A car dubbed the “worst car in history” is making a comeback even though it hasn’t been sold in the United States since the 1990s and went defunct globally about 17 years ago.
A local library in the U.S. even has a blog post on its website devoted to the car, along with the headline, “The Rise and Fall of the Worst Car in History.”
“Poorly engineered, ugly, and cheap, it survived much longer as a punch line for comedians than it did as a vehicle on the roads,” that post reads, calling it the “ultimate automotive failure.”
But now it has a retro feel that is almost…cool.
According to Autopian, the car, called the Zastava Yugo, is an “Eastern European bargain-basement car that has advanced to cult status.”
The car, which is known for its boxy look, was launched 45 years ago “based on Fiat technology,” the site reported. “It was a hit on the domestic market and was subsequently exported, where it earned quite a bit of respect,” Autopian reported.
Yugo is on the way back 👀 pic.twitter.com/Hhr84WgqtC
— Steve Fowler (@SteveFowler) May 6, 2025
But then it faded away, leaving the U.S. market completely in 1992 and going out of production globally in 2008, a victim, in part, of the Yugoslavia War, Autopian reported.
But now the Yugo is coming back. On May 6, 2025, a scale model of the new Yugo was unveiled, according to Car Magazine.
According to Hagerty.com, the company “traveled to the Car Design Event 2025 held in Munich, Germany, to show a 1:5-scale model of its upcoming econobox.” The site proclaimed it “really cool.”
The design is not exactly like the Yugos of lore, but rather is a “logical continuation of its predecessor,” Hagerty.com reported.
According to Car Magazine, the Yugo brand was purchased by Prof. Dr. Aleksandar Bjelić, who has “links to the automotive industry in Germany.”
The scale model introduced in Munich is the car that Bjelić intends “to put forward for production,” the site reported. More details will come in September, and the brand may even produce an electric version, Car Magazine reported, although it’s not clear which markets the new Yugos will be sold in or when.
