A lot of car enthusiasts are interested in classic cars nowadays, which means even the boring ones are shooting up in value. With electrification coming in fast, modern classics and proper classics represent a different era of the automotive industry. It was a time when automakers just wanted to make the best cars possible, with as few compromises as possible.
There's a certain lineup of classic cars that everyone likes. Whether the reason is that they've appeared in movies or TV shows, or because they have beautiful exteriors, a lot of people want one. But all of those cars that have appeared as bedroom posters or in TV shows hide secrets; a lot of them are horrible.
10 DeLorean DMC-12
If the DeLorean had to be summarized in one word, it would be "infamy." While the story of the company and the person who ran it is very well-known among enthusiasts, everyone loves the DeLorean due to its appearance as a time machine in Back to The Future.
Off the silver screen, however, the DMC-12 is a notoriously terrible car. The 130 hp PRV V6 engine behind the driver only made 130 hp, meaning this was no sports car. It really deserved a better powerplant. The manual cars also had an extremely heavy clutch, and the unpredictable electronics could lock the occupants inside the car.
9 Aston Martin DB5
Just like the DeLorean, the DB5 got its 15 minutes of fame in the James Bond's series of movies, making its debut in 1964's Goldfinger. Since then, the DB5 has become pretty much the quintessential spy car, and it's currently worth millions.
It's a shame, then, that it's not very nice to drive. While the classic inline 6 engine produced a sonorous sound, laser precision and accuracy is required to shift the 5-speed ZF-supplied manual. The tires aren't up to the job in the corners, and neither are the seats, as they have almost no lateral support at all.
8 Triumph Stag
Though considered to be one of the best cars made by the once-automotive giant, British Leyland, that's really not saying much. Especially when the fact that most of their cars were awful is put into consideration.
Most of the problems with the Stag came from its 3.0-liter Triumph V8. Despite having access to the famous Rover V8, which is really a Buick 215, Triumph made their own engine. Constant overheating and warping cylinder heads were just a few of the problems.
7 Renault Dauphine
On the face of it, the Dauphine seems like a cool little classic car buy. Millions were produced, meaning prices are very low. It looks very cool, it's absolutely tiny, and thanks to the Gordini version, has tons of racing pedigree.
But, beyond the face of it, the Dauphine isn't exactly a car you'd want to own. The fact that it's slow is forgiven, as most cars of this caliber in the 60s were. We can't forgive the absolutely appalling rust problems that this car had though. Or its poor reliability.
6 Aston Martin Lagonda
In the late 1970s, Aston Martin owned the fallen-from-grace British luxury car brand Lagonda. They decided to revive the name to use on a full-size luxury sedan, similarly to what Mercedes-Benz is doing with the Maybach name nowadays.
The result was the aptly named Aston Martin Lagonda. The big wedge was very opulent and luxurious, but Aston Martin wanted it to be high tech and ahead of its time. In order to achieve that, they decided to fit a bunch of screens in the interior. They constantly failed, and replacements are near impossible. Someone swapped a Corvette V8 into one recently, which is bound to be an improvement.
5 Rover SD1
Many people consider the Rover SD1 to be the best car made by British Leyland, and others consider it to be among the best. Once again, this being British Leyland, that really didn't mean much in the long run.
The handling and powertrains weren't too bad, but the main problem came with build quality and reliability. British Leyland was simply incapable of producing a properly put-together car, and the SD1 was no exception. This extended to very important components, such as the suspension, which was prone to collapsing.
4 Cadillac Eldorado (Seventh Generation)
The Eldorado is one of those cars that define the American automotive industry. Back then, Cadillacs were considered the best of the best, and they were the definitive cars of the jet set.
The truth is, the seventh generation Eldorado is not a good car. The massive 425 ci V8 under the hood made less power than the current Ford Fiesta ST. Its piffling 180 hp is the same as the most powerful Fiat 500X (for good and bad), in fact. What's more, you'd be lucky to be right side up after a corner due to the intense body roll, and the interior materials weren't the best.
3 Lancia Gamma
Widely regarded as one of the most beautiful cars of all time, the Lancia Gamma was a fairly big deal for Lancia when it first debuted in the late 70s. It was meant to rival the established range of sedans back in the day, but it didn't do all that well.
Rust was an obvious issue, as every Lancia of this era rusted away to nothing if you looked at it funny. But, there were much more serious problems than that. For example, if you applied any unnecessary strain to the power steering pump, such as applying full lock, the whole car would just basically implode. This was due to the fact that the power steering pump was wired up to the left timing belt.
2 Subaru 360
In its homeland of Japan, the Subaru 360 was a perfectly adequate little kei car that sold tons of units and kickstarted the Subaru brand. Over in the United States, automotive mogul Malcolm Bricklin saw an opportunity and began importing the tiny 360.
Due to the car's incredibly low price and it being free from safety regulations, Bricklin saw it as viable to import. Pretty soon, it became one of the most hated cars in North America. There were two reasons for that; the total lack of speed and the total lack of safety. Nowadays, however, everyone loves the minute 360, especially Gran Turismo fans.
1 Volkswagen Type 1/Beetle
It's arguably the most important car in all of history. It was in production for almost a whole century. Everyone loves it. The Volkswagen Beetle really is a car that needs no introduction.
Even though everyone loves it and does just about everything to it these days, the Beetle is quite a bad car. It's extremely slow, it's loud and it's not very good to drive. Thankfully, the aftermarket support for the Beetle is pretty substantial, and you can do just about anything you want to it. From swapping a Subaru powertrain to making it fully electric.
Classic cars are all the rage at the moment. Everyone wants to drive one, and a lot of people want to own one as well. There are tons of classic cars that everyone loves, but these were just some examples of such cars that didn't exactly provide a good ownership experience.