84 Fiero...if you can consider this thing a "sports car"

 

I would have to say my second car. A 1974 Triumph Spitfire. I owned it for six months and was able to drive for three, I affectionately called it the sh_t fire.
Let me see where to start, the car came with a bent drive shaft, which needed to be replaced. It took a month for the part to come over from England. The transmission had a chipped reverse gear so when backing up the car would hesitate or buck, that took two weeks to fix. Then the second gear synchronizer retaining ring broke and I lost second gear Synchro that took another two weeks to get the part. At that point I told them to put the transmission back in with wing nuts so they could take it out easier next time. The dealer installed the optional radio for me inproperly which burned the wiring harness all the way up to the firewall. The inside door handle broke off during the rainy season, so I have to roll down the window and open the door from the outside handle. It took another two weeks to get a door handle. The light switch on the dash broke and that they had in stock. Don't get me wrong being in high school I did love this car the girls loved it too but with all of 56 hp and all these problems I traded it in on a 1974 Mazda RX-3 and got money back on the deal because of the Mazda purchase program.
Ron

 

Many years ago I had an AWD, turbo Mitsubishi Eclipse. Mitsubishi had a beautiful car with impressive handling and a nice power band. The car was ahead of it's time as far as making the power band even and minimizing turbo lag (at the expense of a high rev range though). The relatively light weight, AWD and wishbone suspension at all 4 corners made for an impressive handler while still retaining a decently comfortable highway ride. The AWD also allowed this car to be a lot of fun in the snow.



However, it was such an incredible piece of junk that it made the car very difficult to enjoy. It had electrical problems with the stereo, the sun roof, the charging system including a flakey alternator.

Mechanically, the car never stopped rattling. The suspension, sun roof, dash board and who knows what else would make a never ending symphony of annoying squeaks and clunks. The block was iron but it used aluminum heads, so naturally it would warp the heads. It suffered through various oil leaks which lead to multiple replacements of the timing belt. I don't know how they screwed up the clutch hydraulic system, but I had to replace a slave cylinder once. The car had notoriously weak crank bearings, leading to what is affectionately referred to as "crank walk". Luckily I didn't experience that. There were many seals that can fail around the rear of the car, any one of which will lead to a nice swimming pool in the spare tire well after a rain or snow melt.

These cars are really rare to see on the road these days for such a popular and relatively new car and I don't wonder why.

 

I was thinking the same thing

 

My first car was a 1969 TRIUMPH GT6+. The build quality rivaled the "clever" engineering for not just being bad, but for a marked departure from sanity. It was though they some how forgot we helped them win the war. For those to young to remember, this car had a short stroke IL6 derived from the TR6 with two underwhelming Zenith Strombergs, (which came, most likely, from a tractor or taxi) and was basically a spitfire with a hard top/hatchback. I can't begin to describe just how ludicrous the switches were designed, it is remarkable that they did not fail more quickly then they did, which was continual. The rear suspension defies description, it really must be seen to be believed, a rubber donut with cast yokes replacing the u joint on the outside end of the half shaft requiring the shocks to be mounted to the body. Seeing it is truly a WTF moment. (this is a car with a full frame, not unibody) The Leacock DeNormanville electric overdrive is the best example of where their heads were at and speaks alot about the British car industry at that time. It was the only car I have owned that modeled such unreal consistency throughout every system and material used, i.e. extremely poor. I have had alfas with gear that seemed robust in comparison. The benefit is, naturally, everything is better than that car, and prepared me for the many e-types I have owned. I rationalized many a car purchased (including my AM), with "It can't be any worse than the Triumph.."

 

My least favorite was a 2004 Terminator Cobra. It wasn't that it broke down, it was just a poorly designed car. Seats sucked and the shifter was basically in the console. What the hell was up with that, Ford?

 

My first car was also a '69 Triumph GT6+. There were times when it was such a rush to drive, with that straight six pulling like a team of stagecoach horses up front. But...I still remember 40 years later...replacing the clutch after pulling the gearbox out through the passenger door, discovering along the way that the hump was made of some kind of cardboard. I remember the challenge keeping the windows from fogging up in the rain because there was always water on the INSIDE of the car. I remember the impossible heat build up on hot days as the bulkhead felt like hell itself was on the other side of an eighth-inch of tin. I remember explaining to a date that I'd only just replaced the water pump a couple of weeks ago, so I have no idea why it failed. I remember...

 

1972 (I think) MG midget... Tons of fun when it worked, which was rare.

 

I have to say a toss-up between my 62 MGB and my 69 TR6. Both great fun but next to impossible to keep running!

 

93 911, worse piece of junk, leaked oil ALL the time. Engine rebuilt at 10k miles and again at 12k (Bad rebuild, not cars fault). A/C worked in winter, rarely in summer (lived in Fla). Seat cover on driver side split and a bunch of little things that I do not remember.

2 happiest days, day I bought it and day I sold it.

 

That's funny you say that. I liked my 2003 Cobra more than my 2005 DB9.

 

Well it is good to know that by the time my 1974 Spitfire was produced, not much had changed. I do know that they redesign the rear suspension I believe in 1973, so my car handled very well. My car did not have the optional overdrive and I remember on the highway wishing that I had it. Like others have said, on a sunny day with the top down it was a fun little car for the six months that I owned it and the three months I was able to drive it. Funny enough my 65 E -type that I've had for 12 years has never let me down mechanically, true I drive it sparingly and only in good weather.
Ron

 

The worst car I have ever owned was a 1975 Corvette. In the first 6 months I owned it was in my possession less than 6 weeks. All 4,fenders had to be reseamed and repainted. The gas tank had a rubber liner and it collapsed when my wife was taking or son to emergency room. The car indicated a full tank but ran out of gas. One of the mechanics at the dealer sat down in the driver's seat with a screw driver in his back pocket. When the new seat skin came it wasn't a match so they ordered another. When it came they put the box on the hood of the car. The scratched hood now had to be repainted.

How about a tread on the best car you ever owned. My would be a Superformance Cobra. It was fast, beautiful,easy to work on and turned more heads than anything else I have ever owned.

 

Interesting there must be some link between owning a triumph GT6 as a first car and now owning an Aston. My first was a 71 gt6 but it I would never consider it the worst sports car I've owned. In fact despite having countless triumphs, a tiger,a Cobra replica, a Miata, a Mini and a Lotus Evora I really can't say any was bad. Like the pain from childbirth gets forgotten so does the roadside rebuilding of a half shaft u-joint or billowing smoke coming from behind the dash as you drive gets forgotten as soon as you get on a twisty back road. If I had to pick my most undependable car it clearly was a 94 Jag XJS Which its first 2 yrs was in the shop over 40 times. I virtually never had to wash or vacuum it because the dealer did with every service. Thankfully It was new and under warranty and I only had it 2 yrs

 

Sports car? Kind of... In 1999 I had an unrestored 1967 Camaro Convertible. The tired old 327 could only spin the tires in wet grass. If it rained, you were getting wet. If you took the top down be ready to catch little bits of rust from the windshield frame. I should have kept it and restored it, an all original 67 convertible is worth a decent penny. But of course I was dumb and traded for some kind of go fast that didn't last me a year.