Fast Failures
Some cars show up with promise and vanish just as fast as they came because something went sideways. It could be weird choices or bad timing. Maybe the designers aimed too high, or maybe the buyers never cared. Here, we look at 20 cars that came and went before we could even realize it.
1. Bricklin SV1
In the mid-'70s, Malcolm Bricklin's dream was to make safety the new cool, and the SV1 was the result. It came with gull-wing doors and an impact-absorbing bumper. However, Canadian factory issues and wild quality control killed it before it hit 3,000 units.
2. DeLorean DMC 12
The DMC 12 easily disappointed buyers by contradicting itself. The car was built in Northern Ireland with underpowered PRV V6s, so while this stainless steel gamble looked futuristic, it drove like a snail. It tanked by 1983 after two production years.
3. Chevrolet SSR
Launched in 2003, the SSR was GM's retro fever dream. This convertible pickup with 300+ horsepower had almost zero practicality. The kind of car you look at and wonder why it's even a thing. After confusing everyone, it quietly bowed out in 2006.
4. Saab 9-4X
Saab's last shot at relevance came dressed like an upscale crossover. Built in Mexico using GM internal parts, the 9-4X hit dealers in 2011. Saab folded the next year after making about 814 units, and roughly 500–600 made it to US buyers.
5. Fisker Karma
On paper, this thing should've ruled. It was electric and sleek enough to warrant a second look in 2011. Henrik Fisker designed it. However, fire hazards and supplier chaos buried it within a year. Even celebrities using it couldn't save it from becoming history.
6. Sterling 825
Have you ever heard of a British luxury car powered by Honda? That's the Sterling 825—a rebadged Rover 800, sold here from 1987 to 1991. While the drivetrain was rock-solid, interior pieces fell off in your hand. It tried to blend worlds and failed.
order_242 from Chile on Wikimedia
7. Chrysler TC
The Chrysler TC by Maserati was built to compete with the Mercedes SL, but it felt more like an overpriced LeBaron. It was introduced in 1989 and had little else besides Italian leather and a turbo four. After three underwhelming years, Chrysler pulled it.
8. Isuzu VehiCROSS
It looked like something out of a sci-fi movie, and that was the problem. Shoppers didn’t understand it. With futuristic looks, serious off-road hardware, and a cabin that felt more like a cockpit than a car, Isuzu’s 1999–2001 experiment confused more shoppers than it converted. Only about 4,000 found homes in the US.
Interesting.cars.insta on Wikimedia
9. Subaru SVX
You could always count on Subaru to go weird—and the SVX was gloriously weird. It flexed a fighter-jet windshield canopy and a 230-hp flat-six and was sold from 1992 to 1997. High pricing scared off buyers, and the loyalists wanted wagons, not avant-garde coupes.
Svxcess at English Wikipedia on Wikimedia
10. Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet
The Murano was a decent crossover. Then came the decision to let the roof go, and in came the CrossCabriolet that was sold from 2011 to 2014. While the car had AWD and luxury seats, it had no real audience. The rest is history.
11. Ford Aspire
Not enough people aspired to drive Aspire. Ford gambled with the car between 1994 and 1997 and sold it as a Korean-built successor to the Festiva. The car came with airbags and hatchback practicality but had zero flair. Cheap and fuel-efficient, yes, but forgettable.
12. Acura ZDX
The ZDX was Acura's idea of a coupe-slash-SUV-slash-something. Michelle Christensen designed it, and while it looked slick, it confused shoppers. It sat too low to be useful and too odd to be cool. Released in 2010, and production ended in 2013.
U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Wikimedia
13. Coda Sedan
LA-based Coda Automotive's all-electric sedan debuted in 2012. It was built with parts from China and a shell based on a 1990s Mitsubishi. The car looked ancient on arrival. Even electric car fans weren't interested. Only around 117 units sold in the U.S., and Coda folded after just one year.
Mariordo - Mario Roberto Durán Ortiz on Wikimedia
14. Hudson Jet
In 1953, Hudson bet the farm on a small car during a big-car craze. This car was the Jet. It had decent engineering but zero style. The car drained resources quickly. By 1954, the Jet was out, and Hudson soon followed.
GPS 56 from New Zealand on Wikimedia
15. Tucker 48
Preston Tucker's dream hit the road in 1948, loaded with safety tech like center headlight, rear engine, and pop-out windshield. But lawsuits and pressure from Detroit buried it. Only 51 cars were made. Every car nut knows it deserved better.
16. Mini Coupe
Even Mini fans raised their eyebrows at this one. The Coupe chopped the brand's playful hatch into an awkward helmet-shaped two-seater. Launched in 2011, it handled well but felt cramped and off-balance. Buyers didn't indulge, and Mini dropped it quietly in 2015.
17. Lexus HS 250h
The HS 250h arrived in 2009 with Prius DNA and a luxury badge—but little personality. It wasn’t sporty, and it wasn’t efficient enough to justify its premium price. Sales sputtered, and by 2012, Lexus quietly pulled the plug.
DestinationFearFan on Wikimedia
18. Dodge Dart
Dart was an old name, but Dodge revived it in 2013 to fill the compact gap. It came with weak engines and clunky transmissions that doomed it. Built on a Fiat platform, it never found a solid identity. By 2016, it was gone.
19. Cadillac ELR
The ELR was sleek. However, it had Volt tech under the hood. GM tried to dress up their hybrid hatch with leather and a Caddy badge, then priced it like a Tesla. Sales flopped. After just three years, they ended production in 2016.
Rutger van der Maar from Leiden, The Netherlands on Wikimedia
20. Volkswagen Routan
This car was launched in 2009 and had nothing German underneath. The Routan was a Chrysler minivan wearing a VW badge—and that's about all it had from VW. Buyers noticed, and sales tanked. VW walked away by 2012, and barely anyone remembers it happened.
