I have some models of cars that if I didn’t have payments on them , I would’ve driven them to the closest quarry and watched gleefully as they went over the deepest side of the facility and became unrecognizeable masses of crumpled metal .
They are as follows .
67 Plymouth four door . Whatta rattletrap !
69 Chevy " Estate Wagon "
73 Dodge Charger
and lastly an American Motors " Eagle" Station Wagon ( the four wheel drive version )
There are some for which there are no models , that’s great by me ! Let’s hear yours . Oh ! I forgot one ! a 1960 Ford falcon four door sedan . Whatta piece of C$%# !!
I can’t say that I’ve really ever had a bad car, but as far as just any car that I have owned, I was excited to see that Moebius has come out with a 1/25 1965 Plymouth Belvedere Model, since that was the 1st car I ever owned back in high school (though I had a four door instead of a two door).
Additionally, I also bought a 1/24th Fiat 500 model kit shortly after I bought my Fiat back in 2011, but I haven’t put it together yet.
And finally, although I also own a 1951 Buick Special Deluxe, I haven’t been able to find a model of that particular car, though I have bought a 1951 Chevy Fleetline and a 1950 Olds Club Coupe, due to their similarities to my Buick.
Ford Pinto. I don’t remember the year. Absolutely the worst performing and most uncomfortable car I’ve ever driven. Fortunately it was a loaner that I used for about a year so it only cost maintainance and a few improvements.
'71 Chevy Vega. It would be far easier to list it’s good features (styling) than the bad such as but not limited to blown head gaskets, a warped head, massive oil consumption and being unstable at speed (assuming you had the time to wait for it to get up to speed). The best part was during the first Arab oil embargo when people suddenly became concerned about milage. I found a Chevy dealer who was so happy to take an economy car in trade that they didn’t test drive it plus they gave me a great deal on a 396 Malibu that got terrible milage. I was always afraid to even drive past the dealer after that because I thought they’d see me and want to undo the deal. Sure wish I still had the Malibu. I seriously doubt that anyone ever offered a model of the Vega.
1973 Ford Econoline van. Paid $ 800. Dented, broken window’s ( plural ) I had the heater repaired by a “proffessional” and after that the heater would blow backwards’ and then ONLY if the left turn signal was on!
1976 Pinto Paid $200 ( we called it “THE BLOWABOUT” ) Burned oil like crazy ! Took 12 quarts to go 500 miles.The oil blew out the top of the drivers side valve cover and onto the windshield. It left a nice racing stripe over the roof and down the hachback.
1992 Ford F-150. Paid $700 The only thing on this truck that worked “PERFECTLY” was the engine! Everything else rusted and fell off!!! I sold it for $500 so I really didnt lose…
1982 Ford Bronco 4X4. Paid $300. This truck could TAKE IT!!! We called it The Slammer… because the suspension was shot, bent, broken, missing…
1976 Oldsmobile Cutlass supreme. Paid $1200. This was a 4 door land yacht! My friends and I used it as a “party barge” ! At some point someone got sick all over the interior ( all the seats and floor, and the headliner) I put blankets on the seats and drove it that way for another 2 years. The floor in the backseat had rusted out and my friends took “great delight” in tossing stuff down the hole… usualy just as a cop pulled in behind us… thus scattering whatever was tossed ALL OVER THE COP CAR !!! (I no longer hang out with these fools ! )
These were just a few of the “MANY” cars I have owned over the years. But the all time “hated the most” car has to be my 1974 Datsun pick up! Paid $450.
The fenders flopped as you went down the road.The rear window fell out and there was so much rust in the window frame that I couldnt put another one in. The engine mounts were broken and sometomes if you "Stepped on it "… the engine would walk out of the frame and slam into the radiator!
One day I noticed water in the oil… so I drove it till it “siezed” and left it where it died with the signed Title on the seat. Never saw it again!
I built models of the Pinto… right down to the oil smear over the roof.
The Cutlass.I could only find a 2 door model so it wasn’t quite right.
The Datsun. I found a snap together kit that came with a dirt bike… I kept the bike.
I have always wanted to do a model of the van. Just never found a kit to match it.
1980 Volkswagen Quantum, it was a farm to market car in Eastern Washington for well over 1million miles, at least. It had heat, barely, and only in the summer, A/C, you guessed it only in the winter. The former owner said it was “all wheel drive” however I think the car had a stroke cause while trying to go up hill in a snowstorm it couldn’t figure out which side to put into oncoming traffic. I drove it for a year. Picked up my best friend from the hospital after he was invloved in a car wreck, did I mention I only had ONE wiper that worked? Fortunately the drivers side. It was a HEAP to say the least but it got me where I needed to go until I got my truck. BTW probably won’t own another Dodge either. GO BLUE OVALS.
Hey Tanker… My dad had one of those when I was a kid. I always liked the taillight’s. Thought they were cool ! Would love to build a model of the 2 door version.
My Grandfather had the Falcon van. Also cool looking. His came with a complete camper interior. Sink, bed, stove… Un- comfortably slept 7. Would “LOVE” to find a kit of that !
I haven’t owned any bad cars, just a few that were kind of Meh.
Having lived in California near the coast my whole life, rust never was an issue.
I’ve made a few bad decisions, like the 74 Sedan de Ville bought used in 1978. But it could capably get six guys from LA to Vegas in style.
One of the better crappy cars was a 1968 Peugeot 404 wagon. A real Egyptian taxi special. it had an unreliable Marelli ignition system, but god bless it, it had a crank.
Otherwise built of solid steel over leaf springs in the back, enough to take 39 guys to Las Vegas, umhh I mean Luxor.
OH I’m not complaining. I knew when I bought them that they were pretty much " disposable". I just thought you guy’s would like to hear what I went through with each of them. I got “VERY” handy with bailing wire and duct tape!
I have bought car’s that were more money. the latest one is a 96 Dodge Ram 2500.
Paid $9970. Then put another $5000 into replacing worn out 20 year old part’s.
Should be good for another 20 years. Not bad for a truck with a bluebook value of maybe $6000
About an 83 Olsmobile with a diesel, I think itwas a mid size. Bought it used, didn’t have it long. Worst ever was a 79 Rabbit with the electrical system from hell, bought new. Everytime it rained it stopped on my wife.
Definitely not an Opel, but was a Deutsch Ford built in Koln or Cologne. Worst for me was my very first Chrysler product, a 2007 Jeep Patriot with the tranny grinding itself to rubble in 59,000 miles.
Two brand new cars that I’ve owned fall into this category. My very first brand new car, a 1984 Wolfsburg Edition VW Rabbit. I have a fondness for it since it was my first new car with a sun roof, AM/FM cassette stereo (big deal back in '84) and a 4-speed manual transmission.
I built an AMT kit to represent this car, but the kit is several model years earlier. Decent kit though. The car’s sun roof (a solid piece that cranked back into the roof, not a glass sun roof) leaked which in turn made the driver’s floor well fill with water and would short out the directional blinker. Imagine that, fluid makes the directional blinker not work!
The second car was a 2000 Ford Focus ZTS sedan. If everything worked as planned, it was a neat little commuter car. This car was a recall magnet. I had more recalls on it than every other car I’ve owned combined. Some of the ones I remember were the rear wheel could come off the car if you made a turn at a high rate of speed. Windshield wiper motor could catch fire and a the plastic parts that go inside along the windshield had to be replaced. There was also a seat belt recall. At about the 30,000 mile mark, the front bearings started making a terrible grinding noise. Eventually traded it in in 2006 for a new Chevy Aveo for my almost 18 yr old daughter.
I bought a Tamiya and Hasegawa Ford Focus WRC rally cars, but they were the hatchback not the sedan.
New Omni 024, don’t remember the year. Thing would eat alternators for lunch. Had the same engine as a VW Sirroaco. We used to autocross it in the day after doubling up the sway bar up front and an AM rear sway bar. When got divorced the wife got it and I kept my Chev p/u. The best thing that ever happened to it was the guy she was sharing a house with later used it one night and something in the steering let go and he rolled it several times…not a straight panel left on it. He walked away, unhurt.
My 81 wide track Jeep Cherokee (the 2 door with steel factory flares). Loved it, and the late wife wouldn’t let me get rid of it, said she never felt safer in anything. only downfall was the oil rust-proofing on the underside. When it quit leaking you knew it was time to add oily type fluids. For something the size of a big Blazer, it would wheel with the CJ’s, constantly amazed me for the first year we had it. Is a 360, 4speed. Hate to let her go, but she needs a new home.
My cars have been fairly reliable and mostly fondly remembered despite how crappy they were. I’m trying to build a model of every car i owned, despite some aren’t available in model form.
There’s a promo version available. the only reason i’m interested in a model one is because of it’s appearance in the Blue Thunder movie (the one with the helicopter).
My father, rest his soul, always wanted an Oldsmobile. My uncle told my dad he knew a mechanic who had a dealer’s license and sold used cars from his garage. Dad went to see the guy and bought an ugly Olds Cutlass Salon, two door, blue. It was the biggest dog pile he ever owned. I think we had it for all of two months before things started circling the bowl; electrical, fuel and brakes. Dealer gave dad his money back and never spoke to him again.
Biggest heap of turd I ever owned was a 91 Cherokee Sport. Car wasn’t even three weeks old and I discovered a massive water leak around the windshield and front cowl. It soaked the carpets and shorted out the radio. A year after that it really started to poop the bed. Starter, transfer case, power steering pump, brakes and then rust. As someone else mentioned, had we not been making payments, I’d have driven it over a cliff. Traded it in when we bought our first Escape and haven’t looked back. The Ford dealer gave us $2500 for it because, as the dealer said, people will buy Jeeps for the 4X4 drivetrain. Haven’t owned a Pentastar product since. Having said that I really liked the 69 Fury III and 73 Satellite Sebring Plus that my parents owned at one time. My three GM’s (75 Firebird and 78 and 83 Trans Ams) never gave me any problems but I’m now a Blue Oval man (03 and 10 Escapes, 16 Edge and 02 and 17 Mustang GT’s). Love my '17 GT!
