Never judge a book by its cover. Yeah, yeah, yeah -- that's just something that ugly people say. I kid, of course. For automobiles, though, I generally believe that beauty is only skin deep, but ugly goes down to the bone. History is littered with ugly cars with few redeeming qualities (Pacers, Calibers, Azteks, Pintos, Cimmarons -- you get the idea).
There are a few ugly cars out there, however, that have some good things going for it -- the pre-2002 BMW M Coupe and Prius come to mind. But here, I present to you, the top three ugly cars that I'd consider buying. These are cars that are somehow able to overcome their styling to impress me enough with performance, quality and features that I can forgive and forget their appearance.
Porsche Panamera - I tested the Panamera Turbo last Thanksgiving, and I was definitely thankful. In terms of performance, the plus-sized Panamera had me speechless. Sure, I went into it with some rather strong styling prejudices, but those were quickly dismissed. It knifed through some of the toughest curves I could throw at it and the interior was one of the best I've ever experienced. People would point and look, perhaps to admire, maybe to scorn. I didn't care.
Ford Flex - Look! Down the street. It's a box. It's a Hearse. It's a refrigerator! Nope,
It's a Ford Flex. Maybe I'm showing my age, but I never understood the whole hipster boxmobile thing. If you ask me, the Flex, Scion xB and Nissan Cube look like the shipping container a car should arrive in. But the Flex's advantages far outweigh its styling (or lack thereof). Comfort, space and tons of useful features have me joining the Flex bandwagon.
2002 BMW M Coupe - It looked like a shoe, and not a pretty one at that. But man, could this thing move. Plenty of M Power to break the meaty rear wheels loose and
a 50/50 weight distribution provided countless hours of fun for me. I could place each tire's contact patch within an inch of where I intended as I slid sideways through the various autocross courses I used to haunt. To me, this was the last truly great BMW for the purist driver. The M Coupe had stability control, but it was fully defeatable. It also lacked navigation, iDrive iPod connectivity and other distractions that get in the way of pure driving enjoyment. One of these days, I think I'll have to get another one.
Have you got any ugly cars you love?
By ne1butu2
on June 11, 2010
06:10 AM
The Flex is one of those cars that came from a car company not known for being very adventurous with their mainstream cars. If they could just make the interior more interesting and get rid of that fake woodgrain, I'd really like to have one.
By billt9
on June 11, 2010
06:26 AM
The Panamera is beautiful and functional.
My opinion is I don't like your opinion.
By blueguydotcom
on June 11, 2010
07:24 AM
Most cars are fairly stepchildish/bland. The list of good looking is quite short (911, Cayman, current Aston Martins, last gen RX-7).
By cruiserhead1
on June 11, 2010
07:31 AM
agree with your list! Except the original Xb and JDM Cube, they have a certain cool factor.
By greenpony
on June 11, 2010
11:38 AM
I don't agree that any of these vehicles are all that ugly. The Porsche may be poorly proportioned, but it has those beautiful Porsche curves. The Ford looks well proportioned and substantial, despite being relatively small compared to other SUVs. The BMW looks tastefully unique; would you honestly say an X6 looks any better?
But of course everything dealing with opinions is subjective. So I offer my list:
1990 NSX
2006 STI
2009 GT-R
By wrinklebump
on June 13, 2010
06:18 PM
Girl I know drives an Aztek and it's actually a pretty comfortable ride
By ocramidajzj
on June 14, 2010
04:38 PM
I've seen a few Panemera's in person and can't agree with the ugly comment. They are beautiful too look at... period.
Then again I'm very much attracted to how a car looks so much so that I wouldn't be able to forgive a lack of style even if the performance was through the roof. A car may have balls to the wall performance but what's the point if you don't like looking at it.
But if pushed I'd have to say BMW Bangle designs. Despite some very tough to digest design elements they are still very capable cars.
By estreka
on June 23, 2010
11:33 AM
I think the Flex looks great, personally. I love sharp edges and taught lines. That being said...
Ugly car I'd buy:
Delorean DMC-12 - not a great-looking car, not a great-performing car, but wow!
Nissan GT-R - the front end treatment is awful and way too busy
Any Bangle BMW - they still drive like BMWs