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10 Car Design Duds
Innovative or ill-advised? You be the judge. Here are 10 cars that just never quite caught on.
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When writing about Nissan's Murano CrossCabriolet recently, I was reminded how difficult it is to create a new automotive concept -- and how harshly the market treats original ideas. The CrossCabrio is the ambitious -- or perhaps foolhardy -- attempt to create a crossover with a convertible top.
Bright ideas are hard to pull off. For every Chrysler minivan or Ford Explorer four-door SUV, there are dozens of one-hit wonders and new concepts that failed to catch on. The Pontiac Aztek, an unholy combination of minivan and SUV, is the classic example, but there have been many others through the years.
Willys Jeepster 1946-1950
A brave attempt by Willys to broaden the Jeep's utilitarian image beyond agriculture and forestry uses, the Jeepster featured a convertible canvas top, flat-topped fenders, and a 62-horsepower engine. But no four-wheel drive was offered, advertising was sparse, and fashion-seeking post-war shoppers with many more choices looked elsewhere. Fewer than 20,000 Jeepsters were built.
AMC Pacer 1975-1980
AMC billed it as the "first wide small car" because the two-door compact Pacer was more than six feet across. Car and Driver called it "the Flying Fishbowl." The Pacer had so much glass that backseat passengers got sunburned. Despite sparkling early-adopter sales, AMC's financial limitations and multiple engineering compromises doomed this original concept as it did earlier ones like the sawed-off Gremlin.
General Motors EV-1 1996-1999
The first modern mass-produced electric vehicle, EV-1 lost its reason for existence shortly after introduction when California loosened its requirements for zero-emission vehicles. Only 800 of the range-limited cars with outdated technology found customers. Losing thousands of dollars on each vehicle produced, GM discontinued the EV-1 and recalled them, suffering a huge public relations embarrassment in the process.
Suzuki X-90 1996-1998
A two-seat SUV with a T-top and four-wheel-drive, the X-90 was known as the "shoe car" to some because of its extreme rounded styling. Its ungainly proportions and limited functionality (it was equipped with a tiny 95 horsepower engine) consigned it to the dustbin of history after three years of production, during which just 7,205 made their way to the U.S.
Plymouth Prowler 1997-2002
