20 'Performance' Cars With Performance Issues

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20 'Performance' Cars With Performance Issues

It's ok, performance issues happen to the best of us.

Published 4 days ago in Facepalm

It's ok, performance issues happen to the best of us. But at least we aren't engineered specifically for the purpose of performing, right?

Like people, sometimes performance cars just can't go fast enough to please us in the ways we want, often coming down to a lack of displacement. Curse the regulations that put a damper on our fun!

Here are 20 performance cars that just couldn't get it up. (I'm talking about the speedometer.)

1
Ferrari 208 GTB
In an attempt to dodge new Italian tax laws on cars with big engines, Ferrari gave the 208 GTB a small one, making only 153 hp.

2
Pontiac Fiero
The Fiero looks quick, but its heavy weight resulted in sluggish performance.

3
Porsche 914/4
The Porsche 914/4 shared quite a bit with a Volkswagen bug and initially planned to launch under the VW badge. Consequently, it made just 80 hp.

4
DeLorean DMC-12
Because of Back to the Future, people seem to think that the DMC-12 was a good car or something. No, it was a piece of junk that only made 130 hp. The company was dead before the movie even came out.

5
Chevy Corvette C3 California
In an attempt to comply with emission regulations, 1980’s C3 California only made 180 hp. 180!!! Luckily the model only lasted one year.

6
MG Midget
People love their MGs, but the Midget really did live up to its name under the hood. Various versions made 46, 56, and 65 horsepower. Not good for a “sports” car.

7
Dodge Viper SR I
Ok, the original Viper is actually very fast… but you have to be a professional driver to take advantage of that raw potential. Otherwise you’ll just end up killing yourself.

8
1969 Chevy Camaro SS
When fitted with its 396 V8, the Camaro had a hard time cracking 100 mph.

9
AC Ace
We all know about the AC Cobra, but its older brother and inspiration made just 100 hp. Embarrassing next to the soon-to-be fastest car in the world.

10
Smart Roadster
Driving slow cars fast is fun, but even a slow roadster needs to go zero to 60 in under 10 seconds. This didn’t, and some versions made just over 60 hp.

11
981 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am Turbo
The Trans Am Turbo looks really fast… but it’s not. With a top speed around 116 and mediocre acceleration, plenty of vehicles in its era had it beat.

12
Mazda Miata
There might be no better affordable sports car than the Mazda Miata. No, it’s not as fast as most other sports cars, but that’s not the point. Nothing drives better.

13
Toyota GT86
Also known as the Subaru BRZ or Scion F-RS, no version is particularly fast. That being said, they’ll knock your socks off with how well they handle.

14
Mitsubishi Eclipse
While more expensive tunes were acceptably quick, the base Eclipse kept things tame. Still, it looked pretty good.

15
Toyota Celica 7th Gen
Although not quite as beloved as previous generations, the 7th Gen Celica is a great all-round sports car. Unfortunately base models don’t make much power, but you’ll still have fun.

16
Mazda RX-8
Mazda targeted the RX-7’s direct sequel to a broader audience. Thus, while the RX-8 isn’t slow, it surprisingly isn’t much faster than an RX-7.

17
1972 Chevelle SS
Hampered by regulations, the 1972 Chevelle made just 270 hp. The 1971 version produced 425 hp.

18
1974 Dodge Charger
Like many muscle cars of its era, the 1974 Charger got “strangled” by evolving engines. Dropping almost 100 horses from the previous model year, the 1974 version made 275 hp.