Maybe the Trabant? It had a loud, smokey 2 stroke, a shit transmission, and poor handling characteristics. But, it was extremely durable, had fully independent suspension, and the plastic bodies didn't rust out. The aluminum motor is so light, one person can lift it out of the car. Plus it had rather good interior room for such a small and lightweight (less than 1500 lbs) car. Still not as good as the Beetle or Datsun. But I think it's better than one of those turbo Trans Am's.
The AMC Gremlin. Other than looking strange, it had a simple, common drive train. It came with a 6 cylinder, which was more than all the other compacts of the time. Plus, I think it looks kinda cool.
And I'd put the Citroen 2CV on the list somewhere too. Very simple, practical, and easy to work on. Although still a French POS.