4 Of The Worst-Looking Honda Models Ever Made

Honda is known for its reliable models, but maybe not for how cool they are. There's a sentiment going around that Honda cars are getting uglier and uglier. While looks are subjective, there's no denying that many Honda vehicles are on the safe side, void of any unique styling or stand-out features. While fitting in can sometimes be safe, it's also what has ultimately led to the car community's complaints about Honda. However, not all boring Hondas are made equal — some are lamer than others. 

After scouring the internet for outspoken Honda haters on a variety of forums, it's become clear that a few Honda models have been discussed at an alarming rate when it comes to debating the ugliness of Honda's car lineup. Here is a list of the ugliest Honda cars around, from a tiny, forgotten vehicle in the U.K. to a big, boxy nightmare — all equally uninspired and unfortunate. 

The Honda Element is a compact SUV with enough room to fit a whole soccer team and a ton of groceries  — and a pretty capable 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine. There's really nothing wrong with what the Honda Element can do — it does its job as an SUV pretty well. 

The downfall of the Element is that it's horrendously ugly. It looks like a nondescript car being driven in a 1980s video game that's been stripped of all its details, leaving you with a bare bones boxy vehicle. The sides are almost impossibly smooth, void of all lines and angles. The front end is wide, featuring a homely rubbery grille, while the back end is flat with super uninspired taillights. Microwaves have more appealing design elements than this uninspired box of a car. 

It seems that all generations of the Honda Element were equally hideous to look at, which ultimately led to it being discontinued in 2011. Throughout its lifetime, car critics noted that the Honda Element was just unappealing to young drivers — or anyone with eyes — and its performance ended up getting overlooked. 

The more recent Honda Civics actually look pretty nice — almost cool. Even if you don't opt for the Type R, SlashGear found the base model pretty fun to drive and had no complaints about the exterior. But man, they've come a long way. The 9th generation is particularly yucky thanks to its extremely underwhelming design that's bordering on "old man car." There are forums dedicated to discussing the ugliness of the 9th generation Honda Civic after owners noticed that their car was getting bullied quite a bit. 

Coming out in 2011, some Civic owners blame the recession around that time on the Civic's appearance. It was cheaply made, with a stripped down and boring appearance, unfavorable materials, and recycled parts from previous models. That's not to say the car performed bad or anything, but there's no denying that it's a pretty lame looking car especially when compared to newer Civics.

For five years, the Crosstour haunted the streets with its Frankenstein-like, bulbous shape. It has humps and bumps in all the wrong spots, looking like the worst of the worst of other disliked vehicles being awkwardly smashed together. With its long, flat front, hunched top, and overly round back, the Crosstour looked different from other crossovers on the road — but not in a good way. The short-lived vehicle became one of Honda's most-hated models. 

Unfortunately, the Crosstour didn't have a performance that made up for its ugly exterior. The 2010 came out with a 3.5-liter V6 engine that only generated 271 horsepower. The slow acceleration meant drivers were lugging this homely vehicle through the streets, horrifying families as it chugged its way into grocery store and Target parking lots around town. There are some Crosstour sympathizers, of course — they believe the Crosstour is a lot more appealing in person.

It almost feels like bullying to be picking on this little guy, but the Honda Logo was a big failure when it came out in 2000 so it can't be spared. The often pale yellow vehicle had a boring appearance that would never catch anyone's attention if it weren't for the fact that it was so small (although not the lightest car out there). 

Unfortunately, it was its tiny stature that ultimately led to its downfall. Meant to be a supermini for the U.K. market, the Honda Logo was just not powerful enough or comfortable enough to be bothered with. It could only reach 95 mph and had a sad 66 horsepower that managed to reach 60 mph in 14 seconds. 

But back to the Honda Logo's looks. It's not the ugliest Honda out there, but it managed to be yet another abysmal design that offered nothing at all to focus on. Flat sides, an unsightly black line on the bumper, and an overly simplistic design definitely didn't hide how cheap the Logo was — and wasn't enough to make up for the horrendous driving experience. It lasted in the U.K. for just nine months.