Muscle Cars that Fell to the Bottom

When it comes to muscle cars there was a time when these were the cars that offered the most power, the best way to take on the track and easily outpace others, at least in a quarter-mile race.  As time went on it seemed the muscle cars might survive, and many that even make on this list of the worst are ones we would want to drive, but when compared to the heyday of the muscle car these models just don’t make the cut.  Let’s take a look at a few that were at or near the worst muscle cars ever built.

1982 Pontiac Trans Am – Even though this car was chosen to be KITT for the Knight Rider it certainly left a lot to be desired.  The car has the looks with the right form and beautiful build but when you looked under the hood it left a lot to be desired.  Because of the time period and the regulations in place what you got was a 2.5-liter 90 horsepower four-cylinder engine for the base model or a 5.0-liter V8 that only made 165 horsepower to put it on the list of awful performers.

1974 Pontiac GTO – The GTO was one of the fiercest muscle cars when it showed up in 1964 but by 1974 it has been watered down a lot.  Originally this was an option package for the Tempest that eventually became its own model, but by 1974 it was an option for the Nova.  The V8 engine only made 200 horsepower and was an engine used by every division of GM.  The only parts that even made you know this was a GTO were the hood scoop and the lettering on the car to make this one of the worst muscle cars of all time.

1978-79 Oldsmobile 4-4-2 – This car gained notoriety in the 1960s and was one of the best muscle cars ever made.  When it came to this version it was hard to see the designation except in the version that had a four-barrel carburetor, a four-speed manual and only two doors.  This 442 came standard with a 3.8-liter V6 with an optional 5.0-liter V8 that made 160 horsepower.  For 1979 the engine was increased to a 5.7-liter V8 but only made ten more horsepower making this a car that was not even close to worthy of carrying the name.

1976-1977 Dodge Charger Daytona – This was one of the worst versions of what once was a muscle car.  The original Charger Daytona was a pointed brute with a huge wing that was made to dominate the NASCAR circuit, but the one with the same name in 1976 wasn’t even close.  In fact this version was nothing more than a Cordoba with some added stripes and even carried the same 145 horsepower engine as the Cordoba.  The only saving grace for this particular model of the Charger Daytona was the fact that Dodge only made 250 of them that they tried to turn into a personal luxury car.

1978 Ford Mustang King Cobra – This was the lowest point of the Mustang combined with stickers that showed it off.  The problem with this car was the low power which was a 302 V8 that only had 139 horsepower and was built based on the Pinto which has been nothing short of a long series of punchlines for many years.  Even though this was one of the worst muscle cars of its time many feel this Mustang was one that needed to be part of the history to have the Mustang be successful.

1976-1980 Plymouth Volare Road Runner – The original Road Runner was one that we highly desired even though it was a late arrival on the muscle car scene.  In this version the car was meant to put a bit of a performance model onto the Volare which was not a car that many wanted to drive but was offered anyway.  The 318 cubic inch V8 engine only produced 160 horsepower at the base model and the Road Runner upgraded this to only 175 with a max of 195.  Another problem with this car was the fact it was severely prone to rusting and ended up being the subject of a national recall.

1978 AMC Gremlin GT – The Gremlin was a polarizing vehicle as you can imagine it would be.  It was one that had a longer hood and lower roof in the first few models than at this point of the car’s life.  As the last year the car would be built the Gremlin in GT form was set for a great send off, too bad AMC didn’t get it right.  This car was only powered by a 4.2-liter inline six-cylinder engine instead of a powerful V8, although the outgoing V8 wasn’t much to talks about either.

With some of the names you see on this list being ones that have been highly touted muscle cars for many years you can easily see why companies wanted to keep their names going in other forms.  The problem was easy to see, the right muscle car had what it needed in the original form, not in these versions.  Make sure if you are looking to buy a muscle car from the glory days of power that you have the right one and not some of these that seem to have been built only to embarrass the brand name and manufacturer.