The Worst Car Ever is Really Slow, But Still a Deathtrap on Wheels

By Aatif Sulleyman on at

I love a good moan. It's too warm, it's too cold, that commenter's bloody harsh, that commenter's suspiciously nice... the list goes on. I'd happily complain about a lot of different things.

That's why I was a little sceptical when I saw our mates over at Jalopnik call out the 1951 Hoffmann as the "worst car ever built". On closer inspection, it really is impressively terrible. Though it looks clumsy and weird, it's endearing, like a pug, and it was clearly built with great skill and attention. Unfortunately, that's pretty much as good as it gets.

hoffmann 1951

It's shockingly unstable, requiring a person (ideally of similar weight to the driver) to ride in the passenger seat just to keep the Hoffmann balanced, the rear-wheel steering design swallows up most of the space inside, and it's really slow, capable of hitting a top speed of just 45kph. Since it's incredibly old, we'll let that last one slide.

Most disturbing of all, however, is the fact that the fuel pipe runs through the inside of the car, pumping out murderous fumes likes there's no tomorrow. Though I suppose that's the risk you take when you jump in. It's exciting, but oh so frightening. [Jalopnik]