Although in our days it seems incredible, there was a time when getting behind the controls of certain cars was a challenge. The technological advances that the industry has been absorbing have made driving a vehicle a much lighter task today than it was decades ago, with plenty of driving aids and safety features available to drivers. .
Having said all this, and so that we all appreciate what we have at our disposal in the times we are living in, at AutoUsaPremium we are going to talk about the 10 most difficult cars to drive along the following lines. Luckily for the newest and for those who seek peace of mind behind the wheel, the vast majority are no longer on the market, so let’s see with “nostalgia” what they were.
You wouldn’t want to find them in your hands: the 10 most complicated cars
Once we have warmed up with the introduction of rigor to this post, it is time to get down to business and tell what those 10 cars were so difficult to drive, although perhaps your parents have already told you stories about them. to the mess
1. Citroen 2 CV
Despite the agility that it could appear thanks to its 600 kilos of weight, the truth is that it lacked a suspension hard enough to give the average driver guarantees when he got behind the wheel. To this we must add a body that leaned more than normal at each turn and wheels so narrow that they conveyed the same security as a monkey with a box of bombs in its hands.
The Citroën 2 CV began to be produced in 1948 with the purpose of motorizing the popular classes in the Old Continent after World War II. Despite what has been said in the previous paragraph, it was a complete commercial success, with millions of units sold during the time it was on the market (1948-1990).
2. BMW 323i E21
The BMW 323i E21 was a compact sports car that mainly lacked essential elements today, such as traction control., which in the late 70’s and early 80’s was a true utopia. Nor did it do him a favor to have a rear-wheel drive with the character he had. Its hard seats did not make the stay the most pleasant in the world and the driving had its things with a big jump between second and third gear.
It was associated with a 5-speed manual gearbox that gave it 143 HP of power and a maximum torque of 190 Nm. The maximum speed it could reach was 200 kilometers per hour and it took about 8.7 seconds to go from 0 to 100 km/h.
3.Chevrolet Corvair
Another rear-wheel drive vehicle that was quite a challenge for drivers was the Chevrolet Corvair, which had its propeller hanging from the rear axle and, consequently, all its weight was transferred to that part. The consequence when driving it was a great instability that made it behave practically like a pendulum. The worst was when the rear tires lost grip, since that was synonymous with spinning.
Nor could it boast of rear suspension, since its very primary scheme made the strongest support changes put the driver to study. To top it off, when it collided head-on, the steering column went directly to the chest of the user at his command. Fortunately, more than half a century has passed since it was discontinued.
4. Dodge Viper RT/10
The Chrysler group wanted to captivate, during the 90’s, the European public with a sports car that they considered refined and very sophisticated in the technical section. To do this, they entrusted their luck to the Dodge Viper RT/10, which enjoyed a powerful 400 HP of power and also an infinite maximum torque of 626 Nm. However, its shortcomings offset those excellent features that aroused emotions.
When grip was low it seemed like a runaway horse and without ABS it was more common than normal to stop on the gas and brake with great fear, which caused a sudden blockage of the four wheels and ended up colliding with anything that was put in front of it. Perhaps with a built-in stability control before the law mandated it, it would have saved several of these shortcomings.
5. Porsche 911 (1963)
In Stuttgart it also occurred to them to place the engine in the rear of a sports car such as the Porsche 911, but as it happened to others already mentioned, that ended up proving that it was not a good idea. The oversteer that occurred while driving was exaggerated, although in the United States it gained great fame precisely because of its great difficulty to drive.
When the accelerator was lifted or the brake was activated, the weight was immediately transferred to the front area, which in turn caused the rear to rise at each corner and its nose to go where the driver indicated with the weight supplied there. , but the rear wanted to go forward. With the introduction of stability control in 1994, everything changed for the better in this legendary car.
6. Plymouth Hemi Cuda
This vehicle from the 70’s boasted incredible mechanics worthy of the time: a large 7.2-liter V8 engine that made it enjoy some 650 HP of power and reached a top speed of over 225 kilometers per hour. . A nice car to look at that was fitted with cast iron drum brakes that went unnoticed at over 110 km/h.
So far so good, but the main problem was that their vinyl seats were slipperyThey lacked lateral support and that made life very difficult for the driver when taking a left-hand curve. In this way, he could end up perfectly in the passenger seat if the seat belt was not tightened as much as possible. To avoid greater evils, his torsion bars boasted thickness and prevented him from leaning too much.
7.Reliant Robin
A three-wheeled car is already amazing on its own, and the Reliant Robin was by no means an exception. This British vehicle gained particular popularity among older people, since it was designed to move around the city at low speeds. However, its simple physiognomy with only three tires was already a danger for the driver who handled it, because any curve taken at a higher speed than it should be synonymous with overturning.
For more curiosity if possible, in the United Kingdom it was listed as a motorcycle, which was not a coincidence considering the instability that burdened it. Of course, with the passage of time, the corners of its body received reinforcements to try to counteract these deficiencies.
8.Renault Dauphine
The colloquially known as “The Car of the Widows” in Spain could not be missing from this list. The Renault Dauphine arrived on the market in 1956 and received different names (Ondine or Gordini) depending on the market in which it moved. Like so many others explained along these lines, one of his sins was placing the engine on the rear axle, which was tiny and cost him blood, sweat, and tears to go from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour: he did it in half a minute. .
The nickname with which we have begun its description is due to the strange behavior of its rear suspension when it comes to getting along with the longitudinal propeller located in the same area. This translated into wedge, that is, the centrifugal force exceeded the weight of the car and made the outer wheel turn on itself at the supports when cornering..
9.Tatra 87
The Trata 87 is known by many as the forerunner of the Volkswagen Beetle. It came into the world in 1936 and the mythical people’s car decided to draw on its shapes and the design of its rear engine. It had an air-cooled V8 on board and the swinging suspension of some around here. He did not lack speed, but instability weighed him down. As a curiosity, the Nazis called it “The Secret Weapon of the Czechs” due to the many German officers who lost their lives when they began to drive it.
10. Trabant 601 (1963)
To end this post, we are going to talk about a car that, unlike several explained, contained front suspension. The Trabant 601 was successful in East Germany, with almost 3 million units producedbased on the guarantee offered by several of its benefits in exchange for an affordable price for the population.
However, it had the worst of front-wheel drive (understeer, more wear on the front wheels than the rear, some difficulty cornering) and would break apart as soon as it was in a crash.