35 Cars That Look Fast But Have Ridiculously Slow Performance

Vukasin Herbez December 28, 2020

5. Audi 100 Coupe

Virtually unknown to U.S. car enthusiasts, the Audi 100 Coupe was an elegant, front-wheel-drive model. Audi produced it from 1969, selling it throughout 1976. Audi based it on its biggest model, adding a totally different fastback coupe body. Since they left the mechanics unchanged, the 100 Coupe didn’t have much performance. The power came from a rather anemic 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine.

However, the main thing about this car was its appearance, because the 100 Coupe looked much more upscale and expensive than it really was. With four headlights, a sporty silhouette, and chrome trim, buyers considered the Audi 100 Coupe to be an upscale proposition on the European market.

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4. 1977 Chevrolet Monza Mirage

Chevrolet presented the Monza in 1975 as their newest compact model. It came with a modern design, updated equipment and a wide arrange of versions and trim levels. The Monza succeeded the Vega, selling well in the U.S., as well as abroad. However, the lack of a performance version was evident since the compact, relatively light platform could benefit from a powerful engine. But Chevrolet didn’t think a performance or muscle car version would have a big market, so they didn’t bother developing it. However, Chevy contracted an outside company, Michigan Auto Techniques, to make a muscle car Monza for 1977. They called it the Monza Mirage, and they produced only 4,000 of them. The Mirage featured a 305 V8 with just 145 HP.

The design was quite striking with a white body, front and rear spoilers, and special wheels. The paint scheme was patriotic with red, blue and white stripes all over the body. But Chevrolet realized there was still a market for sporty variants. So they decided to introduce the Monza Spyder for 1978. This left Michigan Auto Techniques without a contract for 1978, sending the Monza Mirage to the automotive history books. Today, only a handful have survived, so if you find one, try to restore it since it’s a rare, forgotten muscle car.

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3. Ford Mustang Cobra

The 1979 model year brought several major improvements to the Mustang range. First, they presented a new model featuring a modern design, updated chassis, and wider track. Second, they introduced an interesting performance version called the Cobra.

Although not as powerful or crazy as those Cobra Jets of before, the 1979 Cobra featured a 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine with 140 HP. And although this was pathetic even by the standards of the day, it was a step in the right direction. In fact, it helped the American performance market finally start to recover.

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2. Bricklin SV-1

The SV-1 was the brainchild of automotive entrepreneur Malcolm Bricklin. He produced just 3,000 of them in Canada from 1974 to 1975. But for a short while, they marketed the SV-1 as the best, most advanced American sports car. But as soon as the first cars started rolling down the assembly line, it was clear the SV-1 was not as good as drivers anticipated it would be.

The idea was to produce a safe and fast sports car as the name SV-1, which stood for Safety Vehicle One, suggested. Bricklin designed the car with big bumpers, warning sensors, and power Gullwing doors. Although it didn’t have any cigarette lighters, it had an integrated roll cage and lots of other things. Unfortunately, all those extras made it heavy and not agile. The power came from a 360 AMC V8 engine, which wasn’t powerful. Even though the company later turned to the 351 Ford V8, it still couldn’t deliver any real performance numbers.

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1. Pontiac Fiero

The Pontiac Fiero was the most advanced American production model according to the standards of the day. The customers were hyped by the appearance of the Fiero with its cool and modern design. Thanks to the advanced technology, the initial response was more than good.

It was a bold move for Pontiac to introduce such a compact, rear-wheel-drive car with the engine behind the driver. But then they paired it up with a five-speed manual transaxle gearbox. However, one of the Fiero’s main problems was that it was too slow. With just 93 HP and a 0 to 60 mph time of over 10 seconds, it was painfully slow.

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35 Cars That Look Fast But Have Ridiculously Slow Performance

5. Audi 100 Coupe

4. 1977 Chevrolet Monza Mirage

3. Ford Mustang Cobra

2. Bricklin SV-1

1. Pontiac Fiero

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