The annuls of automotive history are littered with all sorts of coulda, woulda, shoulda beens, and vehicles that were just plain wrong. The Edsel springs to mind. Weird-looking, pricey and built with 1957 technology (in 1958), Ford's Oldsmobile competitor was doomed from the get-go. Then we have the Volkswagen Phaeton, Gen Y's notion of what a failure should be. Unlike the Edsel, Piech's folly was quite handsome, mega-advanced, impeccably built and a decided bargain in the world of high end luxo-barges– especially when fully equipped with a [prodigiously thirsty] 444 hp W12. Its sin? Its badge. But Audi's Allroad is my favorite failure. It was the right car at the right time with the wrong consumers. The Allroad offered more off-road prowess than any soccer mom could need, more interior space than competitors' SUVs and came stuffed with a hot twin-turbo 2.7-liter V6. But Audi didn't stand by its wagon. These days its pushing its eyesore, mega-mouthed, gas-hog stretched Touareg, the Q7. Yippity doo da. Your fave?
87 Comments on “Question of the Day: What’s Your Favorite Failure?...”
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Jaguar S-Type is way up there for me, though it’s not a complete failure (99%).
Otherwise I’d say I love the failure first generation Lexus IS300 (Toyota Altezza). Totally out of keeping with Lexus’s brand values, bad sales, shiny plasticky interior (with this fake alcantra stuff that really knew how to get dirty) but it was a wonderful little car. My favorite Toyota of the past 10 years (new Camry not withstanding).
Let me be the first to say it:
Delorean.
Ferrari 308GT4.
I just never was a big fan of Pininfarina’s work in the 70’s.
PS: I thought the knock on the Allroad was turbo lag, given its weight.
Chrysler Airflow.
Tucker.
Bentley Continental Flying Spur, but that’s a little bit ridiculous.
More realistically, I’m going with the Porche 928. It never sold that well, but it was good looking and years ahead of its time. Who says a Porche has to be rear engined and look like a fat guy sat on a Beatle?
Pontiac Aztek
The thing is so damn ugly I don’t even understand how someone could purchase it.
Gotta be Chrysler’s Airflow.
But Suzuki’s X-90 is a close runner-up.
The 1958 model year as interpreted by GM and Ford. (Buick, Olds, Ford, Lincoln, and Edsel get top “honors” here.) And of course, it was also the last model year of the Packard (but so few were sold, no one remembers…)
Hotchkiss Gregoire – super advanced for the early 50s. Fwd, aluminum body, independent suspension. Cost a fortune to make and thus failed.
I have to go with the Aztek for the sheer wtf factor. I still remember the first time I saw it and thought, no way would GM really come out with something that looked that bad.
A close second is the Ford Freestar. It was amazing how much money and effort Ford put in to create an all new minivan with the identical look, features, and capabilities of the one it replaced.
Favorite automotive failures:
I guess this can best be defined as vehicles that you love to see but would never buy yourself.
Topping that list would be the Chysler Pacifica. An excellent vehicle,but one that seemed to always lose out to some other vehicle when it came time the write the check. For the price it was a very hard sell against such vehicles like the Odyessy and Previa. Hey, when you are about to spend close to $40,000 on minivan I guess you do have every right to expect a decent resale value.
Not far behind that would be the Crossfire convertible. This is the car you see in the Chysler dealer window, get excited, run inside and ask how much only to leave LYAO! I know of a few retirees that looked at the Crossfire as a Chysler Miata and simply refused to see it as a bargin Benz. I guess the fact that it was based on the lackluster SLK really didn’t help matters.
Can’t forget about our good friend the GTO! One look a Charger or 300C made the public say WTF were you thinking GM! One look sent just about anyone interested in a nice stylish personal coupe right over to the Infiniti dealer for a G35.
2004-2006 Pontiac GTO.
I really liked that car. Despite what others thought about the styling, I liked the subdued look (in comparison to the ‘in your face’ WS6). I also have some stupid, demented brand loyalty to Pontiac for some reason.
I probably should have bought one when I had the chance(s).
(PS/edit: The nearest Infiniti dealer to me is 2 hours away.)
Cimarron – The wrong way to make a small luxury car.
This is supposed to be cars you like, but were market failures, correct? How can people say Aztek and Cimarron? Did you like these things?
I think mine is gonna have to be the FD Mazda RX-8. Awesome looks (I still drool today seeing a 15 year old one), it was fast as hell even using today’s standards, killing Porsches, Ferraris, the NSX, it was light on its feet and had a rotary engine.
Downside? Reliability and price. I would have bought one of these had they not had the ridiculously complex turbo rotaries where 100,000 miles was considered a huge achievement. They were no longer the “affordable” sports car of the 1st and 2nd gen cars.
Sold very few of them until they pulled it from the US market.
The new/dead GTO is a great answer.
Can’t believe nobody mentioned the Yugo.
Or Renault’s attempt to crack the U.S. market via acquiring AMC/Jeep
Or even…
…The DeLorean.
Jerome10:
“This is supposed to be cars you like, but were market failures, correct?”
Actually, any old failure will do.
The Yugo. They were so obviously wretched, even fresh off the lot, that it’s shocking that anyone ever believed that there was a market for them in the first place.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4bTmHS86aI
Chrysler. They’ve gone from top of the world (minivans, mopar muscle cars) to top of the crap heap (Sebring, Avenger, Journey, Nitro, Compass, Caliber, and pretty much everything else they currently build.)
Also, the Dodge Magnum. A muscle car station wagon. How cool is that! Although, I guess not enough people thought so. Too bad. Guess I’ll have to satisfy my wagon-with-a-V8 desires with an old hearse.
These are supposed to be cars you love but failures in the market, correct? How can people write Cimarron or Aztek? These things were terrible! And failures.
For me, the FD Mazda RX-7. I still drool seeing a 15 year old one. Fast has hell even today. Drop dead gorgeous. Lightweight and rotary engine.
Too bad they were unreliable and cost way too much…. slowly meant death in the US market.
Guess I read this as: “the car you like most that failed in the market place” not “car you think was the biggest flop”
RX-8: 9000rpm, great handling, 4(ish) seat real sports car, like the style.
Always had a soft spot for the Wankel.
Love & rotors,
Bunter
As Kelly Bundy would say… “The Neeewwww, Allante”
Seeing Clint pilot one in the Dead Pool, and Kelly Bundy as its booth babe made lil Matt want one. Ahhh foolish, impressionable youth.
Subaru SVX–what the XT6 I owned shoulda been.
I’m still not sure to read this as, say, most outstanding failure I can think of (like an Edsel, which was probaly nobody’s favorite anything) or failure which I favored.
I’ll favor you with both:
Most outstanding failure (in recent memory), the Chevrolet SSR. A true WTF? All in one package, you got a bad truck, bad convertible, bad roadster and a bad hot rod. For the low, low price of about what a ‘Vette would cost. I give it bonus points for being ugly (but that’s a matter of personal taste).
Car I most favored which failed dismally, the Renault Fuego Turbo. Oh, it certainly deserved to die but I liked the lines, the size, the performance, the fuel economy, the whole idea. I imagine that says something horrible about me.
Definitely the Tucker.
When will you ever see another movie about an automotive failure and its founder? Twenty years from now, maybe Delorean or Tesla.
The car that single-handedly created the lemon law.
Cadillac Allante.
Bloated production process with the bodies built in Italy and shipped by 747 to Michigan. FWD V8 meant full steering wheel deflection under hard acceleration.
I had to talk my father out of driving it through the showroom window after the top came off of the track on the way back from the dealership. It had been in for the same repair three times before.
Cadillac XLR anyone?
The criteria being favorite failure: Pontiac Aztek. They’re ugly as hell, but people who bought them loved them, and even put up with their poor reliability. Some people even bought more than one. The two I was in were quite versatile. I respect the people who bought them for having the stones to do so; I never would.
Bob Lutz
I’d have to say the Pontiac Fiero. Great idea for The Excitement Division. A sleek, mid-engined, two-door, two-place sportscar. Show the whole world that modern GM performance wasn’t just about small block V-8s. What could go wrong?
Corvair.
A Rear-engined and RWD sedan…from GM! When was the last time the General took a chance like that? Yes, it was somewhat of a deathtrap but imagine what could have been!
I’m in the market for a used Pacifica. Resale is fantastically low. You can pick up a low mileage 2007 for 16k. What drove the price to 40k on these? I just don’t see it.
@John R: the Corvair gets my nod, but for a different reason: it begat Ralph Nader, who went on to f*** up the 2000 election and the resulting sad state of current affairs.
How about the Isuzu VehiCROSS (or any recent Isuzu for that matter).
Also, regarding the Pacifica, my wife’s uncle bought a new 2007 in December for 17k.
For cars I like that failed, I second the Corvair and the Tucker.
For just plain crap:
Aztec, Yugo, Beretta (driving it was like being shot)
Not sure what the exact criteria is here, but anything from the ill-fated AMC/Renault alliance – for example, the Renault Alliance (aka Renault Appliance)! Not to mention their encore performance with the Encore. Talk about a couple of rolling dung heaps. They even tried to give them some performance cred with a spec-racing series called the “Alliance Cup”. Oh the memories from helping a friend who fielded a few of these buckets.
And how about the (imported from Australia) Mercury Capri (aka Mercury Crapi)? Had a friend who worked unloading them at the local port of entry. Seem to recall her saying that it wasn’t unusual for large portions of bodywork (like bumpers) to fall off while being driven off of the ship.
How about the Vega? Cool “Baby Camaro” styling, well engineered chassis and a variety of body styles. Yes, the execution couldn’t have been worse if they tried but oh, think what could have been (affordable, stylish and rear-drive American compact).
Solstice
Elan M100(in the USA)
XJ220
Pontiac Fiero. I wanted one so bad when they were introduced. Makes me sad they’re all junk. What a wasted opportunity.
What about a brand as a whole, remember the resurrected Eagle brand Chrysler rolled out that were just rebranded first gen Intrepids and Eclipses? I still can’t figure out why Chrysler thought they needed a second Plymouth division.
Favorite Failures: Toyota Supra Turbo, Toyota MR2 Supercharged
By no stretch of the imagination was the Edsel underpowered.
I think an edit is in order. 345 horsepower and 475 ft-lbs of torque (gross, of course) was fairly substantial for the day (heck, even for today).
As a former Fiero owner I can vouch for the car’s terrible flaws. Overheating problems, shady headlight motors, and an engine compartment so cramped you had to remove it to change the spark plugs making it a pain to work on. That’s not even touching on how unsafe it was to drive.
The Aztec is a no brainer. At least the Fiero was a great concept.
As for the RX-8 comments I’m a little confused. They still sell them in the US and everyone I know that has owned one loved them except for the gas mileage?
Oh, and the BMW 8 Series
What else but PACER!
Hard to narrow it down, but here are some of my faves…
Nissan 240SX – Small, affordable RWD sports car. What the modern pony car SHOULD be.
Subaru Baja – What many truck buyers actually need.
Pontiac Fiero – They finally got it right… Then killed it.
The Edsel. It is THE automotive icon of failure. And what a spectacular icon.
The DeLorean is a somewhat distant second. Maybe tied with the Yugo, though for different reasons. (An NYC artist had his students reinCARnate 40 Yugos that he had bought for what had been the price ofd one; you can see some of the renditions, such as the Yugo Phone, on my website, motorlegends.com, under “art cars.”)
For cars I like a lot that failed, the Airflow, the Tucker, and the Corvair. And the Pacer, if that’s really to be considered a failure. I LOVE the Pacer.
Sentimental favorites:
1) The Subaru SVX. So brave — a $30,000 Subaru GT coupe with funky Giugiaro styling, flat-six engine, and all-wheel drive. So handicapped — wrong badge, wrong price, wrong transmission (no manual, and the automatic was overmatched by the six’s torque). In many ways an appealing idea that could not possibly have worked.
2) The Oldsmobile Jetfire. A sophisticated, lightweight, unit-bodied sedan, very similar in size and weight to a modern Camry, powered by a turbocharged V8 engine (with water injection, no less). Pity its over-engineering didn’t translate into outstanding execution (or reliability). The right car at the wrong time, developed at great cost, brought to market not quite ready for primetime, then dropped in unseemly haste.
3) The Renault Vel Satis. A colossal French coupe built on a minivan platform, with challenging styling, an unfashionably thirsty V6, and a premium price tag. A leading contender for the mascot of an annual “What were they thinking?” award. I hear you can pick them up for dirt cheap in many parts of Europe, thanks to eye-watering depreciation.
Okay, we’ve made it to page 5 and we finally have the first second for my earlier vote for the Subaru SVX.
And re. the Pacer, I remember it well because it was introduced while I was sentenced to be the Editor of Car and Driver. In our first road test, I recall that William Jeanes compared it to a bathtub rubber duckie.
And I remember when the “high-performance version” came out. It had a tiny carburetor with TWO BARRELS! We photographed that car here in Cornwall, New York, at the Black Rock Fish and Game Club, with a bunch of hunters carrying, guess what…
Hey Stephan, since Brock Yates didn’t do one, why don’t you do a “Truth About Car & Driver”?
And add another vote from me for the Pontiac GTO. I’d love that car. So what if it has bland styling? A V8 RWD sedan, how can you go wrong? Although, I guess in GM’s hands, they could turn gold into lead.
The biggest failure on the market I can see, is ANY car manufacturers failed attempt to improve the existing prooduct line. And this is especially so concerning Detroit. How ANYONE can deliver a product and then just not improve it or even R&D a replacement ready within its cycle is simply mind-boggling. And there are MANY examples.
Chrysler PT Cruiser and Gone Tomorrow. There’s a whole editorial in that line only…
The Europeans mostly have 6-8 year cycles, facelifts in half-time, the japanes have 4-year cycles, facelifts every two years. The price of the car is set to pay for R&D of the next generations, and that work begins even before the new model is up for sale. How hard can it be? Why oh why doesn’t the Big 2.8 improve existing product-lines?