Automakers in general put out a poor product IMO (luxury car, 2013, gaskets)
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I spent many years working for a couple of different auto manufacturers, foreign and domestic, as well as quite a bit of time on the retail parts & service side of the business, and the OP is not correct in his assumptions, nor has he framed the "problem" correctly.
The "problem" he cited was "just wanting to get to work"...
If one just "wants to get to work" at the lowest possible cost, with the highest rate of success, they shouldn't be looking at NEW CARS, they should be looking at OLD TRUCKS!
An engineer should know that a "failure proof" part isn't realistic - you look for controllable failures, and a design that has proven itself over time.
Pickup trucks are and have been the most common vehicles on the road in the US for many years.
The most common vehicle (even if imperfect) will have the best parts availability (from both the original manufacturer, aftermarket and used ), and the techs that work on those vehicles will know what failures to expect, and how to address those failures quickly/cheaply.
Older trucks (at least 5-10 years old) will likely have depreciated 50-90% from their original value (lowest cost), have a ready supply of cheap parts available & IN STOCK, and the techs you're asking to repair those vehicles will have seen the same problem you're having many times before (they don't have to use your vehicle as a learning tool!).
Keep in mind, every part that fails isn't "defective" - a truly "defective" part is one that fails outside of it's design/manufacturing tolerances. Just because 90% of brand "x" vehicles will see a window clip break sometime after 70k miles doesn't mean the clip is "defective", if the warranty on the part was 50k miles, that's all the manufacturer needs to provide. Failures outside of warranty are the saving grace of every auto manufacturer's profit margins, like it or not - it is what it is.
If the OP truly just "wants to get to work", he needs to look at just two vehicles - 2001-2006 F150's or Silverado's.
If you consider the strides in engineering technology made elsewhere in our society, it seems to me the modern automobile is lazy, dated, and generally poorly-crafted.
One can still find corporations who put out great products at a great price, built by people who take pride in their work. In my opinion, that describes not a single major auto manufacturer in the world.
The domestics are legendary for putting out terrible products, although they show signs of substantial improvement. The Germans put out sexy cars that go fast, then break down with utter consistency; nothing has changed here. Toyota and Honda's slide from respectability is nothing short of depressing for enthusiasts.
VTEC technology is literally older than I am, and Honda hasn't improved on this in 20 years. Broadly, cars of similar size and weight get maybe 10 percent better gas mileage than they did 30 years ago. How pathetic is that?
I'm an engineer. I can't help but consider where this kind of sloppiness would lead one in my field. The answer, of course, is homelessness. But the automakers know that America is a large country filled with folks who need to get to work.
I test drove 8 new vehicles yesterday. Some 50K some 30K. All were clearly not well-made vehicles. Consider that I'm anything but a picky or snobby car guy. I'm talking about obvious, major engineering flaws everywhere. It was depressing.
*Angry rant from a guy about to drop too much on a poorly-crafted vehicle because he needs to get to work*
If you're such a great engineer, why aren't you building your own cars, and making millions from people that think just like you?
Quote:
Originally Posted by heetseeker
Most cars are engineered to fail after 5 or 6 years unless taken care of very carefully.
This statement couldn't be more false. The only way I see it being true at all is if the owner does absolutely no maintenance on the car. Simply follow the recommended maintenance intervals spelled out in owner's manuals and the car will out last most people's needs of it.
From what I can tell, build quality, vehicle reliability, and affordability based on features must be near all time high's. There have been terrific advances in engineering quality too, although they may not be as apparent in every item in a vehicle since manufacturers need to save money too.
For example, a Honda vtec engine may not have a ton of shiney new, visible engineering in it. However, it is one example of hundreds of powertrains. We have automated manuals (DSG's), 6, 7, and 8 speed slushbox auto's (vs the 3 speeds of the 80's, and 4 speed of the 90's). We have direct injection engines, where a 2 liter 4 banger with a turbo can reliably put out 250+ horsepower, return 30 mpg on the highway and embarass V8's from 20 years ago (or less).
Technology in cars is incredable too. 20 years ago, a real fancy car MIGHT have a CD player. Today, we have thousand watt audio systems with onboard navigation, hard drives to store music, traction and stability control to keep cars going straight in bad conditions, multiple airbags, seat belt pretensioners, telematic systems for some manufacturers, and a plethora of other advancements.
The amazing thing is that with all these new additions, cars seem (as a whole) to last longer, go farther, and remain in good shape longer than they used to while needing less frequent maintenance and repairs.
Vehicles are extremely complicated, and compete in a highly competitive marketplace with very small margins. I think the automakers as a whole are doing a terrific job!
Today's car is also far more durable. You may never have driven cars with 5 digit odometers. But that was the standard into the 1970s. A car with 100K miles was considered done unless it was a Mercedes 240D. Cars also don't rust anymore. Today's EFI engines start in seconds, regardless of temperature.
Going by cars I, and many others, have owned, I would say more like 150,000+ miles. My '66 Dodge Dart GT V-8 already had 109,000 when I took ownership. I ran it 11 more years (and 60,000 miles) before I had the engine rebuilt; only because it was burning too much oil- it was running fine. Same thing with my brother's '66 Plymouth Fury... bought with 109,000 miles and lasted many years and miles. I don't ever recall my brother's car being towed home, either, due to mechanical failure. My parent's several Cadillacs (1969 and 1970 model years) also lasted 170,000+ miles with the original engine and transmission.
Going by cars I, and many others, have owned, I would say more like 150,000+ miles. My '66 Dodge Dart GT V-8 already had 109,000 when I took ownership. I ran it 11 more years (and 60,000 miles) before I had the engine rebuilt; only because it was burning too much oil- it was running fine. Same thing with my brother's '66 Plymouth Fury... bought with 109,000 miles and lasted many years and miles. I don't ever recall my brother's car being towed home, either, due to mechanical failure. My parent's several Cadillacs (1969 and 1970 model years) also lasted 170,000+ miles with the original engine and transmission.
Sigh! Older cars like this have no chance to live long lives like they do in sunny dry places like the west. Salt is a major killer of automobiles in the snow belt!
Sigh! Older cars like this have no chance to live long lives like they do in sunny dry places like the west. Salt is a major killer of automobiles in the snow belt!
True, it did depend on the area. But it certainly was possible, and common, for '60s and '70s cars to go 100,000+ miles with no major repairs in many parts of the country. And the reason new cars don't rust much is because they are 90% plastic!
The OP doesn't provide any specific complaints, and I really wonder about the "engineer" title. I know LAN jockeys who consider themselves "engineers".
Apparently if one can afford to pay $30-$50G for a new car "just to get to work" the privilege of whining about how stupidly engineered it is comes as a part of the package.
There are things I would personally change about the cars offered in this country, but for the most part autos are a consumer product that has improved by leaps and bounds over the last 30 years to such an extent that we almost consider the old ones to be of a different species than those currently offered.
And if you don't want to feel you got ripped off because some stitches are out of place on the leather steering wheel of your Lexus, then get a Hyundai Accent for $18K. It's more than good enough for "getting to work" and the quality is nice enough to have thrown the CEO of VW for a loop.
"Apparently if one can afford to pay $30-$50G for a new car "just to get to work" the privilege of whining about how stupidly engineered it is comes as a part of the package. "
If you consider that there are something like 20,000 individual parts on a car then simple math tells you that 99.9% perfection means 20 problems.
Interesting you say this. Manufacturing quality is determined by what's called "defects per thousand" which means that manufacturing KNOWS that perfection is impossible so they strive to have as few defects per thousand units as they can.
There is no other means to measure mass production quality that works.......
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Older cars like this have no chance to live long lives like they do in sunny dry places like the west. Salt is a major killer of automobiles in the snow belt! 
This is harsh. 
Very harsh! 
