Worst cars

We've all bought things that didn't turn out the way we imagined. Unlike other purchases, these problematic cars will stick around and frustrate you with frequent and costly repairs.

Automotive history has seen as many lemons as it has masterpieces. From shoddy engineering and ugly designs, to terrible reliability, a select few vehicles go down in history for all the wrong reasons. We look at the worst cars ever made, according to mechanics.

Behind dealership promises, certain cars conceal persistent flaws that emerge once warranties expire. Apart from value, they lose reliability and safety, as technicians see the same makes and models returning for major repairs that outpace their worth.

Not every car from the last decade was a gem. Some were boring, some were overpriced disasters, and others were so unreliable they became memes. Here’s a countdown of the 25 worst cars of the decade, starting with the mildly disappointing and ending with the absolute bottom-of-the-barrel.

Picking a first car shouldn’t feel like a pop quiz. You want something that won’t annihilate your budget, protect you when stuff goes sideways, and won’t live at the repair shop. Below are 15 cars we love for new drivers—and 15 we’d recommend avoiding—based on crash safety, reliability signals, and typical insurance costs. Buckle up.

From the notorious Pinto to sporty death traps that looked better than they performed, these are the most dangerous cars—the ones that made drivers (and insurance agents) break a sweat.