The Vega, later rebadged Monza, was not a bad car for it's time. If only they didn't have that damn engine.
The Dauphine wasn't too bad for it's time also. Almost as easy to work on as a VW. Except for the **** swing axle which trying to corner fast made life very interesting.
in all reality.. if the VW beetle had not been a financial success with millions and millions built.. it would have been on that list too.
I have seen a Bricklin... I bet they would be fun with the right engine LS1 anybody?
If you consider the state of engineering in the late 1960's when the Pinto was designed, it was actually pretty advanced. I can hear the chorus of 'Huh?'s from here. 
Bear with me: 1) front disc brakes standard, as late as 1970 front drum brakes were normal at Ford. 2) Rack and pinion steering, until then pretty much only sports cars had that. Even some of those didn't, such as the Fiat 124. 3) Overhead cam engine, yes it was an option but remember pushrods ruled the land.
patgizz wrote:pinchvalve wrote: I agree with a lot of them, but not all. The Aztec was a really good size, it was very practical, and had good space utilization. The idea was not dumb, it just suffered from horrible styling, for which it has already been bashed enough.exactly. semi ugly yes, dumb hell no. the more i see them the more i want one though.....
Gotta agree with you guys. My son in law has an Aztec. He's anything but a car person & hardly knows how to check the oil.
Despite his neglect of the car, he's put a lot of miles on it with very few problems.
Most of the Aztecs I see around here have obviously been cared for (at least cosmetically). They're still homely but son in law's is the homliest. I think it was last washed in July.
With the exception the Vega, Pinto, Mustang II, Aztek, that airplane thing, the two wheel car, the Dauphine, and maybe the Amphicar, they all belong on that list.
They also forgot the Lexus SC430, the worst car in the history of the world.
Most of the Aztecs I see around here have obviously been cared for (at least cosmetically). They're still homely but son in law's is the homliest. I think it was last washed in July.
I had a period where I saw at least 12 different Aztecs around here. Only two were the same color, and only one wasn't intact. All seemed to be running fine, with no strange noises. So, while it may look like a Roach, they also seem to hold up to abuse like one.
Yeah, they just don't get it. Suprised that Corvair isn't on the list too. All of what has been said here is true. Pinto really wasn't a bad car. Got a bad rep from the being rear-ended causing fire. Was fixed in later ones although I had a couple ealier ones. A 72 w/the Kent pushrod motor and a 74 w/2L SOHC. Mustang II's were just rebodied Pinto's with option of larger engine. Pinto/Mustang II steering is now common on street rods so it can't be that bad. Vega was a nice platform with a bad engine and poor quality control. A sign of the timeframe, unfortunately. Aztec a good idea in an ugly platform. Same can be said of Citroen's. Advance concepts in a car that came out not so good looking. Many of the Citroen DS features are common practice now. As for the Dauphine, it wasn't design for this countries driving habits. Worked great for where it came from though, the narrow roads of Europe. Dad had one a second car when I was still in diapers. The airplane car and Amphicar were just nitch design concepts not designed for the common market so naturally they aren't good at either one, go figure. Weren't supposed to be. Just proof that it could be done.
M2Pilot wrote:patgizz wrote:Gotta agree with you guys. My son in law has an Aztec. He's anything but a car person & hardly knows how to check the oil. Despite his neglect of the car, he's put a lot of miles on it with very few problems. Most of the Aztecs I see around here have obviously been cared for (at least cosmetically). They're still homely but son in law's is the homliest. I think it was last washed in July.pinchvalve wrote: I agree with a lot of them, but not all. The Aztec was a really good size, it was very practical, and had good space utilization. The idea was not dumb, it just suffered from horrible styling, for which it has already been bashed enough.exactly. semi ugly yes, dumb hell no. the more i see them the more i want one though.....
From what I have been led to believe.. the Aztec may have been screwed together homely.. but it was screwed together well. I do also agree that the later model ones with the body coloured lower panels look a lot better than the early ones,
What is really sad.. in the day and age.. the Aztec no longer looks as shockingly bad as it once did. Especially when you compare it to some of Nissan's SUV/Minivan offerings
mad_machine wrote: What is really sad.. in the day and age.. the Aztec no longer looks as shockingly bad as it once did. Especially when you compare it to some of Nissan's SUV/Minivan offerings
Yeah, I kinda like the Aztec now. I used to hate it.
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