As far as automotive design goes, the 2010s was a pretty successful decade compared to, say, the 1990s. Over the course of the last ten years, we've seen the car designers embrace bold, daring shapes. One of the main trends was the transition to a universal sporty style - for better or for worse.
30 years ago, you had luxurious cars that looked luxurious (think old Bentley and Mercedes cars) alongside sports cars that looked sporty and economy cars that looked, well, economical. Nowadays, it seems that all cars have to have some sporty elements in their styling, especially luxury ones. Unfortunately, this approach didn't turn out well on all cars.
In this article, we're going to look at some examples of such design failures - and only at them. Believe it or not, even such a good-looking decade as the 2010s still has plenty of skeletons in the closet. Allow us to present the ugliest cars of the last decade.
15 2010 Honda Crosstour
We'll start out list with, probably, the least offensive design to prepare you for what's coming next. The Honda Crosstour is a very practical vehicle that is not exactly ugly. However, it's extremely disproportional. This is most visible in the side profile: the front end starts off fine, but then it makes this weird upward curve and culminates in an unnecessarily bulky rear end. No wonder that this enormous hatchback was discontinued after only a few years.
14 2016 Toyota Mirai
The latest generation of the Mirai is really striking if you ask us. Sadly, the same cannot be said about the 2016 model. All these sharp lines and creases just look weird, especially in such a compact car. It might have had an amazing, cutting-edge hydrogen powertrain, but the looks hardly suggest that.
13 2012 BMW 5 Series GT
The fastback GT version of the BMW 5 Series definitely was a nice concept - a roomier, more practical version of the solid 5 Series sedan. However, the execution wasn't as great. In front, it looks fine, just like a normal 5 Series. But then we get to the rear end and - mein Gott, what on earth is this? The whole trunk area looks very similar to BMW's coupé SUVs - which is not exactly a compliment.
12 2011 Nissan Cube
Boxy styling is very tricky to pull off. You either do - like Mercedes with the G-Wagen and Suzuki with the Jimny, or you don't. The Nissan Cube falls into the latter category. It looks like a cartoon car, which might be attractive to its target buyers. Objectively, however, it looks simply bad.
11 2014 Jeep Cherokee
The latest generation of the Jeep Cherokee has almost nothing in common with its rugged 1980s predecessor, which is now known as the Grand Cherokee. The Minor Cherokee has neither the off-road capabilities of the senior model nor the badass looks. Unless Jeep considers the Baby Shark-inspired front end as badass, that is.
10 2011 Honda Element
Remember what we said about the Nissan Cube? The same axiom about the boxy styling applies to the Honda Element, as well. It looks a bit better due to its larger size, yet it makes up for that with the weird suicide quarter door situation. The unpainted plastic panels on some of the trim levels only add to the ugliness. But hey, at least it was dog-friendly.
9 2013 Acura ZDX
We have to hand it to Acura designers - the ZDX looks quite futuristic. Still, that doesn't mean that it's pretty. Ironically enough, the ZDX is very similar in its proportions to the Honda Crosstour with the same upward-curving side profile and the elevated rear end. Not a flattering comparison, as you can guess.
8 2011 Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet
The regular Nissan Murano SUV was not a bad-looking car. In fact, it was quite stylish for its time. The convertible CrossCabriolet version, on the hand, leaves us baffled. We have only two questions in mind. Why did they think that a convertible SUV was a good idea? And did they really think that it would be even hypothetically possible for a convertible SUV to look good? Seems like we'll never know.
7 2011 Chevrolet HHR
The Chevrolet HHR was born out of the strange early-2000s retro-styling trend - same as the Chrysler PT Cruiser, the Plymouth Prowler, and other vehicles that are consistently ranked as the ugliest ever. Since then, the designers have learned their lesson - and in the case of the HHR, the lesson is don't mix square and round shapes.
6 2010 Lincoln MKT
The 2010 Lincoln MKT is not just ugly - it's outright scary. Just look at this gigantic front grille - doesn't it look like it wants to eat you alive in all of its suburban middle-class fury? Apart from the grille though, it's not that bad and would've looked great as a station wagon. Sadly, it had to be an SUV.
5 2014 Lamborghini Veneno
Lamborghinis are known and loved for their aggressive, angular, fighter jet-inspired looks. One could even argue that they are quite stylish - but definitely not in Veneno's case. It's too angry, too fussy and too over the top - a true supercar cliché that belongs to Hot Wheels and not to actual roads. Dear Lamborghini designers, remember: less is more.
4 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupé
The car world seems to agree that the coupé-styled SUVs are ugly and dumb. And there is no better evidence to this statement than the 2016 Mercedes GLE Coupé. It saddens us that Mercedes, a company known for its stately, elegant luxury cars, had to build this bloated atrocity. The styling was improved a bit in the 2019 model, yet it's still far from being beautiful - just like most other coupé SUVs.
3 2018 Toyota CH-R
For some reason, the CH-R has been praised by critics for it's bold, striking styling. We agree that it's bold, but we definitely wouldn't praise it. The main issue is that the CH-R is extremely inconsistent and overstyled, especially in the rear. It even seems like three different people designed the front, the middle and the rear of the car, and Toyota then simply put it together.
2 2010 Peugeot 508
It breaks our hearth to call the Peugeot 508 ugly - because just it looks so sad! While the 2018 model looks sharp, sporty, and elegant, its predecessor looks like a plastic toy that has stayed in the blistering sun for a bit too long. Simply compare it to the Citroën C5 which shares the same platform, and you'll see that Peugeot designers didn't even try.
1 2011 SsangYong Rodius
Here is is, ladies and gentlemen, the ugliest car of the 2010s! Only a lazy person hasn't slammed the Rodius for its atrocious styling. It's long, big, tall, and the rear end looks like it was borrowed from a minibus. Apparently, the styling was supposed to resemble a luxury yacht. Newsflash - the Rodius looks nothing like that. What it looks like is a design failure.