9 scariest cars to drive of all time

Cars were meant to transport you from A to B in one piece preferably. These 9 cars prefer to do so in pieces or on fire or upside down. Sometimes, all three.They are all famous for making the owners question their sanity, if they lived. At least, 8 out of the following 9 will kill you with some degree of style. In no particular order:

1. Porsche 911 Turbo (930)

What: Started in the late 70's this delivered more than 256hp and later ended above 300hp. That meant 0-100kmph times of just under 5.0 seconds all because of turbo. This WAS the late 70's with the car continuing into the 80's which means the best tech you got was a rewind button on your cassette player.

Why: This meant your life wasn't in your hands, it was squarely situated in the rear end of this Porsche. A short wheelbase, 80's tyres, rear bias and a laggy turbo that came on when you least expected meant it was easy to find yourself going in reverse very, very quickly. Car was known as 'Widow-maker'.

Style factor: As cool as Michele Pfeiffer in 1988's Tequila Sunrise.

2. Renault 5 Turbo

What: It's like a Porsche. But smaller and lighter. And more French.

Why: A short wheelbase made it twitchier than a dog with monster fleas. Did I mention the engine was right between the rear wheels? People loved the light and lively steering response. And then they died.

Style factor:  A fancy box you don't feel like throwing away.

3. 1960 Corvair

What: This was an attractive car with nice clean lines that led to the first-gen Camaro.

Why: Except the rear-mounted engine put way too much weight on the back. It would fishtail very easily and was near impossible to correct. And sometimes because of the suspension geometry, the rear wheel would tilt and dig inward cause the rim to hit the pavement and the car to flip. And it had a non-collapsible steering column that could crush the driver in case of a frontal impact.

GM later fixed all the problems but people were by then too scared to even stand near it.

Style factor: Carrie form the movie Carrie. Pretty, quiet and then goes bezerk.

4. 1994 Viper

What: The Viper is an absolute beauty. It's also aptly named. It had a near perfect 49/50 weight distribution making it one of the best handling American cars. It dominated racing series that it entered such as 24 Hours LeMans.

Why: Because it was all engine and very little car. The massive 8 litre engine originally delivered 400hp and 465lb.ft of torque. All that power and no traction control, no ABS. If you had skills, you drove it like a pro. If you only had money, you would end up in the ditch.

Current gen Viper has 600+ bhp and all the safety features you need.

Style factor: Scarlett Johansson on a rainy day.

5. 1971 Ford Pinto

What: These cars had a sleek shape but they wanted to be like those action movie cars that always explode into flames.

Why: The Pintos would explode when rammed form the rear where the petrol tank was located. Ford eventually fixed it but the fiery reputation was burned into everyone's memory for good.

Style factor: A knock-off Louis Vuitton bag on fire.

6. 1973 Volkswagen Microbus

What: Popular van for hippies and classic car collectors alike.

Why: The drivers were protected by a thin sheet of metal which usually corroded very quickly. A frontal crash often resulted in an obliterated cardboard box. Ironically, many of these were used as ambulances. A few are even seen rotting around Bangladesh's countryside.

Style factor: High as a kite.

7. Fiat S76 Beast of Turin

What: This car is was originally designed to tell the drivers family at least three miles away that he was coming home. It's that loud.

Why: 28.5-liter 290+ horsepower on really skinny tyres and no roll-cage, no fire extinguisher, heck, not even seat belts. That meant it was almost as mad as the people willing to drive it.

Style factor: Bare chested god of war.

8. AC Cobra

What: A tiny British roadster weighing under a thousand kg and stuffed with a massive V8 capable of hundreds of horsepower. It's almost always topless and beautiful.

Why: No traction control. No ABS. No airbags. No roof. Way too much power. A supercharged version goes beyond 550bhp. What could possibly go wrong?

Style factor: Every perfume ad where you need to whisper its name.

9. Reliant Robin

What: 3 wheels and licensed as a motorcycle meant anyone could drive it. It was cheap and easy to turn upright when needed.

Why: Upside down is its usual state. It's scary because an affable guy like Mr Bean could easily make it flip upside down. Okay, he hated the car. Three wheels and a high centre of gravity just don't make sense but then the Brits are quirky. A quick turn would mean roll down the park greenery.  The fiberglass body was reinforced at the front corners because the company expected it to be perpetually upside down.

Style factor: A dead fly with legs in the air.

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