1. Airbags
   Anti-lock brakes (ABS)
2. Forward-collision warning systems (FCW)
   Performance exhaust systems

The Takata airbag recall impacted more than 30 million cars and 10 of the world's biggest auto companies, including American automakers Ford, GM, Chrysler, Tesla, Chevy, and Jeep, among others. The defective airbags could rupture, and deploy with excessive force, sending metal shrapnel and chemicals into the cabin interior. It was also alleged the supplier knew about the problem in 2004, but it was not reported to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) at that time.

1. Silverado
   F-150
2. Blackwood

Only about 3,300 people bought the Lincoln Blackwood, a $52,000 pickup truck with a 5.4 L V8 engine, a 8,700-pound towing capacity and thick carpet covering the truck bed.

1. Exploding gas tank
   Faulty tires
2. Its "butterfly doors" were defective
   It was plagued with problems

More than 800,000 Americans bought Citations when they were introduced to U.S. car buyers in 1980 — which made it the best-selling car in America that year. But even when something looks good on paper, it doesn't necessarily feel good on the road. The Citation was plagued with problems, specifically build quality and reports of faulty rear brakes, perhaps making it one of the more aptly named vehicular flops of all time. In 1984 the Citation was rebranded as the Citation II, but Chevy finally ended production in 1985.

1. Chevy Suburban
   Ford Escape
2. Jeep Cherokee
   Pontiac Aztek

Pontiac sold 108,500 Azteks between 2001 and 2005 — and for most consumers, that was probably 108,500 too many. The Aztek was Pontiac's first SUV, and it came with a tent and inflatable mattress package included, presumably for those who couldn't stand to be inside the vehicle for one second longer than they had to. Once the consumer market looked beyond the unattractive design, they found it drove more like a minivan than a truck. Plus, recalls on the Aztek's fuel delivery system made potential owners nervous. Sales were low, and the Aztek was removed from the product line.

1. The AMC Pacer
   The Chevy Nova
2. The Datsun Cherry
   The Ford Mustang II Hatchback

In 1975 when it was introduced, the AMC Pacer was radical — the very first car to use a cab-forward design. But it was universally considered to be oddly styled and just too ugly. In 2004 it was included in Forbes' list of the Worst Cars of All Time, Time Magazine's list of the 50 Worst Cars of All Time, and CNN's list of the 10 Most Questionable Cars of All Time so it was still kind of an overachiever, in a sense.

1. "I own a Chevy Corvair."
   "[It's] an excellent machine."
2. "[It's] the leading candidate for the unsafest-car title."
   The car did not come up in Nader's testimony

Nader appeared before Congress to address car consumer advocacy and safety issues, and he caught the attention of many Chevy Corvair owners across the country. After Nader referred to it as "the leading candidate for the unsafest-car title," sales dropped, and the last Corvair was made in 1969.

1. Cherry
   Monte Carlo
2. Valiant
   Vega

The Chevy Vega long predated the fictional hitman Vincent Vega in Quentin Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction," as it was designed and engineered to compete with the Ford Pinto. It was even awarded Motor Trend Car of the Year in 1971. But that was before anyone knew the car's underlying problems with safety, reliability, engine durability and susceptibility to rust. The Center for Auto Safety criticized the Vega, calling it a "sloppily crafted, unreliable and unsafe automobile" that "hardly set a good example in small car production for American industry." We can only hope that what happened with the Vega stays with the Vega.

1. The Edsel
   The Fairlane
2. The Galaxie
   The Maverick

Henry Ford II named the "Edsel" after his father, and the car was only manufactured for three years. It's also considered an expensive failure for Ford Motor Company. While the Edsel wasn't an engineering failure, it was a failure in the marketplace — likely due to its high sticker price.

1. Pontiac Firebird
   Lincoln C
2. DeLorean DMC-12
   Ford Indigo

American automobile executive John DeLorean gave us the Firebird, the Grand Prix and the GTO. In 1981, he also gave us the car with the gullwing doors, the car that would go back in time: the DeLorean DMC-12. American consumers, though, were disappointed in the car's sluggish performance. DeLorean production ended in 1982 — although there are rumored plans in the works for updated replicas to be built for $100,000 a pop.

1. The Eagle
   The Gremlin
2. The Pacer
   The Rambler

Time Magazine ranked it among the 50 Worst Cars of All Time. It also held the dubious honor of coming in fourth on the "Worst Car of the Millennium" Car Talk poll. When it came to looks, the 1970 AMC Gremlin was an awkwardly shortened version of the AMC Hornet. Operationally, it was equally unimpressive. It didn't have disc brakes or radial tires, and it used vacuum-operated windshield wipers, which were last seen on cars in the 1930s. That meant, of course, that the wipers slowed down when you drove your Gremlin up a hill.

1. Chrysler Airflow
   Datsun Type 15
2. Ford Model C
   Ford Woody Station Wagon

For those in the know at the time, the Chrysler Airflow's aerodynamic design and innovative engineering was considered revolutionary when it was introduced in the 1930s. But it apparently didn't interest consumers, who weren't impressed with its full-steel unibody chassis (when competitors were still using wood) or its wind-tunnel body shape, and didn't buy it. The Airflow — branded as Chrysler as well as DeSoto — was only made between 1934 and 1937.

1. The Cimarron
   The Coupe de Ville
2. The Eldorado
   The Fleetwood

The Cimarron was Cadillac's first try at designing and engineering a small, more fuel-friendly car and it was discontinued only six years after it was introduced, in 1982. Not only did it not appeal to any particular market — Cadillac drivers had certain luxury-car expectations — its design was something only a parent company could love.

1. Firestone
   Michelin
2. Pirelli
   Uniroyal

Almost 20 percent of American drivers drove SUVs in 1999, and the Ford Explorer was one of the most popular. When the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) asked Ford and Firestone to look into why there was such a high rate of tire blowouts leading to vehicle rollovers, the companies both blamed each other. Firestone was first to take responsibility, recalling 6.5 million tires, but also attributed the accidents to a combination of heat, low tire pressure, and the weight and handling of the Explorer. Just a few months later, Ford recalled an additional 13 million tires on its Explorers, Mercury Mountaineers and Mazda Navajos.

1. Ford Crown Victoria
   Ford F-150
2. Ford Pinto
   Ford Taurus

When Ford introduced its budget-friendly Pinto, which sold for $2,000 when it debuted in September 1970, it cut a few corners and that included deciding to place the car's fuel tank behind its rear axle. That placement caused the fuel-filler pipe to burst during a rear-end collision, which is a serious fire risk. Ford, it was found during investigation, chose to pay out-of-court settlements rather than recall and correct the fatal problem (they were forced to do a recall in addition to paying damages to those injured in rear-impact collisions in 1977). The Pinto was in production until 1980, but the fuel tank issue only impacted those manufactured through 1976.

1. Alcohol and water
   Antifreeze and water
2. Oil and water
   Sugar and water

In 1962 Oldsmobile debuted the first production turbocharged car, the Jetfire. In the same vehicle, it also introduced something called "sport water injection," which used a mixture of water and alcohol the company named "Turbo-Rocket Fuel." The problem? It wasn't very reliable. But perhaps even more problematic, it relied on owners to top off their Turbo-Rocket Fuel tank regularly. Otherwise, the turbocharger boost was supposed to be throttled back. But in reality, engines died without enough of the mixture.

1. The Mustang II
   The Trans-Am
2. The Wrangler
   The Yugo

In the wake of the oil crisis and new emissions standards required by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Ford introduced the Mustang II. At first when it debuted in '74, it was well received. But compared to its beloved namesake muscle car, the II was discovered to be a poor performer. It was later described by Car and Driver as, "a poseur with wheezing four- and six-cylinder engines under the hood." In the end, the II did get better gas mileage than its predecessor, but on the same platform as the Ford ... Pinto.

1. Shelby Mustang
   GTO
2. Firebird Trans Am
   Camaro

When Pontiac stopped making the GTO, there wasn't too much noise about it — it just kind of went away. But in 2004, thanks to the devotion of its fans over the years, Pontiac brought a GTO-ish car back to the U.S. market. However, the new generation was based on the Holden Monaro and manufactured in Australia.

1. Low or no compression
   Overheating
2. Stalling, chugging and bucking
   Smoke in exhaust

When it was released in the early '80s, Cadillac promised its new V8-6-4 engine had better performance and fuel efficiency than earlier options. How? By turning off the cylinders that weren't being used — called a "variable displacement" engine. It may sound good in theory, but in reality it created issues such as stalling, chugging and bucking. One fix owners adopted: disabling the cylinder-deactivation system, which meant the car ran as a V8 all the time.

1. The Ram series
   The CrossCabriolet
2. The SSR
   The VehiCross

When Chevy debuted the Super Sport Roadster (SSR) in 2003, consumers were seemingly confused. It was a pickup truck with a retractable hardtop convertible roof? Yes, yes it was. It also had a V8 engine under the hood. At $42,000, the SSR also felt too pricey for something so impractical; it was discontinued in 2006.

1. Electro Gyro-Cator
   Entune
2. MyFord Touch
   MyLink

In 2010 Ford introduced its new "infotainment" system, the MyFord Touch, which used touchscreen technology for the first time. But consumers weren't impressed. Ford's all-in-one, in-dash communication and entertainment system was difficult to use — and unnecessarily so. It was also reported to be unresponsive and prone to freezing up. In fact, a federal class-action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court of Central California on behalf of MyFord Touch system owners.

1. Chrysler
   Ford
2. General Motors (GM)
   Tesla

After they'd spent the last few years focused on gas-guzzlers instead of fuel-efficient cars, GM (including Chevy) and Chrysler all hit bottom in the late '00s, and took government bailouts to survive. While Ford also received bailout money, the company didn't actually need it — they just didn't want Chrysler and GM to have the advantage all to themselves. All told, U.S. automakers Chrysler, Ford and GM received a total of $80 billion.

1. Barracuda
   Charger
2. Chevelle
   El Camino

Between 1964 and when it was discontinued in 1977, the Chevy Chevelle was beloved as one of the best-made muscle cars on the market. The third generation, which was produced between 1973 and 1977, was used extensively in NASCAR competition. It was widely considered to be nimble, quick and responsive — and its disappearance was an unpleasant surprise to many who loved it.

1. Brake fluid
   Engine oil
2. Gasoline
   Transmission fluid

The Pontiac Fiero was (and still is) the only mass-produced, mid-engine sports car built by an American automaker. But the two-seater had a bad reputation — and we don't mean that in the punk-rock way. It was renowned for performance problems, reliability concerns and safety issues. Even worse for something named the Fiero, it was an actual fire risk: The engine was prone to chronically low oil levels, causing 200 reported fires.

1. Faulty parking brake release switch
   Faulty ignition switch
2. Faulty dimmer switch
   Faulty defogger switch

Some consider the Chevy Cobalt just as dangerous as the Ford Pinto. In 2007 roughly 100,000 Cobalts were recalled for not meeting federal safety standards and three years later, another million vehicles were recalled for faulty power steering systems. But the fatal flaw of the Cobalt was its faulty ignition switch. The defective switch caused the cars to turn off while driving, at the same time deactivating the car's safety systems (airbags, anti-lock brakes, etc.). The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) fined GM in 2014 for failing to recall cars with the defective ignition switches, despite knowing there was a problem.

1. Its top speed was less than 100 mph
   It had low horsepower
2. The automatic transmission would slip
   The car would shake at highway speeds

The Plymouth Prowler, manufactured in 1997, 1999-2002, and also sold as the Chrysler Prowler in 2001-2002, was well-known for its retro styling. But it was never really known for its power. It had a V6, not a V8, and was only available with an automatic transmission. In the end, the Prowler may be best known for its place in a time capsule — in 1988 one was buried in a mausoleum in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

1. Canyon
   Cruze
2. Diesel
   Leaf

When the Oldsmobile Diesel was introduced in the late '70s, it was known as an oil-burning powerplant. In fact, the corrosion, gasket failures and general lack of reliability gave all diesel engines a bit of a black eye.

1. Chevrolet
   Ford
2. Studebaker
   Volkswagen

In 1923 Chevy attempted to build a competitor to the Ford Model T: the Series-C. The car had an overhead-valve, air-cooled inline-four engine, with copper (instead of aluminum) cooling fins. The plan was to roll 50,000 off the production line by the end of the first year. But plans change, and so did Chevy's, once it realized the Series-C was prone to overheating at low speeds, catastrophic engine failure and engine fires Chevy recalled and destroyed all but two of the 759 cars produced.

1. On the exhaust pipe
   On the intake manifold
2. On the radiator
   Under the trunk

When Chrysler introduced the world's first Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI) system in 1957, the company ended up recalling every single engine and things didn't go much better when it tried again in the 1980s. Chrysler installed nearly all the components of its EFI system on the intake manifold and air cleaner — exactly where they would have to endure higher temperatures and too much vibration.

1. The Bolt
   The EV1
2. The Spark
   The Volt

The EV1 was the first electric car manufactured and leased by GM between 1996 and 1999. It was also the first and only car that was branded with the General Motors (GM) name instead of, conventionally, one of GM's divisions, such as Chevy. Although owners were devoted to the EV1, GM recalled all 1,100 cars that'd been produced and destroyed them.

1. Crossfire
   Fifth Avenue
2. Sebring
   Ypsilon

While not many people remember much about the car, you may remember it was Celine Dion who sang "I Drove All Night" in Crossfire ads. The Crossfire was built on the Mercedes SLK-roadster platform, which at the time was already a bit long in the tooth. The steering was slow to respond, the handling was bad, and the interior roughly matched the car's overall performance (not great). Roughly 52,000 Chrysler Crossfires sold between 2003, when the line debuted, and 2009, when it was discontinued. Some of the remaining vehicles sold on eBay and overstock.com.

1. A compact disc player in the car
   An 8-track player in the car
2. A record player in the car
   A cassette player in the car

In the 1950s and 1960s, Dodge tried to let you bring music beyond AM/FM with you — except its Highway Hi-Fi system required you to use their proprietary records, rather than those in your own collection and you had to hope all the roads you drove on were smooth!

1. Fraud investigation
   A fire at the factory
2. Preston Tucker died
   No one ever found out why

Even with safety features like the center-mounted headlight, a shatterproof windshield and padded dashboard, the car known as the "Tucker Torpedo" was doomed. Only 51 were made before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) indicted Preston Tucker and his board of directors for fraud, after which the company closed down.

1. GM
   Ford
2. Chrysler
   It wasn't one of the Big Three.

In 1980, after a three-year investigation, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) concluded that Ford automatic transmissions built between 1966 and 1980 were unsafe. Why? The faulty transmissions could slip gears from park into reverse, causing cars to roll back unexpectedly. By 1984, the defect had caused 77 deaths.

1. Adjustable seats
   Air conditioning
2. Power steering
   A V8 engine

In 1917 Chevy put out its first V8 in the Series D but it wasn't meant to be. Despite the V8 expectations, the Series D had only 36 horsepower — so why would consumers have bought one instead of a four-cylinder engine with more power? By the end of 1918, the Series D was discontinued, and it took 37 years before Chevrolet would gamble on another V8.

1. Yes, this is 100 percent true.
   This was true in only some Spanish-speaking countries
2. No, but close

As often as you may have heard the story in the '80s, this urban legend is not exactly true. The Chevy Nova sold very well in plenty of Spanish-speaking countries, including Mexico and Venezuela. Although "no" translates to "no" and "va" translates to "go" in Spanish, the word "nova" doesn't exist.