Usually, when a new car is revealed to the public, there are two possible reactions; they either love it or hate it. To make sure that the majority love it, the automaker does their best to nail the presentation, the selling points, and the marketing, not to mention all the other key aspects of the car.

But sometimes, cars can spark negative reactions no matter how much time the automakers spend on those finesses. Strangely, a lot of those cars, though they may not have been universally loved by everyone when they debuted, they now have a dedicated cult-like following.

10 Volkswagen Beetle

A red Beetle with a roof rack
carscoops.com

Often considered to be one of the most important cars ever made, the original VW Beetle was a huge deal when it debuted some 80 years ago. It revolutionized compact family cars, and due to all the things it had going for it, over 21 million Beetles were sold worldwide.

A standard red Beetle
cnet.com

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Beyond the success and the revolution though, the VW Type 1 wasn't that good of a car. Its engine was air-cooled, which meant that it could overheat. It was also very noisy, and extremely slow. But nowadays, Beetles are loved by many enthusiasts, and early models are going up in value fast. We're still wondering if VW will ever bring it back.

9 Volkswagen Bus (T1)

A two tone blue and white Bus
wikipedia.org

Aside from the Beetle, there is another classic Volkswagen that has one of the biggest cult followings of any automobile ever made; the Type 2 Bus. Also called the Kombi, the Samba, among other names, the VW Bus is one of the most easily recognizable automobiles ever made.

The earliest example of the T1 Bus
carscoops.com

It had similar problems as the Beetle, being that the rear-engined Kombi was also air-cooled, and it was also very, very slow. Despite that, people swear by these buses, and their values are completely out of control. There are even people converting them to EVs nowadays.

8 Fox Body Mustang

hagerty.com

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During the 1970s, the Ford Mustang's solid reputation was shattered with the arrival of the Mustang II. It was scaled back to be an economy car with limited performance credentials, due to the raging oil crisis of that time.

lmr.com

The Mustang II was universally hated, but Ford hit back and fixed almost all the problems with the Mustang with the introduction of the Fox body. While the Fox wasn't the greatest Mustang of all time, thanks to some issues, everyone wants one of these now. Plus, it makes for a fantastic project car.

7 Renault 4L

A red Renault 4L
caradisiac.com

Launched in 1961, the Renault 4/4L (Quatrelle in French) was the first front-wheel-drive compact family car produced by the French Automaker. It soldiered on for 33 years until 1994, and it was Renault's answer to the Citroën 2CV.

A Renault 4L panel van, used by the postal service
vosgesmartin.fr

It was a very simple car. Simple to the point where the windows slid open instead of rolling down. But, it was very effective, and it earned a cult following in pretty much every market where it was sold. It was also available as a three-door panel van called the Fourgonette, and it even competed in the Paris-Dakar Rally, achieving third place in 1980.

6 Citroën 2CV

automobilemag.com

Though the 2CV was a very simple car, mostly designed to be used as a utility vehicle, it was also a total revolution. It was very easy to work on, and the long-travel suspension allowed for a comfortable ride.

autoblog.nl

Predictably, the 2CV was very slow. The original model came with 9 horsepower. It also didn't feature much in the way of creature comforts. But, it was an extremely successful car, soldiering on until 1990, and it even spawned an off-road version called the Sahara. That one used two engines with two fuel tanks to drive the wheels on each side. Seriously.

5 Trabant

A brown Trabant
motorauthority.com

Built in East Germany before the wall fell, the Trabant is undeniably one of the worst cars of all time. The early models came with a two-stroke engine that took roughly the same amount of time to get to 60 as a regular car would need to get around the Nürburgring.

A white Trabant 1.1 wagon
wikipedia.org

It was also made of incredibly flimsy materials, it had absolutely nothing in the way of creature comforts, not even rear seatbelts, and it had a manually operated windshield washer. Despite all of these negative points, the Trabant still has a cult following, with dedicated restoration projects, and it even has a following Stateside.

4 Renault Espace

An original Espace in yellow and gray
wikipedia.org

Back in 1984, Renault kickstarted the minivan movement with the first Espace. Despite looking like a van, it used the same platform as the regular Fuego coupe. It featured a variety of innovations, which would be seen on minivans for decades to come.

An original Espace in dark green
pistonheads.com

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For example, the rear seats could swivel and rotate so the middle row could face the third-row passengers, and it used fiberglass body panels that were built on top of a monocoque space frame. AMC almost sold the Espace in the United States, but due to various disagreeing about the import pricing and AMC being acquired by Chrysler, it never happened.

3 Land Rover Defender (Original)

A Defender 90 with off-road accessories
alphacoders.com

The new Land Rover Defender has everyone talking, but the old one has had a cult following for a long time now. It's to the point where a lot of people prefer the original Defender over the new one, due to its design and roots.

A white Defender Station Wagon in the mountains
alphacoders.com

The original Defender is big, boxy, extremely capable off-road, and it was absolutely terrible to drive. Despite that, both the Defender 90 and 110 are among the most beloved off-road SUVs of all time, and it's ultimately resulting in their values rising. Especially the North American specification cars, as they're exceptionally rare.

2 Jeep CJ/Wrangler

A blue Jeep CJ Renegade
blog.jeep.com

The Defender is not the only classic off-road SUV that enjoys a cult following. The same thing can be said of the Jeep CJ, which eventually morphed into the Wrangler. Both of them have an equally huge following, for a variety of reasons.

A silver '06 Wrangler rock crawling
blog.jeep.com

The CJ and the subsequent Wrangler are also incredibly capable off-road SUVs, and the earliest examples of the breed are very simple, honest, and no-nonsense off-roaders, with not much in the way of creature comforts. While the latest Wrangler does its best to rectify that, it remains one of the most highly regarded off-road SUVs of all time.

1 Renault Avantime

A dark purple Avantime with a silver roof
wikipedia.org

Launched in 2001, the Avantime is a prime example of an automaker putting a concept car into production with hardly any changes, without thinking about whether or not it will sell. Indeed, no one seemed to be interested in a three-door coupe minivan, resulting in just over 8,000 units sold across three model years.

A blue Avantime, side view
tcct.com

Despite that, in the decades that followed, the Avantime has grown into one of the most loved obscure cars of all time, due to its intense quirkiness and its general silliness. It wasn't a bad car by any means, and the V6 engine was decently quick, but it was ultimately a failure.

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