The Hardest Cars to Work On

What Makes Them The Hardest Cars to Work On?

Some cars are known for their unforgiving, knuckle skin-scraping difficulty to wrench on. These are the hardest cars to work on because of the amount of time, dedication, and effort that is required to do even the most simple maintenance tasks. Some of these cars require that half the car be disassembled before you can begin your task. Others have such small engine bays that only small hands can fit into most places. If you have one of the cars below, we recommend either spending thousands on repairs with specialty mechanics or getting rid of it entirely!

The MINI Cooper

It may not come to much of a surprise that a car with “mini” as its brand name would be difficult to work on. The biggest reason often cited for the difficulty of working on a MINI Cooper is the lack of room in the engine bay. It takes mini hands to work on a Cooper and they still won’t come out unscathed. AxleAddict wrote an article about how it’s one of the hardest cars to work on and the pros and cons of owning one. He also mentions how many parts on this tiny two-door tend to break all around the same time. This can amount to costly repairs if you decide to cut your losses and take it to a dealership for repairs. These issues persist across all MINI models making it one of the most difficult car brands to repair and maintain.

Renault Le Car

Not many people in the United States may even be aware of this car manufacturer, much less the Le Car. This 70s “super economy” car was Renault’s attempt to compete with the 70s VW Rabbit and Honda Civic. Once again, a tiny car is responsible for so many bloodied knuckles from home mechanics and determined DIYers. The fact that there are very few Le Cars around in the United States says plenty about the difficulty of repairing them. Their lack of space and mediocre design makes the Le Car one of the worst cars to work on and maintain. Despite this, there are still several dedicated Renault 5 fans, the European version of the Le Car.

Toyota MR2

The Toyota MR2 is a whole different beast in comparison to our previous two entries. The MR2 is a Japanese sports car, through and through. It has a mid-engine, turbocharger, and is front-wheel-drive. It’s also lightweight, and very quick. Those out there who are familiar with this terminology may have just winced a little. Mid-engined, sporty coupes tend to be much more difficult to drive and maintain. And for those who are not familiar with the acceleration that all the features mentioned above result in, crashing your MR2 and even more extensive repair bills are inevitable. Let’s not even talk about the “hose from hell” water line that cools the MR2’s turbocharger. Toyota is not often one of the most expensive car brands to repair and maintain but the MR2 and many of Toyota’s other classic sports coupes are the exceptions.

Nissan 300ZX

The Nissan 300ZX is one of the greatest Japanese sports cars that has ever been built. It’s up there with the legends, such as the Toyota Supra, Mazda RX-7, and the Nissan Skyline. Despite this legendary status, the 300ZX combines the issues that the MINI Cooper and the Toyota MR2 have; no room in the engine bay and it’s mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, and turbochargers. Peter Monshizadeh from Jalopnik wrote an article about how much it cost him to completely restore a Nissan 300ZX. Needless to say, his garage find wasn’t cheap to get back to its former glory but the result was a JDM masterpiece. Much like the MR2, Nissan isn’t known to be the most expensive car brands to repair but the 300ZX is one of the hardest cars to work on.

Mercedes-Benz 600 Grosser

Easily one of the most difficult and expensive car brands to repair and maintain in general, the Mercedes-Benz 600 Grosser takes the cake as one of the worst cars to work on. Why? Much like the 240D we mentioned in our Most Reliable Used Cars and Trucks blog, the 600 Grosser does not depend on electronics in any way. Imagine everything that is run by electronics today, and replace that with a hydraulic pressure system. The windows, power locks, seats, sun-roof, trunk lid, and automatically opening doors were all powered with a hydraulic pressure system. Karl Middelhauve is the authority in the 600 Grosser and even admits that it is the hardest car to work on that Mercedes has ever built. If the man who has built his entire career admits that this Benz is that hardest car to work on, then we believe him.

Do You Have One of the Hardest Cars to Work On?

Maybe you bought a MINI Cooper because somebody was offering you a really good deal. Maybe you got really into JDM cars and saw an awesome deal on a 300ZX. You meet the sketchy Craigslist guy and throw your cash at him. You get it back home and open up the hood and think to yourself, “what did I get myself into?” It was then you knew, you screwed up.

Well, lucky for you CashForCars.com loves cars of all types and in any condition! We offer cash on the spot for any car, no matter how difficult it is to repair or maintain! Go here and get an instant cash offer and schedule your pickup with an offer specialist over the phone!

Want to Read More?

You can check out our previous article about The Most Reliable Used Cars and Trucks here!

If you like blogs about cars and trucks, check out these blogs as well!
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Worst Cars from 2002 and Forward

Do You Agree with Our List of the Hardest Cars to Work On?

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