What's the Most Uncomfortable Car You've Ever Driven?

Photo: Alfa Romeo

These days, you don’t have to buy a luxury car to drive something comfortable. Even something basic such as a Nissan Altima is going to eat up the miles with ease. But talking about comfortable cars is boring. “Oh, I drove an S-Class once. It was super comfortable.” “Yeah, well I drove a Ghost once, and it was even more comfortable.” Yawn. Turns out, if you spend a lot of money, you can get an incredibly comfortable car. Who knew?

Complaining, on the other hand, is much more fun. Is it usually productive? Not really. But we’re on the internet here. We’re not trying to be productive. So let’s talk about the most uncomfortable cars we’ve ever driven.

Maybe my answer should be the 1946 Beetle that I once got to drive during a Volkswagen event for a much less interesting car. But while the seat could have definitely benefited from some modern foam technology, I don’t remember the car itself being that uncomfortable. I was just uncomfortable driving someone else’s 70-year-old car with bad brakes, bad tires and bad rear visibility. Also, there was the part where I knew that if I got rear-ended by a G-Wagen on the Pacific Coast Highway, there was a good chance I’d end up dead at best and mangled at worst.

No, I think the most physically uncomfortable car I’ve ever driven was the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider. That was back when I lived in Boston, and I don’t know if you know this, but the streets in Boston aren’t exactly known for their smoothness. I spent that week bouncing around, feeling every imperfection the previous winters had worn into those roads. And while the lack of power steering wouldn’t have been a problem on a track, it made daily driving a serious chore. Once, while trying to parallel park, I nearly separated my left shoulder again (although to be fair to the 4C, I basically don’t have a left labrum anymore thanks to several high school football and rugby injuries).

Is the Alfa Romeo 4C the most uncomfortable road car ever built? I assume not. But compared to everything else I’ve driven, it definitely is. Surely some of you have driven cars that make the 4C look like a Bentley in comparison. So let’s hear what they are down in the comments.