The 1980s were a strange decade for car design. Automakers were caught between futuristic ideas, strict regulations, and cost cutting measures that often left cars looking more awkward than appealing. Sharp edges replaced curves, plastic body cladding was slapped on in excess, and some vehicles ended up with proportions that simply didn’t work. While the decade gave us some beloved icons, it also produced plenty of machines that turned heads for all the wrong reasons. These twelve cars represent some of the most notorious styling disasters of the era.
AMC Eagle SX4
The AMC Eagle SX4 deserves mention for being an early attempt at what we would now call a crossover. The concept of a lifted hatchback with off road capability was actually ahead of its time, but the styling never quite came together. The tall ride height clashed with the compact proportions, and plastic trim gave it a cartoonish look. In hindsight, it foreshadowed today’s crossovers, but in the 1980s it looked odd, and many buyers dismissed it as an experiment rather than something desirable.
Pontiac 6000 STE
The Pontiac 6000 STE was marketed as a European inspired sports sedan, but the design was clumsy and uninspired. Its blocky profile and awkward plastic cladding tried to suggest sophistication but only highlighted its lack of elegance. Inside, fake wood trim and flat surfaces did little to improve the impression. Compared to true European competitors from BMW or Mercedes, it came across as a cheap imitation that lacked both beauty and refinement.
Cadillac Cimarron
Cadillac stumbled badly with the Cimarron. Intended to be a compact luxury car to compete with the BMW 3 Series, it was little more than a Chevrolet Cavalier in disguise. Its boxy design lacked distinction, and no amount of Cadillac badges or trim could hide the fact that it was an economy car dressed up in luxury pretensions. The Cimarron has since become infamous as one of Cadillac’s biggest missteps, remembered for its uninspired looks as much as for its failure to live up to the brand’s name.
Hyundai Excel
Hyundai’s introduction to the American market came with the Excel. While it gained attention for being cheap, it looked the part too. With flat panels, generic lines, and no character to speak of, it seemed to have been designed with a ruler and little imagination. The Excel’s reputation for poor build quality only made its dull styling stand out more. It was meant to be a practical economy car, but visually it was a reminder of how far Hyundai still had to go.
Yugo GV
The Yugo GV was the cheapest new car in America during the 1980s, and it looked exactly like what it was: a budget hatchback designed with little care for style. Its stubby body and plain boxy shape made it look like a leftover from a previous decade. While buyers were initially drawn to its price tag, they quickly discovered that its appearance reflected its quality. It became a symbol of poor taste and bad luck, and its looks didn’t win it any favors.
Renault Fuego
Renault’s attempt at a sporty coupe came in the form of the Fuego. On paper, it had the right idea: sleek lines, a futuristic profile, and European flair. In reality, the proportions were awkward, with an insect like nose and cheap trim that aged poorly. The Fuego looked distinctive but never handsome, and its styling turned away as many buyers as its reliability issues did. It has since become a reminder that bold design doesn’t always equal beauty.
Dodge Omni 024 and Plymouth Horizon TC3
Dodge’s Omni 024 and its Plymouth Horizon TC3 twin tried to inject sportiness into Chrysler’s compact hatchbacks. Unfortunately, the wedge design and awkward bumpers made them look clumsy rather than athletic. Fake vents and cheap body kits added to the impression of trying too hard. These cars were supposed to give young buyers affordable style but instead ended up as some of the least attractive efforts of the decade.
Subaru XT
The Subaru XT was one of the most futuristic cars of its time, and that was both its strength and weakness. With a wedge profile, airplane inspired interior, and strange details like pop up door handles, it looked like it had landed from a sci fi movie. Yet futuristic didn’t mean attractive, and many found its proportions bizarre. It remains fascinating as an oddball experiment, but very few would call it beautiful.
Merkur XR4Ti
Ford’s Merkur XR4Ti was imported from Europe and had real performance credibility, but its styling left Americans scratching their heads. The hatchback profile and split rear window spoiler made it look ungainly. In Europe, its design had context, but in North America it seemed strange and unappealing. Buyers who might have considered it were turned off by its unconventional looks, contributing to its poor sales.
Oldsmobile Cutlass Calais
Oldsmobile’s Cutlass Calais epitomized the blandness of badge engineered compacts from the 1980s. Boxy, unimaginative, and devoid of personality, it carried a nameplate once associated with prestige but wore styling that was anything but. It looked generic on the outside and uninspired on the inside, failing to make any impression other than being forgettable. The Calais was a car that blended into traffic in the worst way possible.
Sterling 825
The Sterling 825, a British attempt at entering the American luxury market, was equally uninspiring. Based on the Acura Legend but poorly executed, it wore slab sided, dowdy styling that already looked old fashioned when it arrived. Its plain exterior, combined with dreadful build quality, ensured that it made no impact on buyers who had plenty of more stylish alternatives. It vanished quickly, remembered only for how uninspired it looked.
Pontiac’s Pre Aztek Experiments
Finally, Pontiac’s early experiments with crossover design in the late 1980s set the stage for the infamous Aztek of the following decade. While the production Aztek would not arrive until the 2000s, GM’s design direction was already visible in concept and prototype models. They were oddly proportioned, with melted plastic bodywork and minivan like shapes that were supposed to be adventurous but came across awkward. They hinted at the disaster that was to come, proving that sometimes even futuristic thinking can miss the mark.
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