When discussing automobiles, it’s hard to imagine a Ford Mustang and a Pontiac Aztek mentioned in the same sentence. It’s even more difficult to imagine the two vehicles on a top-10 list of the worst cars in history.
But that’s the fun of car lists.
The Pontiac Aztek, specifically the 2001 model, graces many bad car lists. And it’s often cited as the car that led to the manufacturer’s demise.
But how did a 1974 Ford Mustang get a recent 10 Worst Cars list compiled by Ted Reed of the business site, www.thestreet.com?
Regarding the Aztek, Reed quotes an often-used car industry joke about the Aztek that the styling of the car is its best feature.
The Ford Mustang’s, problem, the article summarizes was that: “the concept of a Pinto-based Mustang does not make a lot of sense.”
Here’s the www.thestreet’s list (in reverse order) of the 10 Worst Cars In History and a synopsis of each vehicle:
10. 1979 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Diesel . . . Never ran properly and always need repair.
9. 1957 Trabant . . . Edmunds.com commented the East Germany compack was “one more reason why communism is evil.”
8. 1982 Cadillac Cimarron . . . Edmunds.com called it “a self-inflicted wound that nearly killed Cadillac.”
7. 1958 Edsel Corsair . . . The legendary flop of all automotive flops,” according to Edmunds.com.
6. 2003 Saturn Ion . . . When Saturn needed to be refreshed, it unfortunately debuted the Ion.
5. 1971 Chevrolet Vega . . . Preceded the Ion as a symbol of GM’s small-car market failure.
4. 1987 Yugo . . . Edmunds.com also picked it as the fourth-worst car ever made.
3. 1955 BMW Isetta . . . One door, five horsepower and worth as much as $50,000. Why?
2. 1974 Ford Mustang . . . Ford stumbled badly.
1. 2001 Pontiac Aztek . . . The car is hideously ugly.
To read the complete article, visit: Worst Cars In History
Article Last Updated: September 25, 2012.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.
Another car that should be on the list is the AMC Gremlin. I agree 100 percent about the Aztek. Every time I see one, which is not often lately, I think that it is a “factory second” and bent.