Car Talk and BestRide Commission: "Eight Automotive Stamps You'll Never See"

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Jul 14, 2016, 10:00 ET

BOSTON, July 14, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Tomorrow, the US Postal Service will begin selling its series of commemorative pickup truck stamps. Also tomorrow, Car Talk and partner BestRide will release a series of automotive stamps you'll never see on a letter.

The Car Talk/BestRide Honorary U.S. Automobile Stamp Collection —generated from thousands of submissions from listeners and readers— features eight stamps you won't see on the USPS list:

2001 Pontiac Aztek - Pilloried by the media and the general public alike as the single most hideous vehicle in the annals of automotive design, the Aztek has recently experienced a surge in popularity thanks to a meth-dealing high school science teacher Walter White, of AMC Network's Breaking Bad.
1971 Chevrolet Vega - The 1971 Chevrolet Vega featured an advanced aluminum engine that unfortunately didn't have sleeves in the cylinders, causing the engine to erode like a sand castle at high tide. If you didn't hate the engine, it was the car's propensity to rust on the showroom floor. One of the most handsome small American cars ever built, plagued by legendarily awful quality.
1991 Ford Explorer - The first-generation Ford Explorer featured the perilous combination of a high center of gravity and tires prone to exploding at random. Add in drivers not inclined to check tire pressure, and the results usually involved a high-speed visit with a highway ditch.
1960 Chevrolet Corvair - A name synonymous with "automotive scandal," the Corvair singlehandedly shook America's faith in its automotive manufacturers, and gave birth to finger-wagging consumer advocates nationwide.
1982 Audi 5000 - The Audi 5000 was at the cutting edge of design in 1982 when CBS's 60 Minutes ran a scathing expose on the car's willingness to take off on its own, cementing the term "unintended acceleration" in our lexicon, to be repeated every decade or so. (See: Toyota Prius)
1988 Suzuki Samurai - If the topless, doorless Jeep CJ-7 seemed like too safe a choice, there was always the Suzuki Samurai, which looked like a third generation Xerox copy of the Jeep, with the added ability to flip upside-down at the worst possible moment.
1970 Ford Pinto – One of the most infamous and conflagration-prone vehicle ever manufactured, the Pinto seemed to explode when the rear bumper came in contact with other cars, leaves, or a light breeze.