4. AMC Pacer

We've all seen Pacers in the Wayne's World movies, and that's probably as good an introduction as any. Available from 1975 to 1980, the Pacer was designed and promoted as "The First Wide Small Car," owing to the fact that its odd-looking bubble passenger compartment was as large as that of full-size cars of the time, allowing people more space than other compact cars did. When a car's biggest selling point is how wide it is, that's pretty strange.

Besides its non-traditional fishbowl design, the Pacer featured quite a few forward-thinking safety and handling features for a car of its time, but it was a heavier vehicle than most of its direct competition, and got "okay" but not great gas mileage — something that might have been important to buyers willing to take a chance on a weird-looking compact car in the mid-'70s. Now, of course, the problem is that driving one will subject a person to constant and terrible Wayne's World references.


3. Ford Fairmont/Mercury Zephyr

Introduced in 1978 and running into the early '80s, the Ford Fairmont and its clone, the Mercury Zephyr, make this list mostly because they're just so uninspired-looking and plain. If a car could be called "dowdy," these would definitely qualify. It's as if the designers, beaten down and depressed after years of a downturn from the glory period of American cars, just turned in the plans for these boxy, boring and plain ugly machines, probably thinking they'd hit rock bottom. If the auto designs of the 1960s had been exciting and a little dangerous, the car equivalents of being a rock star, the Ford Fairmont was the vehicular embodiment of working at the county clerk's office. Sure, it was a car and would get people around, but its uninspired styling made these look like something low-level Soviet officials might drive.


2. Chevy Vega

In 1970 Chevrolet introduced this economy car to its line, and it was a popular choice with the American public, selling in huge numbers in its first year. With just 80 hp under the hood in stock form, Vegas weren't going to light any fires in regards to performance, but they sold well enough to be considered a success for GM. Unfortunately, they soon acquired a reputation for having lots of mechanical problems, so the honeymoon was over. Major engine problems plagued Vegas, as did defective axles and problems with fires. The body was also famously prone to rusting, sometimes within only a year or two of purchase, and after three massive recalls, consumers grew tired of an underpowered vehicle that might rust out from under them if the engine didn't blow first. Production ceased in 1977.


1. Ford Mustang ll

Proving that Ford had wandered into a scary place by the early 1970s was its release of the Mustang ll, a second generation of the company's flagship pony car, but with no real connection to the Mustangs preceding it. Instead, Ford decided to base the design of the new Mustang on another "classic" — the subcompact Pinto. While the Mustang ll was popular initially and received some good reviews, it was soon clear that the cars weren't interesting enough to hold a warm spot in the hearts of America's car-buying public. They weren't fast and didn't handle well, and unlike with almost all other Mustangs, few people seem eager to restore or collect these models today.