had a RS Turbo that 19 year old me got to borrow to get to training courses.

Until last year
A nearly new Fiat Punto 1.2 hire car in Spain.
Hopeless going up hills without a good run up.
Not keen to rev on the flat.

Surprised to see the K11 Micra listed. The Mrs has had a couple of 1.0
Free revving engine and light. Cornering was a bit woolly though.
A very basic but fun to drive small car.

Flibble

6,470 posts

180 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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Fiat 500 1.2; gutless engine, uncomfortable cabin, poor controls, brain dead start/stop system, hazards would come on under moderate braking. I honestly can't see why anyone would buy one.

civiclegend

166 posts

169 months

Saturday 28th May 2016
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Has nobody mentioned a Peugeot 3008? I can`t believe it. I think its probably the hire car that has depressed me most - I was given the keys as an `upgrade` from the Focus I`d requested from Sixt. Following a friend in her diesel Landcruiser I couldn`t hope to follow her overtakes, the mismatched gutless peaky little sewing machine thrashing away up front gave no confidence whatsoever. Worse than its aids-ridden output in such a flabby, confused looking body was its throttle response - you could (and I did) mash the throttle in endless frustration, or to the beat of something on the radio, there was no reaction from the car whatsoever. I can only imagine if you put a family of 5 in it, it would barely move at all.

Honourable mentions - Vauxhall Sintra and Nissan Serena (as fking far from Serene in diesel form as you can get).

These vehicles do have their uses though, training devices for clutchless gearshifts, up and down. One day your PnJ might benefit!

Hub

6,411 posts

197 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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civiclegend said:
Has nobody mentioned a Peugeot 3008? I can`t believe it. I think its probably the hire car that has depressed me most - I was given the keys as an `upgrade` from the Focus I`d requested from Sixt. Following a friend in her diesel Landcruiser I couldn`t hope to follow her overtakes, the mismatched gutless peaky little sewing machine thrashing away up front gave no confidence whatsoever. Worse than its aids-ridden output in such a flabby, confused looking body was its throttle response - you could (and I did) mash the throttle in endless frustration, or to the beat of something on the radio, there was no reaction from the car whatsoever. I can only imagine if you put a family of 5 in it, it would barely move at all.
I've had one as a hire car. I didn't think it was that bad all things considered! Ugly, noisy (1.6 diesel) with narrow power band but not that gutless, slightly odd driving position, poor visibility to the rear, awful electronic handbrake, but it didn't handle that badly, well equipped, comfortable etc - in other words average.

Jeenyus161

342 posts

94 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Either a 2007 Vauxhall Tigra or a 16 plate auto corsa.

Both were utterly terrible - the Tigra was a stbox but the corsa (hire car) just didn't feel like it had been built properly.

I also once drove a base spec lancer in dubai - it was the slowest car ever to feature a rear spoiler as standard!

anonymous-user

53 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Saab93 2006
Awful plastics , creaked and rattled like an old ship
Awful unupgradeable Stereo

Trabi601

4,865 posts

94 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Jimboka said:
Saab93 2006
Awful plastics , creaked and rattled like an old ship
Awful unupgradeable Stereo
The wife has a 2006 Aero Cabriolet. It's not a bad car by any sensible measure - fast, refined, comfortable. Yes, it creaks a bit and even the upgraded Saab audio system isn't great. But it's still a decent car and could never be on anyone's 'worse car' list

Lunja

420 posts

184 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Hub said:
I've had one as a hire car. I didn't think it was that bad all things considered! Ugly, noisy (1.6 diesel) with narrow power band but not that gutless, slightly odd driving position, poor visibility to the rear, awful electronic handbrake, but it didn't handle that badly, well equipped, comfortable etc - in other words average.
I'll raise you the 3008 Hybrid. Again, a Sixt 'upgrade' from the Fiat 500 ordered for an Alps trip (they had no 500s in stock) - utter carp. Dumbest auto box ever, sluggish, EV-only mode lasts mere moments. They say "nothing's as fast as a rental" - they haven't driven a 3008!

vrsmxtb

2,002 posts

155 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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legless said:
The final straw came when I got outdragged from some traffic lights by a fuel tanker, and yes - I was trying.
Sentence of the thread! laugh

MarshPhantom

9,658 posts

136 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Citroen C3 Pluriel - POS.

vrsmxtb

2,002 posts

155 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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I've just driven around 1500 miles to John O'Groats and back in a Nissan Serena 2.3D with a basic camper conversion. I think this was once officially the slowest accelerating passenger car available in the UK, with I think 26 seconds to 60. All I can say is I don't think it's gained many horses in 21 years! I've never driven an old HGV but it's how I imagine one to drive, super short 1st and 2nd, agricultural engine with a thirst for diesel, sloppy cable gearshift - felt like driving something about 3 times its size. Joining the A1 on those short fuel station slips was a little disconcerting, and needed significant planning and anticipation!

Having said all that as a vehicle I loved it for what it enabled me to do up there, wild camping wise - I also actually really enjoyed hustling it along the A99/A9 back to Inverness one evening, trying to conserve momentum and straightlining the corners - I even overtook about 3 people! It handled ok to be fair, perhaps helped by the engine being well behind the front axle between the front seats.

The only vehicles I've driven that could qualify as "worst" had other redeeming features - off road modded Suzuki Samurai, campers etc.

In hindsight my Citroen AX 10E was probably the "worst" car but then it was my first so was special for that.



Edited by vrsmxtb on Sunday 29th May 10:54

JimbobVFR

2,679 posts

143 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Back at the end of the 90s I went to Romania a few times, the first time we went our BT liveried transit got as much attention as a Ferrari would here. Hardly surprising when just about every car was one of these turgid piles of ste.



A Corsa, Serena or even a Yugo just don't compare with how appalling they are to drive.

ChilliWhizz

11,990 posts

160 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Vauxhall Frontera - the diesel one.... so bad it made me smile smile (It was the wife's choice)

Lordbenny

8,575 posts

218 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Another vote for basic A class Merc. Most gutless car I've ever driven.

E65Ross

Original Poster:

34,943 posts

211 months

Sunday 29th May 2016
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Willy Nilly said:
A 3rd class drive is better than a 1st class walk
But some cars are better than others, I'm simply asking people to state which car was most "3rd class"