Can You Identify These Ugly Cars from the '80s?

Brian Whitney

Image: Wiki Commons via Bull-Doser

About This Quiz

The '80s were a pretty good time for a lot of us, but looking back, some of the styles from that decade were pretty awful. Some of the ugliest designs of all had to do with cars. But it wasn't just cars. The '80s were the time of incredibly bad hairstyles, including the mullet. It was an era when acid-washed jeans were thought of as cool, and people were even wearing MC Hammer pants. It was the decade of shoulder pads, Members Only jackets, fanny packs and carrying a boombox on your shoulder. There was no way everything that decade could be so tacky without cars being affected by it too.

The '80s might have been the worst decade for the design and look of cars of all time. Even brands like Rolls-Royce and Cadillac were making ugly cars, so you can imagine how horrific looking the cars put out by Ford and Chevy looked. And some smaller dealers from overseas were really putting out some awful stuff. 

We've put together some photos for you to check out of some of the most hideous cars of the decade, and we sure had a lot to choose from! Can you identify ugly cars from the '80s from a photo? Take this quiz to find out. 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but this car is just ugly. Can you name it?

This car made luxurious seem not luxurious at all. And what is up with that back end? The Seville was manufactured from 1975 to 2004. It was originally supposed to be called the Cadillac Leland.

Can you tell us what gorgeous ride this is?

The Skylark used to be kind of cool until the '80s. It was made in six production runs over 46 years. It had numerous different designs, all of which were made to keep up with the times.

Can you name this car from the '80s?

The Caravelle was. in theory, named after a Portuguese sailing ship, but the name was spelled just a bit wrong. This is fitting for this car that didn't do much right. The Caravelle was first introduced in Canada in 1983.

Which ugly '80s car was this?

This was introduced to compete with Mercedes and Jaguar. Needless to say, it didn't. It was only produced for six years, and only around 21,000 of them were made during its production run.

Can you identify this car?

These cars were known for running forever and going for hundreds of thousands of miles, They weren't known for being good looking though. The current VW Golf is the new version of the Rabbit.

Does this car ring a bell?

This car was not good looking, even a little bit. It also was recalled numerous times by the government. Not a good combo. The name "Omega" was to imply this car was the "last" car you would need, as Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet.

Might you be able to name this car?

The Facet was built by Glenfrome as a re-bodied Range Rover aimed at the Middle Eastern market. The only problem was, it was incredibly ugly. Glenfrome did build some good looking cars though, such as the Delta.

Does this ugly car ring a bell?

It seemed like just about everyone either had a Ford Tempo or knew someone who did back then, even though they were ugly. This car was the same vehicle as the Mercury Topaz.

Here is another ugly car. Can you name it?

This was supposed to be a sports car. The only problem is, sports cars are supposed to be good looking. This car was extremely unreliable and did very poorly with sales.

What about this hideous ride?

This car was supposed to look like something from the future. It just looked like something ugly. It was called the Alcyone in Japan, and the Vortex in Australia and New Zealand.

Which '80s eyesore is this?

What was going on with Chevy back then? Did they have any cars in the '80s that weren't ugly? The Citation was one bad looking car. It was developed as the replacement for the Nova and was the first Chevy to have front wheel drive.

Might you be able to name this car?

Zimmer was a car manufacturer based out of New York that specialized in "neo-classic" automobiles. At its high point, Zimmer Motorcars Corporation employed 175 people and generated $25 million in annual revenue.

Can you name this car from this photo?

You know when something is supposed to be luxurious and fancy but it really just looks totally ugly? This is it. The "Executive" was only made from 1983 to 1986 and never captured much of the market.

What about this horrible-looking car?

This car was expensive, and at the same time, looked awful. Not the best combination. This was a Ford Escort under a different name and was dropped after sales went south, although, at one point, it was Mercury's best-selling car.

Can you name this unpleasant-looking car?

It is kind of amazing that anyone would have wanted to buy the Phoenix in any decade. Many say the Phoenix was the start of Pontiac's downfall. This car was named after the mythical Phoenix who died in a fire and was reborn from its ashes.

Can you name this car?

This was pretty much the cheapest car you could buy in the U.K. — and for good reason. It was awful. Škoda is a car manufacturer from the Czech Republic. The company was founded in 1895.

Can you identify this car by its photo?

Just because something is expensive doesn't mean it's pretty. This discontinued Rolls-Royce, based on the Rolls-Royce Camargue, proves that for certain. Sbarro is a small Swiss car manufacturer that specializes in sports cars and replicas.

Can you name this unappealing ride?

This subcompact lasted from 1983 to 1987. French cars might be a lot of things, but they aren't usually boring. This one was.

Can you figure out which car this is?

The DeLorean is not a high-performing car. It's also ugly. There. We said it. This model was the only one DeLorean ever produced. The company ended up in bankruptcy.

Can you identify this car from the '80s?

Sterling was manufactured in Britain and only lasted a few years in the U.S., possibly because they were so ugly. It was known as the Rover 800 series in England.

By looking at the photo, can you name this car?

This was supposed to be a tiny jeep, but it was more a big risk to roll over. It was also totally ridiculous-looking. The Samurai is dead in the U.S but lives on in other areas of the world under the names of the Sierra, the Katana and the Jimmy.

Can you identify this future beater?

The Fiero was known for awful performance. It was also known as an ugly attempt at a sports car. Despite all of its flaws, this car was a top seller for a little while.

What about this mediocre-looking '80s ride?

Cadillac has always been known for having cars that are large, and, in theory, rather luxurious. This was Cadillac's attempt to go midsize, but it just ended up looking like a Chevy Cavalier. Fail.

Can you identify this vehicle?

This is another car that was just basically an ugly Cavalier, except it cost way more. It was produced between 1982 and 1988 before fading away.

Can you name this car by the photo?

There are ugly cars, and there are ugly station wagons. The Eagle managed to be both. On the plus side, the Eagle is known as the first crossover vehicle, as they were the only four-wheel-drive passenger vehicle of the time.

Which ugly car was this?

Maybe this car looked like it was top of the line back in the '80s but now it just looks kind of silly and certainly makes the ugly cut. The LeBaron started as a luxury car way back in the 1930s.

Can you name this bad-looking ride?

The Cougar used to be really cool-looking back in the day. Then the '80s happened. When the Cougar was first made in the '60s, it was supposed to look like a Ford Mustang.

Can you identify this '80s car?

Chevy Chevette is one of the worst names ever for a car. But then again, it was also one of the worst-looking cars. For a couple of years, the Chevette was the best-selling small car in America.

What is the name of this ugly car?

In the '80s, many people thought this car looked cool — but they thought the same thing about mullets. An eariler, cooler version of the Dodge Charger was the car used as the General Lee on the show The Dukes of Hazzard.

Can you identify this good-looking ride?

What was this supposed to be? The Cavalier was half-compact, half-sedan, and all ugly. It was introduced to replace the Chevy Monza in 1982, and was, in turn, replaced by the Cobalt in 2005.

What is the name of this '80s ride?

The Geo Metro is one ugly car. This was one of the worst cars in existence at the time. It was manufactured by General Motors to compete against the wave of European imports in the '80s.

Can you name this beauty?

The Yugo was the product of a car manufacturer in Yugoslavia called Zastava automobiles. Popular in its homeland, the vehicle's emissions and safety systems had to be drastically improved for sale in America.

How about this ugly car?

This car was originally a product of the Soviet Union, and its line ceased production in the early 2010s.

Can you name the car in this photo?

This car was just your average tiny hatchback, except it was even more awful to look at than most. Just a very boring car when it came to looks. One thing not boring about the Justy is that it did pretty well as an off-road vehicle.

By looking at the photo, can you tell which car this is?

This British car was supposed to be. a family car, and was exported to Europe, New Zealand, China, India and other countries. This car was phased out in 1988.

Which ugly car is this?

It isn't that this car is all that ugly; it is more that, as an Alpha Romeo, it should have been gorgeous — and it wasn't. Alpha Romeo is an Italian sports car manufacturer that has been involved in racing since 1911.

Remember this car from the '80s?

The words "Triumph" and "Acclaim" might make you think this car wasn't a total dog. But it was. This car was made in England and production only lasted from 1981 to 1984.

We know it isn't pretty, but do you know what it is?

This car was not only ugly, but it also had another problem: It was known to rust like crazy. Just a bad car. It was the first front-wheel-drive car ever produced by Hyundai.

What is the name of this car?

Ricardo Montalban famously starred in the commercial for Chrysler's 1983 LeBaron series, claiming that "You are about to be seduced" by the vehicle. This convertible "woody" version featuring fake teak siding was ... interesting at the time — and nowadays, its fugly looks may actually generate more smiles than any modern vehicle you could take for a Sunday drive.

Can you identify this '80s vehicle?

Some cars were bad mechanically, and some just looked bad. The Kia Concord managed to do both. Kia is South Korea's second-largest automobile manufacturer, second to Hyundai.

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