The Ugliest Car Interiors Of All Time
Every year, carmakers put more and more effort into car aesthetics. The majority of modern cars today come with amazing interiors that are all packed with detailed materials, high technology, and exotic features. However, every now and then, we tend to stumble upon specific details that ruin the entire cabin.
It’s crucial for automakers today to keep in mind that the interior of the car matters as much as the exterior. In fact, it is pointless to concentrate on the exterior and overlook the fact that as long as you are on the road, you will be spending most of your time inside the car and not outside. These are the worst car interiors we've ever seen!
1996 Mercedes-Benz F200 (Imagination)
The Mercedes F-Series introduced some stunning concept vehicles, but the F200 Imagination had one of the weirdest, and at the same time, the coolest interiors of all. The foremost thing you will notice about the car is that it had no pedals and steering wheel. Instead, there are joysticks mounted in the middle of the console and the door to control the vehicle.
Apart from the rev counter and speedometer, the car also features rear-view cameras on the right and left side of the display. The center console has the most impractical placement and looks a little weird, mostly because it has a sphere shape.
2008 Citroën Hypnos
The Citroën Hypnos is a midsize luxury crossover. This car has the most unusual and colorful interior of all time with blue-purplish rear seats, bright red gauge cluster, and orange-green-yellow front seats. The structure of seats is also quite strange, with slats along the base and triangles forming on the seating surface.
Another weird thing about this car is that the headrests hang from the ceiling. Not only that, from the steering wheel, gear shift to the pedals — there is nothing normal about this vehicle.
BMW 7 SERIES E 65
The name BMW carries a sense of class and elegance along — after all, it is a James Bond ride. Everything about the E65 is exquisite, apart from its interior, which had a serious issue. This car went from being simple yet elegant to ugly and a complex Luxo-barge.
The BMW Series E 65 was the first car to introduce the iDrive system, which was severely criticized worldwide. Thankfully, BMW fixed this issue within a few years. But Series E 65 will never be fondly recalled. All in all, it is unfortunate that BMW made it to the top with this car on the list.
Fiat 500
When it comes to interiors, the Fiat 500 lags behind. To start with, there is no trunk release button in the car, so you will have to make use of the key fob to open the hatchback. Besides, the fob button will only work when you take the key out of the ignition.
This subcompact car also does not have an interior door lock button, which makes it more frustrating. If you want to open the door, you will have to force it open using the handle. And to unlock the door on the passenger side, you will need to reach over and open it. These are enough reasons to avoid purchasing this car.
Chevrolet Camaro (5th Generation)
The interior of the Fifth Generation Camaro is plastic-heavy and cheap. But what makes the car even more horrible is its poor visibility. According to Chevrolet, they were trying to make the car safe and make it look masculine, so they ended up reducing the size of the windows to letterboxes.
The Camaro has always been described as an American muscle car because of its unique design and distinctive rumble, but the strange interior choices of Chevrolet reduced all its value. While the exterior of the vehicle is all about masculinity, the inside needs a considerable makeover.
2006 Cadillac XLR
The Cadillac XLR was introduced in 2006 and is popular for its eye-catching design, standard features, hardtop convenience, and forgiving ride quality. However, looking at the exterior, the car’s interior deserved a much better and classier style. There is so much grey inside the vehicle that you can easily confuse it with the rough sheet metal.
Also, the interior doesn’t reflect the price and is not as sporty as other models. In addition, it has very little cargo space, which might not be convenient for taller drivers.
1976 Aston Martin Lagonda Series 2
No other car cabin looked as odd as the Aston Martin Lagonda. The interior of this car did not make any sense from a design perspective and had questionable aesthetic choices. However, back in the day, the Martin Lagonda was quite ambitious — it had touch-screen buttons for lights, air conditioning, power locks, and seat controls, and it was the first vehicle to have a digital control panel with LED displays.
In the 1970s, the car's electronic system was considered complicated by many people. This is the reason why only 645 Aston Martin Lagondas were made between the years 1974 and 1990.
Honda Civic (9th Generation)
If you think more buttons are annoying, then you are wrong. More screens can also be equally annoying. When Honda introduced the 9th generation Civic, it took a step forward in the wrong direction with its packed interior. This car had so many digital screens that somebody would think it is a broadcast station. It also had two screens on the driver’s right side and one for the infotainment system.
If you are wondering what a compact interior looks like, then you should take a look at the Mazda 3 interior, which has a projected Heads-Up Display (HUD), a navigation screen fitted at the right place, and a simple gauge cluster.
Toyota Prius
Once you get to see the inside of the Toyota Prius, you will find that almost everything is wrong with the interior. First, you will notice the gear shifter, which is not great. And then, if you try reversing the car, it will beep at you just like an eighteen-wheeler. The worst part is that hardly anyone can listen to the beep from the outside.
Lastly, the plastic used in the car is horrible. If you decide to speed up, it will make a loud sound, which will remind you of the noise you probably heard at the zoo.
Toyota Yaris
You make the first impression about a car by looking at its exterior, but its interior is something that makes or breaks the deal. Undoubtedly, the Toyota Yaris is a budget-friendly car, which might be the reason that it does not have a great looking interior.
Similar to other budget vehicles, the interior of Yaris is made using cheap materials, including the door and the dash. But what makes the interior worse is the placement of the speedometer — right in the middle of the console. Also, it has no visual entertainment system, which makes the car more dull from the inside.
Old VW Passat
If you purchase the old version of VW Passat, you will surely not relish the gear shifting. However, if you drive this car on the highway, you will notice that it is surprisingly fast.
The gear is placed in a way that makes it very un-driver friendly. This gets very frustrating. The previous versions of Passat also had a seating system designed with seat bolsters that acted as a barrier, especially during aggressive gear-changes. Apart from this issue, everything about the interior was decent enough.
Skoda Octavia VRS
Skoda is popularly known for producing heavy and hardy vehicles that have stood the test of time — the Octavia VRS is one of them. This vehicle offers a smooth ride, but the interior has one major drawback that makes it a big fail — it consists of a fake carbon fiber trim.
Back in the day, the carbon fiber was used to hide tacky looking aisles. Nowadays, it is used to enhance the appearance of performance cars. To be honest, it looks cheap and makes the car less appealing.
Mercedes C Class
Without a doubt, Mercedes C Class is one of the luxurious cars that deliver exceptional performance. However, the interior of the vehicle is not up to the mark as it is fitted with piano-black plastic. It is tough to figure out what the German manufacturer was thinking when using the horribly nasty and cheap material for a high-end luxury vehicle.
The Mercedes C Class has a lot of this material mounted on the center console. This one big mistake ruined the whole interior of this magnificent car.
2004 Nissan Quest
The 2004 Nissan Quest was a three-row, full-size minivan. The car had an unusual interior with the dash on a supporting pillar that looked like a beheaded R2-D2.
Additionally, the black and red trim did not look good and gave uncomfortable vibes. Also, the speedometer was placed right in front of the passenger seat, which doesn’t make any sense. All in all, when it comes to interior quality, this car was an utter disappointment and did not serve the purpose well.
2011 Nissan Cube
The Nissan Cube had weird design details, both on the exterior as well as the interior. On the outside, it featured asymmetrical rear ends, oblong windows, tail-lights placed just above the back bumper, and an upright cube shape that ruined the entire appearance of the car.
It’s difficult to understand what the Japanese automaker was thinking when designing this car. The interior was as bizarre as the exterior with an unconventional color scheme and compact space. Also, you couldn’t help but notice a pile of shag carpeting in the center of the dashboard. This car was a complete nightmare.
1971 Maserati Boomerang
The Maserati Boomerang was launched in 1971. This car is not that unusual from the outside as wedge-shaped vehicles were popular in the 1970s. What makes the car different from its competitors is the interior.
The steering wheel of the vehicle is placed vertically and revolves around an instrument cluster that consists of seven gauges, including a range of warning lights and several buttons. All in all, the Maserati Boomerang was a completely functional concept car, but the people who drove it realized that it was not very practical.
2005 Chevrolet Impala
As one of the few six-passenger cars on the market, the Chevrolet Impala is known for its efficient and robust V6 engines, standard safety features, and more. However, when it comes to the interior, it has a bland design, and cheap plastics are used.
In addition, it has vague steering and soggy suspension on LS and base models. As compared to its rivals Chrysler and Toyota, Impala has nothing special to offer. Even the SS version of the car has no styling upgrades, apart from a few “SS” logos and a new set of gauges. Overall, the 2005 Chevrolet Impala has a low-buck interior.
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