Car and Driver tallies 10 most embarrassing auto award winners
Each and every year, the major auto buff mags roll out their "best of" lists. Car of the Year, 10 Best, All-Stars – each publication has a different formula for picking the best of the best, and while we don't like every choice, most are spot-on. There are, however, times when we see a pick and wonder what the editors were drinking when they made their decision. Car and Driver, which has admittedly made its fair share of mistakes, has come up with a list of the 10 worst auto award winners of all time, and we thought it would be fun to share.A quick look through C&D's bottom 10 shows some serious stinkers. The 1997 Chevy Malibu? The 1983 Renault Alliance? Ouch. How about the 1981 Chevy Citation? Hit the read link below to check out Car and Driver's bottom 10. While you're over there, check out the discrepancy between 10 Best winners and Motor Trend CotY winners. MT made the list six times, while C&D entered the hall of shame with three entries. Then again, C&D were the ones who made the list. Interestingly, they somehow also managed to ignore entries like the 1989 Dodge Colt, the 1994 Eagle Vision, and the 1987 Pontiac Bonneville, but they did ding the Merkur XR4Ti, a pretty entertaining (if odd and poor selling) driver's coupe. Hmmm...
[Source: Car and Driver]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Shawn 3:15PM (1/26/2009)
I think it would be more telling if they showed us who paid how much for advertisments in the same years...Or maybe show us how they manipulate the "Gotta have it factor"... LOL
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garlinski 3:25PM (1/26/2009)
I like how Motor Trend gets thrown under the bus... er Town Car... er Citation... you get my point. Hey, nobody's perfect.
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esoterica 3:26PM (1/26/2009)
Wait, what was wrong with the Eagle Vision? It was just another LH car (same platform as Concorde and Intrepid) and they were all widely lauded for almost everything except NVH issues and a few specific reliability issues the first couple of years.
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casey 3:28PM (1/26/2009)
i'm kinda pissed at this list. i don't think it's fair to go back with 20/20 hindsight and rethink these choices too much, especially by editors that weren't there the first time. many of these cars, for the times they were conceived and built in, Renault Alliance included, were the right choice then. GMs X cars, the Citation etc, were groundbreaking FWD platforms. sure they had problems, what completely new technology doesn't? the same with the Vega. it was a very cool car for the early 1970s.
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henrykrinkle 3:53PM (1/26/2009)
If you're pissed because someone puts down a GM X-body for being a sub-standard car then you might have anger management problems. I remember riding in more than one and they were junk. The X-bodies exposed a lot of people to GM's shoddy design and build quality of the time. A lot of people haven't forgiven them for it.
gearhead18 1:39AM (1/27/2009)
I drive an X-Body and it's still alive. It's pushing 25 years now, that isn't too bad for something that has been called shoddy.
Dane 7:06PM (1/26/2009)
I think the Ford Contour and Ford XR4ti were great cars.... the rest....
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! The Renualt was cool except it's huge railroad track sized bumpers....
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Phatality 3:37PM (1/26/2009)
My first car was an XR4Ti. I miss that thing.
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Alan 5:53PM (1/26/2009)
The Merkur was a great car. My friend in college had one, I've always said that it was possibly the most underrated car ever, and I felt rather validated knowing that it was on the 10 best list. So it didnt sell well, there have been plenty or great cars that didnt sell, like the RX-7, a car too good for the US.
Shiftright 5:59PM (1/26/2009)
The Pinto engine they saddled these cars with for the US market was crappy, but they did drive and handle really well. Drove a euro model once with the 2.8 V6 and I remembered it as a solid BMW alternative back then. The US market is notoriously conservative, so the avant guarde styling dictated by aerodynamics didn't go over too well. I for one, loved it! It was truly unique and sophisticated.
Peter 9:46PM (1/26/2009)
This car handled so well, I also miss mine. Turbo power with RWD in a light, agile package made for such a fun-driving car. I raced it constantly.
Tony C 1:38PM (1/27/2009)
XR4Ti was amazing for its time! Sure the styling left something to be desired (especially for mainstream America) and it should never have been shilled by Lincoln dealers, but hey it was a great piece of German engineering.
Coincidentally, I just passed one on the road yesterday! It was painted a horrific two-tone blue and purple with flames going down the flanks pinstriped in red and orange. Wow. Just wow.
Tony C 1:44PM (1/27/2009)
Hey Car & Driver, waffle much?
"The XR4Ti was on Car and Driver's Ten Best list for 1985."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkur_XR4Ti
esteva03 6:02PM (1/27/2009)
the sierra was an awesome car. from the list in the only one i disagree. in europe it was a monster in touring car and in south america it was every bachelors dream together with the coupe "taunus". love it.
k.w.a 3:38PM (1/26/2009)
I can't believe the Ford Contour won ANYTHING....EVER
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e46mike 3:51PM (1/26/2009)
I can, my wife has an old Contour, it still drives great and will get 33 mpg on the highway with ease.
Ken Stamper 3:53PM (1/26/2009)
The Contour was a good car. C&D weren't the only ones to think so either. It was an Automobile Magazine all-star multiple times in a row, because it was easily the best handling car in its class. It just didn't have a big enough back seat for Americans
joe23521 11:32AM (1/27/2009)
The Contour was not a bad car. My parents still have the one I had back in college and, in fact, prefer it over their much newer Camry.
David 11:37PM (1/27/2009)
I loved the Contour, one of the best handling FWD cars I have ever driven. I used to scare the hell out of my kid sister and her boyfriend on the back roads when I drove them around in it. No time for kissy kissy when you're being thrown around the back seat (Hey, I told them to buckle up). It was pretty reliable and was good on gas, too.
xspeedy 3:40PM (1/26/2009)
There are some really embarrassing ones on the list (and as I expected, a number from MT). I disagree with the Counter/Mystique though, as it was a good car for a "domestic". Yes, it was smaller than an Accord/Camry but so was the BMW 3. It sacrificed space for better dynamics.
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