April 3, 2000

2:35 PM

CarTalk's Worst Cars of the Millennium...teehee!
posted by veruca (9 comments total)

Ah, memories... my first car was #2, the Chevy Vega (a car so mean-spirited its muffler fell off as I was driving it to the dealer to trade it in for a Datsun B210). I'm just surprised the Hyundai Excel didn't make the top 10: mine gave me the unique experience of having the transmission linkage come loose in traffic, causing the SHIFT KNOB TO DROP THROUGH THE FLOOR OF THE CAR AND DRAG ON THE STREET. Can anybody top that?
posted by wendell at 5:23 PM on April 3, 2000

I had a wheel come off my dad's 1972 BMW Bavaria. I steered over to the sidewalk on three wheels and an axle, at an odd angle, the axle dragging on the ground, making this awful noise and throwing up sparks, fireworks even.
I watched the wheel bounce into traffic in my rear-view mirror.
Then, in a John Hughes flashback, I sat clutching the steering wheel, shaking, repeating "I killed the car. I killed the car."
posted by lbergstr at 5:33 PM on April 3, 2000

I was learning to drive stick from my girlfriend (oh! the humiliation!) in her '72 Pinto (ah, forget that earlier humiliation, this was worse). Imagine my surprise when halfway through a stoplight intersection, I shifted, and the gearshift came loose in my hand.
posted by dhartung at 7:23 PM on April 3, 2000

All of you are rembering your first cars while I sit here almost 20 years old and still dont have a car. I think I may shoot my self in the foot so i cant walk anywhere and my parents will have to buy me a car.
posted by cmeck33 at 1:08 AM on April 4, 2000

My first car was a Mini, the floor fell out on the motorway at 60mph, my feet were left hovering over the pedals as the cars behind swerved to avoid a large piece of rusty metal.
posted by Markb at 1:12 AM on April 4, 2000

Wendell, in your years with a license you progressed from a Chevy Vega to a Hyundai Excel? I hope your friends don't bring you car-shopping.
posted by werty at 6:47 AM on April 4, 2000

74 Pumpkin Orange VW Bug, windsheild wipers that were difficult to turn on, then once on, wouldn't turn back off. A driver's seat that wouldn't stay confindently in one position when brakes were applied heavily (which, being very bad, they often were). A big hole in the back seat floor that I could use to soak passengers by running over puddles at high speeds; also convenient as ashtray. A battery under the back seat that would cause the seat stuffing to catch fire if there were any weight bouncing on it. No heat. No muffler. A tape deck with the Sugarcubes "Life Is Good" stuck in it for four months.

I finally sold it when I went to college (for about 50 bucks) and this bratty snot-nosed kid I used to babysit when I was in junior high school bought it and totally tricked it out, carzy VW Bug style. Go figure.
posted by jennyb at 8:49 AM on April 4, 2000

Grrrr... i before e...
posted by jennyb at 8:50 AM on April 4, 2000

My friends don't bring me ANYTHING-shopping. If I could get back all the money I've wasted AFTER buying the wrong car/computer/stereo/tv/refrigerator/etc./etc., I'd be a rich man - but then, I probably would have invested in drkoop.com...
posted by wendell at 8:50 AM on April 4, 2000