Thread: What is the worst car you have ever driven?

Originally Posted by DoubleChevron

All these posts and not a single mention of the mighty Marina .... I had a coupe as a paddock bomb years ago .......................Best paddock bomb ever made, terminal understeer, terminal oversteer, bump steer, bodyroll induced oversteer.... It did EVERYTHING no car should do... Man it was fun ... it was hideous in every way, the only way I could get it to handle predictably has to push the clutch in mid corner, give it a big rev and side step it ............ This guaranteed massive oversteer

seeya,
Shane L.

Took a 2 door Marina from a caryard for a "test drive" once. Big six cylinder engine (think it was the same 6 as was in the P76), three speed on the floor, with a gear lever that I swear came out of a Massey Ferguson tractor.

A mate pulled up next to me at the lights in a souped up GTR Torana. When the lights changed - the Marina blew the doors off the Torana - but I never wanted to try it out around any corners.

Should have added a VG Valiant (on crossply tyres) Great in a straight line, but way over the speed limit - I was younger back then - the bendy bits were terrifying. There was no doubt that it wanted to take off and attack trees.
Above the 2 metre level...

I won't tell you what I was rac..., er, running away from, but it was front wheel drive, like a very large mechanical crab...and was souped up to the max.
He eventually passed me...

I don't exactly qualify, but I was the middle seat passenger in a Wosley 680 [ think that is it] six of us drove from Sydney to the coast, back in the day, there was a rope tied to the clutch pedal, my job was to pull the pedal up when the driver depressed it. Easy to do sober....... the exuberance of youth, Bob

most recent would be a 2003 Nissan patrol did Nissan sell them things with kidney belts? when something rides rougher then an unloaded kenworth then its bad.
worse car I have ever driven would be a Toyota 75series tray back diesel non turbo, it got passed going up a hill by a 80's Toyota dyna truck yes that slow, it was rough noisy and bloody slow uncomfortable pos that I would rather a low riding ford ranger as there more comfortable

Originally Posted by lyonsy

worse car I have ever driven would be a Toyota 75series tray back diesel non turbo, it got passed going up a hill by a 80's Toyota dyna truck yes that slow, it was rough noisy and bloody slow uncomfortable pos that I would rather a low riding ford ranger as there more comfortable

I agree that this model is quite sluggish not having a turbo and they are not so great on fuel. They are quite easy to drive and if you drive them hard you can get up the hills fast.
My grandpas one has really heavy duty springs on them and geez it is a hard ride

Reading the last post reminds me of one I had forgotten. 1965 Toyota FJ45V. I got one of these new as my company car for what turned out to be almost two years in the Simpson.

While it had plenty of get up and go compared to the Series 2 I had at the time, I missed having four gears, and despite being brand new the steering wandered all over the road compared to the Landrover, and got worse very quickly - the mechanical design of the steering linkage was seriously flawed. I ended up doing the trip from near Camooweal to the Alice with no windscreen, as, being a different screen to the FJ45, there were none available before then. On the job, I found another unique feature - when you hit bulldust deeper than the bumper, the vent above the windscreen directed this straight into the driver's face.

Out in the desert, with only 104" wheelbase, and long overhang, and single acting rear shockers, the ride was appalling - and it is the only vehicle I have ever had break all leaves in a spring. Then the bodywork started to fall to bits. Right from the start, the rear seat folded every time you hit a bump, but then sundry other body bits started to break, beginning with the tailgate hinges. Then the alternator failed - or rather the regulator did, and fried the battery in half an hour. Wheel studs broke with such regularity that we always carried half a dozen in the glovebox.

John

Originally Posted by carlschmid2002

I have just driven my Mum to Cairns and back to Mossman in her 2000 Ford Fiesta. Even though this is one of the best, if not the best drives in Australia, I can't help thinking what a horrible car. I would have taken the Defender but she doesn't like climbing in and out. About 6 years ago my wife and I needed a cheap second car and we only had budget of $4000 and it had to be auto. The only small car we could find in Brisbane at the time was a 99 Hyundai Excel auto. I swear the gear box was made out of rubber bands. After two rebuilds of the gear box some idiots in Lilydale Victoria actually stole it. Unfortunately it had a couple of good CDs in the glove box. I believe the reason these cars were so bad is not just the quality and reliability, (I am on a LR forum)it is the way they drive. They feel so vague and lifeless. I was told once that the designers in South Korea who designed these cars couldn't even drive. So I put it to you folks, What is the worst car you have ver driven?

I stand corrected, it is definitely a Festiva made by KIA

Originally Posted by DoubleChevron

All these posts and not a single mention of the mighty Marina .... I had a coupe as a paddock bomb years ago .......................Best paddock bomb ever made, terminal understeer, terminal oversteer, bump steer, bodyroll induced oversteer.... It did EVERYTHING no car should do... Man it was fun ... it was hideous in every way, the only way I could get it to handle predictably has to push the clutch in mid corner, give it a big rev and side step it ............ This guaranteed massive oversteer

seeya,
Shane L.

Look at posts 56, 59, 62, 65, 77 in this thread. All mention the Marina.