Top 10 Most Dangerous Cars Ever Made

A lot of imported cars make their way over to North America, including brands from Japan, Germany, and Sweden. Chinese-made cars weren’t exactly commonplace at trade shows, however… that is, until the Geely CK made history when it was shown to members of the press in 2006. This did little to increase the brand’s safety reputation, however, as it was repeatedly cited for possessing incredibly poor frame design. The body for the Geely CK was so reportedly so bad that it would collapse in situations of major stress, and the model was eventually phased out by 2016. Its spiritual successor, the Gleagle CK, is still currently for sale in China.

The next car on our list had a surprisingly long life for a model that repeatedly was the butt of industry jokes for its poor construction. The Pony was Hyundai’s first attempt at developing a car for the import market, and it did so at an incredibly affordable price. Unfortunately, this meant that most Ponies on the road were basically cheap rust buckets that couldn’t handle the weather and road obstacles present in the country where they were most popular: Canada. Poor frame aside, the Pony also had suspension issues, and rear-wheel drive which made them incredibly dangerous to drive in heavy snow or pouring rain. This Pony was a bust

The tagline for the Pontiac company may have been “we build excitement,” but in the case of the Fiero, a better slogan might have been, “we build trouble.” That’s because these popular cars were known for exploding or catching fire, thanks to malfunctioning connecting rods. These rods would break in cars that were either dangerously low on oil or driven extremely recklessly, resulting in hundreds of customer complaints and nearly a dozen injuries. Despite this, the Fiero still has plenty of fans on the second-hand market, many of which point to its performance and sporty look as a reason to defy death every day.

Sometimes, it’s not necessarily the car, and it’s not necessarily the driver, but a combination of the two. The Chevy Corvair became infamous for its inclusion in Ralph Nader’s book, “Unsafe at any Speed,” which accused most major car companies of choosing performance over safety. Nader pointed out the rear-mounted engine caused handling issues for owners who delighted in driving as fast as possible. This was true, but it wasn’t just the Corvair’s design that caused rollovers, as many other sporty vehicles could be susceptible to the same thing, should that same driver be behind the wheel. That said, the Corvair’s body design did passengers no favors should a rollover occur, while the aforementioned engine was prone to overheating and seizing.

There are few things more frightening than the bugs that plagued the next car on our list, the Audi 5000. That’s because the engines on this Volkswagen subdivision were prone to accelerating at a moment’s notice, resulting in hundreds of accidents and six deaths. This deadly defect was reported between 1983 and 1987, but an investigation actually revealed that many of these instances were due to operator confusion and error. That said, the Audi 5000 did possess issues with its idle-stabilizer system, and these errors did contribute to some acceleration complaints. The company tinkered with the design, and future Audi 5000 model years did not seem to possess this same issue.

Older cars are just bound to be plagued with more problems, right? Well, this is correct when it comes to the classic Ford Model T, and it all comes down to one boneheaded design flaw. The gas tank for this car, affectionately known as the “Tin Lizzie,” was located under the seat, effectively making it a bomb waiting to go off. What’s worse, the Model T’s style of windshield was extremely sharp, leaving the driver in some pretty rough shape, should an explosive crash occur. Does this stop the Model T from being an incredibly cool and vintage old car? Of course not, but antique collectors seeking to score one should probably drive with extreme caution.

The Isetta’s origins may lie in Italy, but the BMW redesign gave the phrase “dangerous driving” a whole new meaning. The Isetta was known as a “bubble car,” a single-cylinder mini that used a motorcycle engine, of all things. The BMW version beefed up their engine, but the Isetta’s inherent design, featuring a front-hinged hatch, was so small and thin that drivers were basically taking their own lives in their hands when driving one. You hit another car? Farewell forever. You hit a small tree? See ya in the next world. Clip that corner a little bit? Well, you may not die, but say goodbye to one of your lower extremities. You get the idea.

It was a bad car that succeeded in spite of itself. An absolute cultural icon that could’ve only been birthed in the wild and untamed 1980s. The DeLorean DMC-12 was named after the company’s founder, ex-GM exec John DeLorean, and was the definition of style over substance. For all of its looks, the DeLorean DMC-12 wasn’t very fast, nor could it handle very well. What it did have was those two bitchin’ gull-wing doors… doors that would lock whoever was inside, should their DeLorean rollover. Beyond this, the DeLoreans had alignment issues that resulted in excessive, dangerous tire wear, poor alternators, and a fiberglass frame that was simply NOT designed with high-speed accidents in mind.

You kind of know a car is bad when there are jokes almost immediately about its quality… or lack thereof. The Yugo was an import that boasted a cheap price tag, and even cheaper construction, with feedback criticizing issues such as its timing belt. Owners needed to replace these belts every forty thousand miles, with failure to do potentially resulting in a bricked engine. The Yugo GV was also slow as hell and unreliable in a crash, with the brand never really gaining a foothold in the United States. Yugo ultimately died a quiet death in 2008.

Before we name our number one pick, here are a few dishonorable mentions!

Kia Rio
The 2012 & 2014 Model Years Possessed Poor & Dangerous Seat Design

Chevrolet Cobalt
Prone to Fuel Leaks & Faulty, Fiery Ignitions

Toyota Yaris
Airbags That Didn’t Always Work & Loose Front Seats

The legacy of our number one entry is probably familiar to many consumers, even if they don’t consider themselves to be particularly knowledgeable about car history. That’s because the Ford Pinto is somewhat infamous for the location of its fuel tank: in the back. This resulted in fiery death traps, should the Pinto get rear-ended, but this wasn’t the only problem with the car. The Pinto’s suspension and drum brakes were also suspect, but the public just couldn’t let the fuel issue go. A recall was petitioned by the Center of Auto Safety, with Ford ultimately doing so voluntarily, against an impending hearing by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.