1974 AMC Gremlin, 68th Street and Second Avenue

Good lord. A cursory bit of research into the Gremlin finds Webster's defining it at the time of its release (April Fool's Day 1970) as 'a small gnome held to be responsible for the malfunction of equipment.' This is kind of like the American equivalent of the Austin Allegro- not much fun to drive and not much fun to look at. That said, it's an icon. An iconic car in the same way that leisure suits and woodette vinyl furniture are. It's the apex of poor taste,  and this almost makes it lovable. The fact that this one, with its rattlecan paint job, innumerable dents, and tasteful duct tape trim squats on a relatively smart street on the Upper East Side makes it all the more amazing. I walk past this car almost every day, and I never see it move, and I never see a ticket on it. I think most people up here (including traffic wardens apparently) would rather not acknowledge it exists.