We’re approaching the time of year when the nightmarish becomes a reality as the UK takes on an American tradition to celebrate Halloween. But the very scary is not reserved for ghosts, ghouls and the world of the supernatural. Over the years, the automobile industry has been no stranger to a few frightful sights itself. 

Horrible Car Designs​

In this post, we’re going to take a look at some of the most terrifying car designs to ever become a reality. These days, vehicle manufacturers spend millions on vehicle research and development, but as you’ll see from some of these horror shows, that was not always the case. 

1. Austin Allegro

The Austin Allegro was a product of the malaise of British Leyland in the 1970s and represents a nadir in British car manufacturing. Created in 1973, the Allegro was rushed into production to replace the top-selling but outdated Austin 1100, and it shows. 
The design of the Allegro fell below the expectations of customers both inside and out. With its bulbous lines, hideous ‘Quartic’ steering wheel and a complete lack of practicality throughout, the Allegro was not exactly a favourite with customers. Add to that a higher price than the competition, the constant threat of breakdown and a range of asthmatic engines and it’s clear why this horror had to feature on our list. 

This A road running from Gwynedd, Wales into England was recently listed by the RAC as one of the worst in Britain when it comes to phone coverage. That means, if you break down on this stretch, summoning help could prove pretty tricky. Even 3G and 4G are inaccessible on this Welsh road.

3. Chrysler PT Cruiser

 This is the sort of car that no one dreams of owning, and if they did, they’d wake up in a hot sweat. A real ugly duckling, the Chrysler PT Cruiser, also available as a cabriolet in case you want to draw more attention to yourself, not only looked terrible but also suffered from a lack of refinement and poor quality cabin. The result was a driving experience completely devoid of enjoyment. 

4. Reva G-Wiz

Now credit where it’s due, as an electric vehicle, at least the designers of the G-Wiz were trying to solve a problem when they designed this characterful but useless little car. But actually what they created is not a car at all. The G-Wiz is classified as a quadricycle, which means it avoided the crash safety tests all cars have to undergo before they are allowed on the roads. 

So, as well as crumpling like a tin can in a crash, the G-Wiz is also very slow, very uncomfortable and very small, making it one of the least desirable vehicles ever to be seen on British roads. Thankfully, with only a 40-mile battery range they were very rarely seen at all. 

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