What was the worst car you ever owned and why
Dec 11, 2014 09:34:12 #
Worst car? Hands down, I will win this bragging contest! My worst car was my first: a 1952 Kaiser-Fraser Traveler, built at the old Willow Run plant in Detroit. Bought from my uncle for $25, it was purple in color and sported what my dad called a "hydro slush" transmission. It would balk when accelerating from traffic lights, belch smoke and backfire when braking, and make all manner of weird noises while underway. Despite being "ziebarted", it showed rust from bumper to bumper. For the one miserable year I owned this car, I was an object of derision in high school. I even had difficulty getting dates (either despite or because the back seat folded down flat). When I went off to college, I unloaded the car to someone for the same I had paid - and felt guilty about it...
Dec 11, 2014 09:34:20 #
MT Shooter wrote:
1976 Plymouth Volare. Every 300 miles or so the ignition module would burn out!
I had a Dodge van with the same problem.
Dec 11, 2014 09:40:16 #
splitload wrote:
I've had 2. a Ford ranger that was in the shop 20 times in 24 months, and a 2010 Jeep Patriot that the trans went out twice and they could never find the problem, past lemon law of course.
The Jeep Patriot is one of the unfortunate vehicles to receive the notorious CVT transmissions. They were so bad the Factory had to give them an "Unlimited Mileage" warranty. The catch was, that warranty was only good to the ORIGINAL PURCHASER of the vehicle. Even if you bought one second hand with only 1000 miles on it, you have NO warranty on the transmission, even though the car still has a 5 year, 100,000 mile drivetrain warranty, the CVT transmission is specifically excluded.
Another Chrysler failure. (And this same transmission is used in many other vehicles from Ford, Mazda, Nissan and Toyota as well.)
Dec 11, 2014 09:48:15 #
RixPix wrote:
The worst car I ever owned was a 1984 Chrysler Laser. It was a little sport hatchback and it was a mess. I purchased it new (Sticker was 14K) and from the very first day it was a disaster. The crowning jewel of disappoint was when the windshield popped out and shattered on the wiper arms when I shut the door with the windows up on day four while picking it up from having the power steering pump replaced because it had exploded on day two.
I had a 1960 Renault Dauphin when I was 17, I used it to run a rural paper route in south Louisiana. It burned so much oil that my customers in the bayou country would say that they love to see me come because I brought the news and got rid of their Mosquitos!
Dec 11, 2014 09:52:04 #
YoungEsqr
Loc: Minnesota
My first car at 18 was a TR-4 and gave me a lot of problems. I was young and dumb and did not do my research.
Since then, knock on wood, I've had V.W.'s, Toyotas, and a Subaru. I've been very pleased with all of them.
Since then, knock on wood, I've had V.W.'s, Toyotas, and a Subaru. I've been very pleased with all of them.
Dec 11, 2014 09:53:04 #
I had a '61 ford falcon sedan that I paid 100 bucks for to use for a summer job working for a plumber when I was in high school. It was faded white, it was referred to as the petrified elephant turd. I could get it up to 60mph on a good day going downhill. I will say it did last the summer of "67. Not a chick magnet.
Dec 11, 2014 09:59:33 #
RixPix wrote:
The worst car I ever owned was a 1984 Chrysler Laser. It was a little sport hatchback and it was a mess. I purchased it new (Sticker was 14K) and from the very first day it was a disaster. The crowning jewel of disappoint was when the windshield popped out and shattered on the wiper arms when I shut the door with the windows up on day four while picking it up from having the power steering pump replaced because it had exploded on day two.
Band new 1972 MG Midget. Couldn't run more than a month without needing service. The darkest days and end of the line for the classic British sports car.
Dec 11, 2014 10:02:13 #
1969 VW. Blew heat all summer, but barely enough to keep windshield clear in winter. Side windows frosted over nicely. Hole in passenger floorboard that I covered with cardboard. Struggled to hit 70mph downhill. Eventually lost reverse and had to park where I could pull out forward. Wouldn't start when it rained; had to push it and pop the clutch. Other than that it was a good car.
Dec 11, 2014 10:02:59 #
1951 Caddilac. It would stall when idling, once when in line to enter the tunnel from New Jersey to New York. Got a push to the side. After about 15 to 20 minutes it would finally start.
Dec 11, 2014 10:41:29 #
RixPix wrote:
The worst car I ever owned was a 1984 Chrysler Laser. It was a little sport hatchback and it was a mess. I purchased it new (Sticker was 14K) and from the very first day it was a disaster. The crowning jewel of disappoint was when the windshield popped out and shattered on the wiper arms when I shut the door with the windows up on day four while picking it up from having the power steering pump replaced because it had exploded on day two.
We owned two Dodge Caravans. The transaxle leaked shortly after 50 thousand miles on both of them , plus they both needed front end suspension replacement. Never again will we buy Chrysler products. :( :( :( :x
:thumbdown: :thumbdown: :thumbdown: :thumbdown:
Dec 11, 2014 10:46:56 #
Absolutely WORST car - 1980 Fiat Strada! It constantly blew fuses if we ran the A/C. We had it in the shop countless times and within 10 minutes of leaving after they "fixed" it... the fuse would blow again. The only GOOD thing I can say about it? It saved our lives once by blowing the fuse at an intersection while we waited for the light to change. Because we were paying more attention to the car than the light we didn't go when it turned green. We couldn't see to our left (thanks to a UPS van who also mysteriously did not pull out) and a big dump truck came flying thru the intersection, running the light. If we'd pulled out, we would have been creamed. We finally traded the Fiat in for a Nissan Sentra. The Fiat wouldn't stay running by that time (had to push it and pop the clutch to get it to go) so we had a tow truck tow us within a mile of the Nissan dealer, started the car, and drove it onto the lot where it promptly stalled. Handed the Fiat keys to the service manager and drove away in the Nissan. After that it was their headache. :)
Two best cars...
1. 1990 Geo Storm GSI - we drove the snot out of that car and it was still running when we sold it - over 300,000 miles later. Best damn car ever! I got rear-ended in that car on the OK Turnpike which pinged me off the guard rail and I drove it home from the accident (over 300 miles). It was the other guys fault, but his insurance company (USAA) played hardball and wanted to total our car (it was worth more than the damage caused to it). I remember one of several phone conversations I had with their adjuster who said, "But... the engine might fall out!" (yes, seriously) The only reason they didn't want to pay to fix our car was the high mileage (that, and they wanted to buy it and sell it for parts to recoup their $$$) - when they sent a guy to inspect the damage and check how much it would cost to fix it, he complimented us on how nice the car looked and was shocked when he saw how many miles were on it. We ended up getting our insurance company (State Farm) to fix the car (which they did - no questions asked and no mention of the mileage) and we continued to drive the car for many years after. In fact, the OK Turnpike accident was the second accident we had in that car. We were driving to South Carolina and a trunk carrying metal pieces dropped a piece of I-beam on the road right in front of us - we swerved, but it caught us underneath the car on the passenger side (where I was sitting)... punched a hole in the floor (luckily not in me!). We drove on down to SC, drove back, and got everything fixed... and the car still kept on going.
2. 1998 BMW Z-3 - purchased used with 18,000 miles on it around 2005. We still have it. Everything you've ever heard about BMW and their "Driving machine" catch phrase, is absolutely true! Awesome car and a blast to drive.
Two best cars...
1. 1990 Geo Storm GSI - we drove the snot out of that car and it was still running when we sold it - over 300,000 miles later. Best damn car ever! I got rear-ended in that car on the OK Turnpike which pinged me off the guard rail and I drove it home from the accident (over 300 miles). It was the other guys fault, but his insurance company (USAA) played hardball and wanted to total our car (it was worth more than the damage caused to it). I remember one of several phone conversations I had with their adjuster who said, "But... the engine might fall out!" (yes, seriously) The only reason they didn't want to pay to fix our car was the high mileage (that, and they wanted to buy it and sell it for parts to recoup their $$$) - when they sent a guy to inspect the damage and check how much it would cost to fix it, he complimented us on how nice the car looked and was shocked when he saw how many miles were on it. We ended up getting our insurance company (State Farm) to fix the car (which they did - no questions asked and no mention of the mileage) and we continued to drive the car for many years after. In fact, the OK Turnpike accident was the second accident we had in that car. We were driving to South Carolina and a trunk carrying metal pieces dropped a piece of I-beam on the road right in front of us - we swerved, but it caught us underneath the car on the passenger side (where I was sitting)... punched a hole in the floor (luckily not in me!). We drove on down to SC, drove back, and got everything fixed... and the car still kept on going.
2. 1998 BMW Z-3 - purchased used with 18,000 miles on it around 2005. We still have it. Everything you've ever heard about BMW and their "Driving machine" catch phrase, is absolutely true! Awesome car and a blast to drive.
Dec 11, 2014 10:51:49 #
Easy here. My worst car was a Plymouth Reliant K car. No sooner get one thing fixed than something else broke. Not a Chrysler fan here, either.
Dec 11, 2014 10:59:13 #
'64 Chevy Impala with 283 CI V8 and Powerslide transmission. Had to rebuild the engine AND tranny at 50K miles. After that it would overheat in the summer and run freezing cold in the winter. No, it wasn't the thermostat. Cleaned out the radiator half a dozen times and had it professionally back flushed a couple times. Nothing helped.
Also had a '97 Ford Ranger with an anemic 4 cylinder engine and 5-speed transmission that I leased. Drove it from San Diego county to Sacramento one time. Had to downshift to third gear to get over the Grapevine doing 45-50 MPH on I-5.
Also had a '97 Ford Ranger with an anemic 4 cylinder engine and 5-speed transmission that I leased. Drove it from San Diego county to Sacramento one time. Had to downshift to third gear to get over the Grapevine doing 45-50 MPH on I-5.
Dec 11, 2014 11:16:37 #
Every one of them, from brand "A to Z". All junk, locked transmissions, blown engines, all sorts of other incredible stuff. I left several on the side of the road, and just walked away.
Sold my last car in 1995, haven't owned one since. I would kill anyone!, trying to sell me one. I REALLY HATE ROLLING JUNK-PILES (CARS). :( :( :(
Sold my last car in 1995, haven't owned one since. I would kill anyone!, trying to sell me one. I REALLY HATE ROLLING JUNK-PILES (CARS). :( :( :(
Dec 11, 2014 11:27:31 #
Worst car was a 1976 BMW 2002 I bought with only 40,000 miles on it. It had been stored outside for a year, but looked like new, inside and out. Apparently the rings had rusted, because it used a quart of oil every 600 miles. It over heated driving from Lake Tahoe over the pass. Had to leave it in a small mountain town garage and take the bus back to Oakland. Went back and got it, and it broke down again 40 miles from home. Had it towed home. After getting it running again, it blew the hydraulic line in the transmission. Then the brakes faded on a long downhill due to a dragging disc. It finally ran well enough for a dealer to accept as a trade in. I definitely got my money's worth from free towing from AAA.
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