Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors Quiz

Answer: Model T

**Please Note** The members of my car club tend to follow a definition of the term "smoker" that is found in the Urban Dictionary: "An old or cheap car that burns oil, has poor body work, things wrong with it or and mixture of the above". The cars featured in the quiz were taken from a list published by "Time" magazine called "The 50 Worst Cars of All Time" by Dan Neil. All of the cars mentioned in the quiz, even the incorrect choices, were taken from the list - so cars featured in the quiz do not reflect the opinion of the author!

The production of the Ford Model T dramatically changed life in the United States, especially for the middle class. Henry Ford's first car built on assembly lines with interchangeable parts, over fifteen million were produced during its 1908-1927 run. So why did it make the Worst Car list? According to the author, "A century later, the consequences of putting every living soul on gas-powered wheels are piling up, from the air over our cities to the sand under our soldiers' boots. And by the way, with its blacksmithed body panels and crude instruments, the Model T was a piece of junk, the Yugo of its day". Perhaps this assessment is just a bit harsh. The Tin Lizzy really didn't look that different than many other cars of its day; they were constructed out of what was available and understandably resembled horse carriages. In addition, it is likely that the affects of every new invention can be traced to future negative consequences.

Answer: Airflow

The official Chrysler story is that one of the engineers, Carl Breer, was inspired by watching a formation of geese flying; along with some of his colleagues, Breer began to conduct wind tunnel tests in an effort to determine which natural shape would be the most aerodynamically efficient.

The shape of the car was very different than anything else that had been built; perhaps the problem was that customers did not like the new design. In addition, it gained a quick reputation for being unsafe. The first cars to leave the factory had major problems, including the engine breaking loose from its mountings at fast speeds.

Interestingly, some sources claim that the design of the Airflow may have inspired the building of the Volkswagen Beetle, as well as other automobiles twenty years down the road!

Answer: Ford Edsel

The biggest mistake Ford made, perhaps, in marketing the Edsel was a year-long advertising campaign before the car debuted. By the time the public saw the car there was an economic recession; it was viewed as being overprice and overhyped! Unfortunately, to this day, the Edsel, which was named in honor of Henry Ford's son, has become synonymous with the commercial failure of any product. Maybe it was the wrong car at the wrong time, as many experts have said.

The fact that there is one at the Smoker Show is extraordinary, as it is believed that there are fewer than 10,000 still in existence today.

Answer: Zündapp Janus

Although many foreign cars were included on "Time's" list, there generally aren't many seen at a cruise in a small town in the Midwest! In case you haven't heard of the Zündapp name, prior to the release of the Janus, they made motorcycles; the company was founded in Germany in 1917 and stayed in business until 1984, manufacturing mopeds and scooters.

In 1957, in an attempt to build a more weatherproof vehicle, the company marketed the Janus. Named after the Roman god of the doorway, the car had both a front-facing and rear-facing seat with doors in the front and back, rather than on the sides. Reaching a top speed of approximately 50 mph, the car was not only expensive, but also lacked some of the features found on other automobiles of the day.

Answer: American Motors Corporation

Built to compete with the Chevrolet Vega, Ford Pinto, as well as foreign cars like the Volkswagen Beetle, the Gremlin was released in April of 1970 and produced through 1978. Actually, the Gremlin was not the first American-built import, as it was preceded by the Nash Metropolitan and Crosley.

It was, however, marketed as "cute and different"; it has been estimated that approximately 60% of the cars were sold to people under 35. In the article from "Time", it was said to have been "curiously proportioned", "cheap and incredibly deprived" (vacuum-operated windshield wipers), and "awful to drive".

Answer: Ford Pinto

Manufactured and produced from 1971-1980, it is estimated that over three million Pintos were produced. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration determined that the defective fuel system in the Pinto was responsible for fatalities and injuries.

In the 1978 case, "Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Co.", the jury awarded $127 million ($125 million in punitive damages) in total damages to the plaintiff, after an horrific accident whereby the car was struck from behind and the fuel tank caught on fire.

A judge later reduced the punitive damages to $3.5 million. While some say that the case is an example of irrational punitive damages awarded, others say that it showed that car manufacturers could not afford to ignore known defects.

Answer: Chevy Chevette

Honestly, this car probably doesn't deserve to be on the list. While it wasn't the fastest car around, it was affordable, got great gas mileage, and didn't burst into flames after a rear-end collision! In addition, its "T-platform", ("a platform designation for a worldwide series of rear-wheel drive, unibody subcompact cars") was manufactured in many countries under different manufacturing names, such as Holden Gemini and K-180.

The author of the "Time" article wrote that it was "loud and tinny", and it was the car his college girlfriend drove. Hmm....

Answer: AMC Pacer

With a width that was equal to the full-sized domestic cars of its day, the Pacer was marketed as "the first wide small car" by AMC. "Consumer Reports" said it "scored quite high in our tests. We would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone who wants a fairly small car". So why did it make "The 50 Worst Cars of All Time" list? According to the author it was "like being an ant under a mean kid's magnifying glass" in the summertime.

In 2010, it did rank #1 in a poll conducted by Hagerty Insurance that named it the ugliest car ever built.

Answer: DeLorean DMC-12

Named the DMC-12 because the company intended to charge $12,000, the car actually retailed for $25,000. Overpriced and said to be underpowered, the ill-fated car failed because of the actions of the company's owner as much its own shortcomings. It is estimated that approximately 9,000 of the cars were produced before the company went under in 1983. On the brighter side, in 1995 a company called the "DeLorean Motor Company" was started in Texas and is building new cars using new old stock parts, original equipment manufacturer, and reproduction parts.

In early 2016 it was announced that the company would resume construction of the DMC-12 cars, hoping to build three hundred by 2017, each with a price of $100,000.

Answer: Pontiac Aztek

The Pontac Aztek, which also made the survey as one of the ugliest cars of all time, was said to be too expensive for its target buyers, Generation X. According to J.D. Powers and Associates, however, "The Aztek scores highest or second highest in every APEAL component measure except exterior styling".

While GM forecasted that 30,000 annual sales were needed just to break even, only 27,322 were sold in 2001. Although the car itself was found by many to be "competent", the main reason for lack of sales was the vehicle's appearance.