Ugliest Sportscar?

[Ozgur_Tan]

'80ies ferrari testarossa

[Excaliber]

How interesting, bugeye vs frogeye. I grew up in Oregon around TONS of English sports car and 'we' (family, friends, co-workers, etc.) always called them Bug Eye Sprites. I'm not sure if thats just a regional (state of Oregon) or a broader USA thing.

[thudmaster]

Ernie, it was frogeye in England and bugeye here. I had two of them. Both ugly but cute.

[Venamm]

Hey Mad,
The Porsche 914 was indeed different but it's beauty was it's handling....you grow to love them...lol

Ok for me The TR7 and 8..........The Javelin, sorry folks I know it has the ponies but it was butt ugly, Corvair was like a weird car science project gone bad, and the number 1 is "VW THING"

[STL Mark]

Originally Posted by CHRIS DAMSCH

Madmiles,

I use to love that Omni GLH Turbo. Not because it was a Shelby, It was just kind of cool in 86-87. There were a few around town that use to whip on the mustangs and camaros.

How about any camaro from 74-92?

You are so right. I had one of the GLH Turbos (Goes Like Hell) from new - and yea - whipping 5.0 Stangs and and Cameros, not to mention Beemers, Audi's, and most everything else from 1986 - was a thrill. That turbo whine - and smokin the FRONT tires was cool in '86. Everyone thought it was a VW Rabbit. So - OK - not the prettiest car on the lot - but it handled like it was on rails, and compared to today's tuner cars - it was way ahead of it's time.

[Trevor Legate]

It was always called the Frogeye in the UK - I know as I've owned 5 of the blighters. In terms of fun for your money, nothing gets close. Not fast but you never had to slow down too much for the corners either - and they were virtually indestructable (I tried - rallying, autotests, you name it). Too much fun to be ugly (like certain wimmin:-)

The Daimler SP250 was clearly designed by a committee, but any early racing Marcos makes me cry. I was about to suggest the Hummer, but that's obviously a gun emplacement on wheels, not an automobile.

[ffindling]

The first generation Mazda Cosmo Sport!!

....Fred

[Mark IV]

Originally Posted by Venamm

Ok for me The TR7 and 8..........

A well know designer, looking at the TR7 at a motor show, walked around it and exclaimed "Dear God, they've done it to this side also!!!"

[ffindling]

The TR7 suffered badly in British Leyland's downward spiral. Originally they
had planned to use the twin-cam 16 valve version of the Dolomite engine
in the TR7, but it wouldn't fit under the hood. BL management so haphazard
that clearance issues for the 16V Dolomite engine weren't checked before
BL began stamping out TR7 bodies. So they were forced to use the 8V single-
cam engine in the TR7. The Dolomite engine was a sound design but BL's
build quality was so appalling that many of these engines seized up shortly
after leaving the production line. Saab also used the Dolomite engine in
the 99 and it cost the company dearly as they had to replace countless
shortblocks under warranty in the cars. Besides the poor build quality of
the Dolomite engine, the rest of the car equally suffered from quality issues
to the point that the cars were falling apart when delivered to their dealers.
The TR7 was such a fiasco, that BL Chairman Sir Michael Edwardes put the
car out of its misery by cancelling production of it in 1981.

....Fred

[jamvan]

My vote goes to the old AMC Pacer - anybody remember it? Close second would be and of the "wedge" designed cars (ie. TR7, TR8, etc.)

Can believe that several people suggested the Shelby Series 1 and the TVR Griffith. I have owned a Griffith and currently own a Series 1 and think both cars are a work of art. But you are true, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Jim

[meat]

Originally Posted by MFE III

How about anything that was "Fiero" at one point in it's life?

I wouldn't go THAT far; the Corson 512BB was a pretty gorgeous.

Most of the other Fiero-based replicas are good because of their builders.

Your pal,
Meat.

[meat]

Originally Posted by jamvan

My vote goes to the old AMC Pacer - anybody remember it? Close second would be and of the "wedge" designed cars (ie. TR7, TR8, etc.)

Can believe that several people suggested the Shelby Series 1 and the TVR Griffith. I have owned a Griffith and currently own a Series 1 and think both cars are a work of art. But you are true, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I can't believe you think the AMC Pacer is a SPORTS car!

Your pal,
Meat.

[Tom Kirkham]

Kaiser Darrin Roadster
Muntz Jet

[Slick61]

Originally Posted by Tom Kirkham

Kaiser Darrin Roadster

I agree...

While the pocket doors were pretty trick for '54, the rest is kinda

[powerslide]

How about the original Marcos (circa 1960) designed by Jem Marsh and Frank Costin, the coupe version with the plywood chassis and gullwing doors, yikes!

[CSX 4039]

Maserati Mistral

[Russ Dickey]

Was this only for production cars, or can we count kit sports cars, too? Because my vote goes to the Dragon:







If they ever make a remake of the '80s TV show "Hardcastle & McCormick", this will be the car they use...

[wtm442]

By far, the ugliest car in my neighborhood is this one that is cooped up in the garage gathering dust while the snow flies. I'm sure there are others like mine! Its a crime against nature!

[Tom Kirkham]

WTM, I wouldn't throw that out of my garage for eating crackers

[Sharroll Celby]

How about Volkswagen's Type III Karmann Ghia? It's NOT the Karmann Ghia we all know, but a much more, shall I say, "interesting" design! lol