The Worst Car(s) Ever Offered As Prizes on Game Shows

[tpiradam]

Did any shows ever give away the Dodge Omni (or its cousin, the Plymouth Horizon)? My mother owned one of those in the late 90s, and it was a complete POS from the word "go".

I don't know of multiple instances but there was a Horizon offered on the S15 premiere of TPIR.

Interesting to see that a lot of responses here are a lot of affordable/inexpensive vehicles. While that does sometimes equate to quality and reliability issues there are the odd ones that did stand the test of time. For instance I still have a 27yr old Cavalier in tip top shape and those cars were marred by quality and reliability concerns. Back on topic in regards to cheap=bad the current Mitsubishi Mirage comes to mind. I've never driven one myself and they kinda look cute but going based on multiple reviews they are pretty terrible cars.

[Briguy]

Did any shows ever give away the Dodge Omni (or its cousin, the Plymouth Horizon)? My mother owned one of those in the late 90s, and it was a complete POS from the word "go".

IIRC, “The $25,000 Pyramid.” Sometimes in Mystery 7, but also for a time as a 21-21 tiebreaker bonus. One episode had two 21-21 ties ... and the same contestant won two Dodge Omnis.

[PatrickRox80]

Did any shows ever give away the Dodge Omni (or its cousin, the Plymouth Horizon)? My mother owned one of those in the late 90s, and it was a complete POS from the word "go".

I can vouch. My parents used to own an Omni that worked fine for about six months.

[Briguy]

I can vouch. My parents used to own an Omni that worked fine for about six months.

I'm guessing the two posters' parents' Dodge Omnis were simply lemons off the line. (I read in one consumer magazine once a letter from an owner who had purchased a car based on good reviews and a good reliability track record, but his car was a piece of junk instead. He took it to a mechanic who vouched for the issues the car was having and offered to fix it but it would void the owner's warranty. Other car owners never had the same problem, so this was an apparent isolated case.)

While Consumer Reports magazine had a negative review of the 1978 model – branding it "Not Acceptable" due to serious defects – the car did improve by the early 1980s, as far as what I've read in consumer satisfaction and reliability reports.

And no, I never owned an Omni/Horizon.

Brian

[Hag]

Tic Tac Dough used to give away a pretty cheesy looking Mazda GLC.