Hyped up Cars Not Worth the Attention
Some cars live on in the public consciousness due to their outstanding legacies. Others, unfortunately, couldn’t sustain their momentum when they were still around, let alone years later when we’d much rather forget them.
1958 Ford Edsel
Despite being the face of American automotive excellence for the better part of the 20th century, Ford isn't immune to making a few blunders here and there. The Edsel is probably one of their earliest misfires, the product of excessive marketing combined with dated styling and poor pricing.
2001 Pontiac Aztek
The Pontiac Aztek just can’t catch a break. Though it’s remembered somewhat fondly nowadays for its quirkiness and surprisingly solid driving dynamics, nostalgia can’t erase the fact that the Aztek was absolutely reviled upon its release due to its kitchen appliance-chic styling.
1981 DeLorean DMC-12
If it weren’t for a certain film released in 1985, it’s doubtful that the DeLorean DMC-12 would be remembered as fondly as it is. Though certainly sleek and stylish on the outside, aesthetics couldn’t mask its truly abysmal mechanical shortcomings, including a propensity for spontaneous combustion.
1971 Ford Pinto
So, the Edsel wasn’t a huge success for Ford. Fine - live and learn, right? Well, Ford, it seems, did not learn. The Pinto was another overhyped but scarily undercooked vehicle that the automotive giant carelessly unleashed upon the world. These days, it lives on in infamy due to how poorly Ford handled recalls - of which there were many.
1982 Cadillac Cimarron
The Cadillac name is more or less synonymous with luxury or at the very least, very large price tags. Imagine everybody’s surprise, then, when the Cimarron was released… as a loosely rebadged and repackaged Chevrolet Cavalier. Needless to say, it didn’t impress anyone then, and it wouldn’t impress anybody today either.
2000 Chrysler PT Cruiser
The turn of the millennium brought about a slew of retro throwbacks, not all of which were embraced. The PT Cruiser by Chrysler was certainly bold in its design choices, but its retro charm quickly faded once people actually got behind the wheel to discover underwhelming performance and a severe lack of refinement.
2003 Saturn Ion
Saturn was never the biggest name in automotive engineering, but the GM subsidiary had managed to carve out a small niche for itself in the early 2000s. The Ion was their attempt at a quality domestic compact vehicle… except they forgot to use actual quality parts. Needless to say, people picked up on its cheap design quickly.
2003 Chevrolet SSR
Again, the early 2000s was the time of the retro throwback, and Chevrolet would have been fools to not attempt to capitalize on the trend. Their addition to the mix was the SSR which is… definitely a vehicle of some kind. Besides its “unique” design, the SSR was also just too expensive and impractical for most buyers.
2003 Lincoln Blackwood
Lincoln is Ford’s own luxury brand with a capital L. However, the brand isn’t exactly bursting with variety, which is something they attempted to fix in 2003 with their own luxury pick-up. Unfortunately, Lincoln forgot that pick-ups are actually supposed to be useful.
2001 Jaguar X-Type
Most people will be familiar with the Jaguar E-Type, which is, for many, one of the greatest cars ever made. The X-Type, on the other hand, is remembered far less fondly due to its high price tag and unreliable parts.
2008 Smart ForTwo
To its credit, the Smart ForTwo from 2008 is, at the very least, totally adorable. That said, its diminutive size was supposed to make it great for city driving. Unfortunately, for such a small car, it came with a huge price tag that was enough to turn away the few fans it may have had.
1976 Dodge Aspen
In terms of appearance, the Dodge Aspen (also known as the Plymouth Volare) hit the nail on the head. It’s sleek and period-appropriate without being weird. Unfortunately, the Aspen sold reliability - and delivered rust, poor quality, and dozens of mechanical faults instead.
1963 Hillman Imp
Despite its silly, silly name, the Hillman Imp was more or less embraced by the Brits for the duration of the nameplate (a whopping 13 years). That said, although its rear engine was innovative, the car was plagued with issues ranging from cooling troubles to general reliability woes.
1983 Alfa Romeo Arna
The Alfa Romeo Arna was the result of an interesting partnership between Alfa Romeo and Nissan. Unfortunately, it lacked either company’s best qualities as well as an overall sense of identity and is more or less remembered for having a poor build, dull driving dynamics, and depressingly low sales.
2016 Cadillac CT6
Despite being such a well-respected brand, it’s telling that Cadillac has already made two appearances on our list. The CT6 was the company’s flagship sedan for the 2016 model year, so you’d hope that they would ensure it was of the highest quality before shipping it off. They did not.
2019 Mercedes‑Benz EQC
Electric cars may indeed be the future of personal transport, and there’s one company that more or less has a monopoly on them. Mercedes-Benz sought to challenge Tesla’s reign with the release of the EQC. But when you aim for the king, you better not miss. The EQC did miss, unfortunately, due to its underwhelming performance and limited range.
2017 Jaguar E-Pace
Despite them being around for literal decades at this point, Jaguar has only released two SUVs. One of them is the E-Pace, a compact offering positioned below their F-Pace. Unfortunately, despite the pedigree of the name behind it, the E-Pace’s quality has been poorly noted, while its infotainment options are limited.
2014 Acura RLX
Produced by Honda, the Acura RLX was intended to be a modern and exciting luxury sedan. Unfortunately, it arrived maybe five years too late. Its design was quickly dismissed as outdated, and the vehicle as a whole just never clicked for many drivers.
2012 Ford EcoSport
Just because you’re working on a budget, it does not mean that you should settle for cheap. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what the Ford EcoSport is - a cheap, passionless cash-grab by Ford made to pander to the budget crowd.
2018 Infiniti QX50
The QX50 promised drivers innovative new engine technology. What they actually delivered, however, was an impotently performing and inefficient vehicle. At least it looks nice.
2017 Volkswagen Arteon
Volkswagen has always been “for the people”, but even “the people” would appreciate some luxury from time to time. Say no more, said VW, unveiling the Arteon, a sporty, upscale sedan that is just… okay. It’s sleek, sure, but completely lacks any identity of its own.
Tesla Model 3
In all fairness to the Model 3, its earlier builds were more or less “prototypes” for what it would eventually become. That said, those early models were completely tarnished by their poor build quality, which spanned the gamut from shoddy paint jobs to fickle panel alignment.
2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV
With electric vehicles slowly but surely gaining more ground every year, Chevrolet would have been foolish to not throw their own hat into the ring. The Bolt EV should have been a great success. Unfortunately, despite its affordability, the vehicle shipped with some pretty drastic safety hazards, eventually leading to plenty of recalls that hurt its reputation.
2017 Lincoln Continental
The Continental nameplate is legendary at this point, and, as we all know, there’s absolutely no harm in resurrecting a retired nameplate or brand for a quick cash-grab. Alas, the Continental reboot was a total failure, mostly due to its poorly timed arrival into a largely SUV-dominated market.
2012 Fiat 500L
The Fiat 500 was quite a nifty little machine that cultivated a few dedicated fans upon its arrival. The 500L was intended to be the same vehicle but with more space and practical uses. Unfortunately, its mechanical gremlins were too manifold to ignore, even if people were enamored by its style.
2010 Lexus HS 250h
Hybrids offer drivers the best of both worlds, including the more engaging driving dynamics of gas-powered machines and the improved fuel efficiency of electric vehicles. At least, that’s what they’re supposed to do. The folks behind the Lexus HS 250h clearly didn’t get the memo.
2011 Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet
Well, this entry is certainly unique. Honestly, the reality of driving the Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet is just as confusing and discombobulating as trying to say its name out loud.
2016 Alfa Romeo Giulia
To its credit, the Giulia may be one of the sexiest cars on our list. Additionally, it’s not totally terrible to drive either, but it’s held back by reliability issues and mechanical faults that its shiny coat of paint can’t cover.
2018 Nissan Leaf
Nissan was among the early adopters of electric vehicle engineering, beginning with the original Nissan Leaf in 2010. The 2018 version, however, doesn’t quite live up to its namesake due to its short range and troubles with battery degradation.
2014 BMW I8
BMW clearly had its eyes dead-set on the future when they designed the i8, a vehicle that still looks totally rad even today. Less rad is its price, as well as its underwhelming performance and complete impracticality.
2014 Jeep Cherokee KL
When it comes to the off-road, the one-eyed Jeep is king. Unless it’s the Cherokee KL, of course, in which case you’re better off piloting a crippled donkey due to its excessive transmission failures.
2013 BMW I3
The i3 was another one of BMW’s entries into the EV space. Unfortunately, its practicality was severely hampered by its lack of space, as well as its large price tag.
2011 Chevrolet Volt
The Chevy Volt was hyped up to be one of the most efficient electric vehicles in the industry. Of course, the reality was that its actual mileage was highly dependent on weather conditions, leaving many drivers, well, out to dry.
1992 Jaguar XJ220
The Jaguar XJ220 is probably one of the best-looking cars on this list. Unfortunately, it’s also one of the most disappointing due to its marketing, which promised a V12 but delivered a V6.
2008 Chevrolet Cruze
Like the Volt, the Cruze was marketed as being super efficient. Alas, like the Volt, its actual reliability was questionable when you took into consideration its shoddy transmission and various electrical issues.
