Celebrities love to splash their money on expensive cars. The wealthiest parts of cities like Los Angeles are full of Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and Rolls-Royces. There are so many exotic locations in these neighborhoods that it is difficult to stand out from the crowd just by buying an expensive car. Many celebrities modify their sports cars to make a name for themselves and personalize their machines.
Some do a great job and actually improve the look of their car, but most seem to have pretty terrible taste. Whether it’s hideous paintwork, an ugly body kit, or even completely rebuilding a car into something disgusting, the list of celebrity sports car vandals seems to go on forever. Let’s round up a selection of particularly bad examples of famous people who spoiled their sports cars.
10 Antonio Brown – Rolls-Royce Wraith
Via Twitter
This is the Rolls-Royce Wraith of the American football star Antonio Brown, which starts with a car that is only slightly offensive. For some reason, he decided to decorate the car in a livery dedicated to his team, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Via Twitter
In theory, that’s a good idea, but the finished product looks more like someone went overboard with the wrap creator in a video game. It looks more childish than cool, and with a car as classy as a Rolls it doesn’t work at all.
9 Will.I.Am – DeLorean DMC-12
Via YouTube
Artist and producer Will.i.am has a knack for making ugly cars, but this is certainly one of his worst projects. The car was made by West Coast Customs and started out as the DeLorean DMC-12, but morphed into what looks more like a license-free sports car from GTA.
Via Flickr
Almost every trim on the car has been redesigned, with only the doors supposedly original. The production car didn’t do well and its build quality was cruel, which begs the question of why Will used a DeLorean as a base car in the first place.
8th Sylvester Stallone – Ford Mustang GT
About Barrett-Jackson
The ever-popular Ford Mustang has seen many hideous modifications over the years, but Sylvester Stallone’s car has to go down as one of the most glaring. The black, red, and silver color is such 2006 that it hurts and the Foose rims complete their dated look.
About Barrett-Jackson
According to Barrett-Jackson, the car has a 4.6-liter, 550-horsepower V8, so it has at least one going for it. The car was auctioned in 2011 and still has Stallone’s embroidered “SS” logo on each seat. Who would buy this thing is a mystery, unless there’s a collector out there who really enjoys getting horribly sticky cars to buy.
7th Marshawn Lynch – Jeep Wrangler
From ebay
Marshawn Lynch put his Jeep Wrangler up for charity a few years ago, but it didn’t sell. That’s probably because the minimum price was $ 90,000, and there won’t be many people paying $ 90,000 for it.
From ebay
The over-the-top black and green color scheme is more like a Monster Energy ad than anything else, and any additional light bars do nothing for it either. It’s been put up for sale at least for a good cause, but maybe it’s better than keeping it hidden in Lynch’s garage for a while longer.
6th Justin Beiber – Audi R8
About shear comfort
Pop star Justin Beiber was still a teenager when he bought this Audi R8, so maybe this awful packaging is more forgivable. Still, it is a mystery why someone looks at a piece of German technology worth 150,000 US dollars and thinks: “leopard print”.
Via YouTube
At least it was just packaging that can be easily removed and means the car won’t be ruined for life. That’s a lot more than can be said for some of the other hideous creations on this list.
5 Laurence Gartel – Maserati Ghibli
About Saratoga Living
American artist Laurence Gartel made a name for himself with psychedelic out of this world paintings, but the same designs certainly won’t work on this Maserati. The Ghibli is a decent executive car that is set to rival the BMW 3 Series. So it just looks inappropriate to give him crazy drawings.
Via Gartel Museum
Maybe it would have been better if it had more visual modifications, like a body kit and new rims. But the way it is, it’s just a terrible mashup of two styles that don’t even remotely look good together.
4th Will.I.Am – Custom VW Beetle
Via Pinterest
This strange machine is actually built on the chassis of a VW Beetle, but has been modified so much that it can no longer really be classified as a Beetle. Instead, it just lives as a hybrid creation, a nightmarish caricature that doesn’t even have a real name.
Via Pinterest
It comes courtesy of Will.I.Am, who reportedly spent five years and $ 900,000 developing the car. The only logical explanation is that he must have done all of the designing with his eyes closed as the end result is undoubtedly a total eyesore.
3 Chris Brown – Lamborghini Gallardo
About Motor-Vision
Singer Chris Brown is another celebrity known for their bad taste in modified cars, and in fact, this Gallardo jet fighter probably isn’t even his worst. But it’s still pretty stupid, especially with the fake metal trim that runs along the side of the car.
Via Pinterest
Brown has owned a selection of other Lamborghinis with ugly bespoke workmanship over the years, though his latest wide-bodied Aventador actually looks okay. Even so, cars like this Gallardo mean it won’t shake the label of terrible taste anytime soon.
2 Sonny – Ford Mustang
About Barrett-Jackson
The duo Sonny and Cher were awarded two Mustangs by Ford themselves, presumably as the company’s marketing stunt. These cars were both customized by George Barris, a famous modder from the period. Let’s just say that its design has not aged well.
About Barrett-Jackson
Fake twin hood vanes, custom wheels, and Ford Thunderbird taillights are just a few of the modifications this car has received, as well as the brownish-orange color. Maybe Sonny was very happy with the car back then, but today it’s hard to understand why anyone would want to spend money on this strange stang.
1 Hulk Hogan – Dodge Viper
Via Reddit
Hulk Hogan’s cars were cartoonish and larger than life, and reflected his personality. This is his Dodge Viper, a personal favorite of his, painted in yellow and red. Even when he first revealed it, the car was sticky, but today it’s aged so badly it’s almost weird.
Via Reddit
Without the “Hulkster” graphic on the front, this car could also have been a bad promotional car for a fast food company or a 2000s Hot Wheels brought to life car. But no, it’s Hulk Hogan’s own creation and it’s wonderfully awful.
About the author
Mark Cowley
(160 articles published)
Mark covers a wide variety of topics for HotCars, from the latest pickups to obscure Japanese sedans. Mark is an integral part of car shows in the UK and Europe. If there’s a strange model or an obscure manufacturer, they probably know. Having previously worked as a radio host, he knows a thing or two about top 10 lists and enjoys writing them as much as presenting them. He is a graduate of the University of Sheffield’s English Department and currently resides in Birmingham, UK.
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