Top 10s: Most embarrassing cars
Story by John LeBlanc
In a new car market where reliability, safety and performance are at all-time highs, a great deal of a vehicle's success rides on marketing, its image, and whether or not its styling is appealing. But sometimes, a stand-out-from-the-crowd vehicle than also cause some undo attention.
That’s the finding of a recent study from CarInsurance.com, a U.S.-based, online auto insurance buying service. The company surveyed 1,500 drivers, showing 12 examples of uniquely styled cars and trucks, asking why each vehicle was “embarrassing” and given the option to write in a reason of their own.
12. Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet
While there are a handful of convertible-top SUVs sold around the world – the Land Rover Defender and Jeep Wrangler come to mind – the U.S.-only Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet is the only convertible-top crossover sold in the world. It stands out in a sea of conventional crossovers. But the Nissan’s individuality also causes it to generate its fair share of ridicule. I can now understand why Nissan Canada decided to forego importing the Murano CrossCabriolet. Although it was the least embarrassing vehicle in the CarInsurance.com survey, the Murano ragtop received 11 first-place votes, with respondents citing the most embarrassing aspects of the vehicle was that it was too “girly,” and “ugly as hell.”
11. Chevrolet HHR
It’s no surprise to find the discontinued Chevrolet HHR (which stood for Heritage High Roof) on this list. As a copycat of the Chrysler PT Cruiser, the retro-styled HHR was penned by the same designer who was inspired by mid-1940s Chevrolet cars and trucks, specifically the 1949 Chevrolet Suburban. Perhaps designing a 21st-century car based on a mid-20th century theme wasn’t the best idea Chevy ever had. The HHR got 27 first-place votes as the most embarrassing car to own. And it’s no surprise that the most-cited reasons were that the small Chevy Cobalt-based wagon looked too “old” or “like a hearse.”
10. Honda Element
When it arrived, the Honda Element was like no other compact crossover. Its space-efficient shape was designed to carry large loads and it wore scratch-resistant body panels, with an interior fitted with washable materials and side-folding rear seats — perfect for hauling around mountain bikes, camping gear, and surf boards. It also was a favourite with dog owners. But the Honda’s unique looks also means it still draws some negative attention. Squeezed between two other tall-and-small wagons the Honda Element took the 10th spot on the CarInsurance.com survey list, recording 24 first-place votes as the most embarrassing car to own. Comments about the Honda crossover ranged from complaints that it looks like it “tries too hard,” to an exterior that made it appear as if it was a “box on wheels.”
9. Chrysler PT Cruiser
There’s no denying the sales success of the PT Cruiser when it debuted. Previewed by the Plymouth Prowler and Pronto Cruiser show cars, the production PT Cruiser was intended to signal the retro-styled theme the Plymouth brand was heading. But even with the demise of Plymouth in 2001, initially, there were lineups to get the Chrysler badged PT Cruiser at dealers. Nine years after its launch, the public seems to see retro-styled cars like the PT Cruiser (and other vehicles on this list, like the Chevrolet HHR) as vehicles that should have probably stayed in the past. The Chrysler small wagon received 28 first-place votes in the survey, garnering comments like it was “Grandpa” and a “cliché.”
8. Pontiac Aztek
The Pontiac Aztek was supposed to be a design halo vehicle for General Motors. Like its more conservatively styled platform-mate, the Buick Rendezvous, the Aztek used a shortened GM minivan platform, but with unique exterior body panels, conventional rear swing-open rather than sliding doors and a horizontally-split rear tailgate. Its interior was designed to be super practical, with such features as a removable cooler and a camping package with an attachable tent and inflatable mattress. As innovative as the Aztek was, today, it stands out for all the wrong reasons. Getting 57 first-place votes as the most embarrassing car to own in the CarInsurance.com survey, the Aztek was mainly criticized for being “a design disaster,” and that it “tries too hard.”
7. Lincoln Town Car
As the rest of the industry turned to front-wheel-drive and unibody construction, Lincoln continued to produce its body-on-frame, rear-wheel-drive Town Car, a throwback to the classic, big American sedan. While the Town Car was first seen as a top-line trim package for the 1959 Lincoln Continental Mark IV, in 1981, it became the flagship sedan for Lincoln, and the most-popular choice for the limousine car trade in North America. Although the Town Car would never be considered a “retro-styled” vehicle, its image is that of an old person’s car. In the survey, the Lincoln four-door received 73 first-place votes as the most embarrassing car to own, and not surprisingly, was tagged as a “Grandpa” car and a “prom rental” for reasons not to own.
6. Subaru Baja
No one should be embarrassed to own a Subaru. The Japanese cars are known for their middle-of-the-road styling, practical-as-a-pair-of-boots all-wheel-drive and stoic mechanical reliability. Even some of the ersatz models, like the SVX coupe, and the B9 Tribeca are worthy of ownership. Except for the Baja, the short-lived, open-bed version of the more conventional Subaru Outback wagon. Sort of like a Japanese Chevrolet El Camino (or a modern-day BRAT) the Baja was a schizophrenic cross between a pickup and a car. Survey respondents gave the Subaru pickup 60 first-place votes as the most embarrassing car you could own, citing reasons such as it “tries too hard,” and is “funny looking.”
5. Volkswagen New Beetle
Like the PT Cruiser, the Volkswagen New Beetle was a smash hit when it arrived in 1997. Inspired by the original, rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive VW Beetle, the New Beetle used a more modern VW Golf-based front-engine, front-wheel-drive setup. But like most fashionable objects, the New Beetle has become embarrassingly uncool. Tallying 83 first-place votes as the most embarrassing car to own by the CarInsurance.com survey, the VW New Beetle was called too “girly” and “ridiculously cute.” Despite the criticisms, the survey found that drivers 45 years of age and older were much less likely to be embarrassed by the VW compact.
4. Chevrolet SSR
Like the Pontiac Aztek, the Chevrolet SSR (as in Super Sport Roadster), was a concept car that should have been left on the car show circuit. As a retractable hardtop convertible pickup truck (based on a long-wheelbase Chevrolet TrailBlazer EXT platform), the SSR had no rivals — and with good reason. It was a jack of several trades, and a master of none. With SSR never coming close to Chevrolet’s projections, the convertible/truck/sports car was obviously embarrassing to drive when new. Things got a bit better towards the end of its life when Chevy dropped in the Corvette’s engine, finally giving it the power to out-run the harsh words its critics hurled at it. Today, the Chevy SSR is still considered a car not be seen in. The Franken-Chevy scored 93 first-place votes in the survey, and criticized for “trying too hard,” and being “tacky.”
3. Hummer H2
While the guts of the Hummer H2 were donated from the ubiquitous Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra full-size pickup trucks, the original Hummer H1 military vehicle inspired its cartoonish exterior styling. As such, from day one, the H2 garnered polarizing opinions. And a decade after its unveiling, the CarInsurance.com survey respondents call the H2 the third most embarrassing vehicle you could own. Separating itself substantially from the 12th to fourth-place finishers, the Hummer “won” 208 first-place votes as the most cringe-inducing car to drive. Not only was the big SUV called too “big,” its representation of conspicuous consumption nabbed it as also being “immoral,” with drivers 45 and older far more likely to be embarrassed by the Hummer than younger drivers.
2. Nissan Cube
If you wanted proof that the phrase “different strokes for different folks,” was true, look no further than the Cube. A cultural icon and sales success in its home-market of Japan, the third-generation Nissan Cube small wagon arrived in North America for the first for 2010. Based on the chassis of the subcompact Nissan Versa, the Cube offers a space-effect cabin and unique styling both inside and out for not much money. But, apparently, you can’t buy “cool,” and the Cube has become one of the most embarrassing cars to be seen in.Although it only scored 113 first-place votes in the CarInsurance.com survey, a bevy of second- and third-place votes pushed the Nissan Cube past the Hummer for second place overall. Called out for being too “small” and potentially “unsafe” were the top reasons why survey respondents deemed the Nissan an embarrassment. Incidentally, the boxy Scion xB didn’t make the list.
1. Smart ForTwo
Designed for narrow, medieval European streets, the Smart ForTwo is a chic, driving machine on the Continent. But since its arrival in the wide-open spaces of North America, (it debuted in Canada in 2004, and the U.S. in 2008), the two seat micro-car has been less than an out-and-out sales success. In fact, the respondents from the CarInsurance.com survey have made the ForTwo the car not be seen in.
With a whopping 497 first-place votes, the Smart ForTwo easily topped the survey as the most embarrassing car to own. Although parent Daimler boasts the ForTwo is as safe in a crash as a midsize Mercedes-Benz E-Class, survey respondents said the biggest reasons they wouldn’t own the Smart was because it was too “small,” and “unsafe.” While the Smart has won over a few loyal enthusiasts – particularly those who live in metropolises – it has a ways to go to convince the masses.
09.19.13 | Chevrolet, Chrysler, Features, General Motors, Honda, Hummer, Lincoln, lists, Nissan, Pontiac, Smart, Subaru, top 10's, Volkswagen | Comments Off on Top 10s: Most embarrassing cars