11 of the most meaningless cars of the last 25 years

It was a success. And it forced others to make SUV coupes. But we still do not understand this idea. Why put a hum higher first – but put a flat roof over it? The X6 today is also more reasonable, at the time it couldn’t do as well as an X5 and off-road – just show you’ve spent a lot of money on a small car. Well done of course, good means no.

Some blind buyers may have cried for their money on the first ride: the PT Cruiser let him down with enthusiasm in a grueling twelve seconds with a petrol engine and automatic transmission reaching 100 km/h. The spatial concept and design was comfortable, the ride was grueling: there was no trace of the cool cruise the style promised. It still ran in the USA. In more sophisticated Europe, the unrealistic looks weren’t enough: when Chrysler finally fixed the situation, the hype was dead, and the fact that Chevrolet’s HHR was trying to remake the same joke couldn’t change that.

Fisker Karma showed how to break the spell of an exciting exotic. Being bulky – a gift given style. But electrically it struggled with 2.5 tons. And if the electric range was 60 kilometers away in testing, the four-cylinder howling loudly for electricity spoke as a “range extender” (i.e. onboard power generator). Farewell, the feeling of luxury.

Focus Electric, a fired Ford employee, seemed to put it up for sale too early to get revenge on the last day of the job. At Blick, the headline was “Neanderstromer.” Of course, all electronic startups were difficult. But an electric compact with 145 hp and 117 kilometers of range in the 55,500-franc test whose weight ruined the chassis and battery loading area? And bye bye.

Because of the space, some families still swear by this bulging eye with a star that can only be met as an opportunity. It’s got a crazy space, yes. But the concept was very audacious: Six businessmen in luxury individual seats adventure through hills and valleys – now seriously? It has become more practical with the back row, but it has never looked so beautiful despite the makeup. Falling into the water, the sound of a cup. Since then, Mercedes has opted for the R issue to be listened to.

Maybe Mini had gotten too used to the fact that anything marked Mini was sold out. The Maxi-inflated Countryman at least sweetens the lesser mini with far more utility. The three-door SUV coupé Paceman can do almost anything worse than a regular Mini and still can’t go off-road. That was too much, even for sworn customers, only to expire after three years.

A small car with wide sliding doors was actually a great idea: The narrowest parking space is enough for it. Great – but Peugeot demanded a lot: the center door pillar was skipped for a good entry. Still to be safe from knocks, the doors got thicker, very heavy, hence electrified, even heavier – and eventually the 1007 was so heavy, expensive and thirsty that it had no customers. Too bad less would be more.

Nissan showed the way in America with the Murano: Nobody buys a convertible. Why is that? Because looks are important in convertibles – but you can’t push the rear any higher to fit the SUV on the top. The open Evoque tried anyway, then it looked like it had been cut with an angle grinder and fell to the floor. VW is currently trying the same thing with the T-Roc Convertible. Let see how is it going to be.

As with the stylistically sumptuous design art Avantime, which is useless in everyday life, Renault showed the sympathetic but senseless courage to make a void with Kangoo Be Bop. On the two-tone ultra-short Kangoo, the sunroof opened primarily above the rear passengers. It was fun to watch and would be ideal for a papal chaplain – but that’s about it. Be bop silently gave up for the Kangoo make-up.

The New Beetle was originally a funny disguise of an electric car run for the Detroit Auto Show. But instead of laughing, the audience cheered and asked for a production car – VW ate the salad. Because the shape of the old rear-engined VW is only a makeshift fit with the front-engine technology of the VW Golf III. What Fiat did with the 500 failed with the impractical so-called Neo Beetle at high prices. The Beetle found a lot of fans, especially in the US, but the Beetle never kept its word and was finally no longer profitable for VW.

The world has been waiting for this: finally an Aston Martin for the city centre! Initially, the clone of Toyota’s small cube car iQ would only be sold to Aston garages – so they wouldn’t have to buy cars that cost hundreds of thousands of francs to keep their customers on the move while keeping their sports cars serviced. . But with the traditional British brand, CO₂ emissions weighed on the mind and the wallet – Cygnet promised relief with its tiny 98 hp engine. Aston graciously decided to sell it to the crowd as well. Why didn’t he line up? 55,000 francs could have been the base price.