9 Ugly Steering Wheels We're Glad Are Dead

For something you're in contact with for the majority of time you drive, it's remarkable how little attention car makers apply to the humble steering wheel.

Worse still, some of these monstrosities are put in the world's great sports cars. Here's a collection of 9 cock-awful steering wheels for your viewing disgust...

Ferrari F355

There's a good reason the Ferrari F355 was available with the disaster you see above: the airbag. Okay, so that's not a brilliant reason, but it's a logical one, and one that lumbered a 90s hero with a hideous lump of plastic as your main point of contact with the car. When previous Ferraris got a sporty three-spoke number, it's a crime worth getting worked up about.

Chevrolet Camaro

General Motors churned out some spectacularly bad interiors in the 1990s. This is hard to stomach in a poverty-spec Chevy Cavalier, but for some reason the Camaro's designers took a different tack and used one of the car's headrests to house the airbag. At least, that's what it looks like.

BMW M3 E36

BMW M3 interior (Car and Driver)

Oh look, another 1990s airbag attempt. We're sure the four-spoke affair was nice enough to hold, but in the otherwise driver-focused E36 M3 interior, this bus-like item looked a bit out of place. M3s usually have great steering wheels though, so we'll forgive BMW this particular misdemeanor.

Alfa Romeo GTV

We may love the GTV for its 4C on a budget qualities, but the early examples didn't half have an ugly tiller. Luckily this was fixed with a facelift, and a neat three-spoker took its place. But the first cars? Damn. We can only assume Pininfarina had a bring your child to work day, and the product planners mistook a crayon-drawn picture from the stylist's son as the actual design.

Toyota Supra

Toyota Supra interior (Car and Driver)

We're guessing this was another early airbag attempt by Toyota, but they needn't have bothered. The only thing more oversized than the Supra Turbo's wing and massive interior was the bouncy castle-like wheel you used to control it. I mean, look - it makes that poor manual gearstick look pathetic sitting there. No wonder the Fast 'n' Furious lot change the steering wheel straight away - people would die laughing at their ten-second car otherwise...

Aston Martin Vantage

Aston Martin Vantage interior (Aston Martin)

1990s? Check. Airbag? Check. Four spokes? Check. Chunky, leather 'n' wood Vantage interior spoiled by a centre hub modeled on a book of Aston Martin's history? Check.

Porsche 924

Porsche 924 interior (Flickr user jorikberkepas)

What, no airbag? Nope, not in the 924, but that didn't stop Porsche from loading early examples with something you'd dismiss as a bit cheap in a basic supermini. Later 924 wheels were a little odd, but the original two-spoker was most out of character with the Stuttgart brand. Looks suspiciously like the wheel you'd find in a VW Polo of the age. Not cool Porsche, not cool.

Lamborghini Diablo

What's that, another 1990s airbag attempt? Yes indeedy. The Diablo has always been mental (even if it did have lights from a Nissan), but whoever decided to equip it with this miss-shapen lump must have been mentally challenged. The thing isn't even round. Some might call that "prophetic". We prefer "pathetic".

Mazda MX-5

America doesn't always have it it's own way. When it got the original MX-5 - or Miata, if you're 'Merkun - you got this joyous over-airbagged interior design, rather than the simple, Momo-equipped wheel and straight dash found everywhere else. Way to make you feel like you'd bought a Mazda 323 rather than the world's best budget roadster.