Maserati. Many Americans know the name, but few know why it became renowned.
The long-lived, legendary brand won the Indianapolis 500 in 1939 and 1940. Later, in 1954 and 1957, Juan Manuel Fangio drove Maseratis to Formula One championships.
Nevertheless, if car buyers remember the brand at all, it’s for such disastrous products as the 1981 Maserati Biturbo, a car that literally went up in flames along with Maserati’s reputation. Then there’s the Chrysler TC by Maserati, a critical dud from the late 1980s: The less said about it the better.