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Just passed 100K on my German made VW Passat - just did the brake pads for the first time.
Tires and one $400 repair (some weird manifold valve) was all I have done with it - it drives and looks like new.
I'm the other way around. I don't want to replace my Passat with another one because they are made in TN now and they also made the car a bit less sport to try and appeal to the Honda type of buyer.
My next car is going to have autopilot - so I hope the Passat holds out a couple years.
At the time I owned my Jetta, they were made in Mexico. Maybe that had something to do with the unreliability.
Just passed 100K on my German made VW Passat - just did the brake pads for the first time.
Tires and one $400 repair (some weird manifold valve) was all I have done with it - it drives and looks like new.
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Our 2003 German-made Passat still looked new when it was dead in our driveway earlier this year. 91K miles (almost 50K fewer miles than the Neon that cost half as much) and after we put $6K into the last 5,000 miles of use and numerous German-certified mechanics still couldn't fix the electrical and encroaching transmission issues, we just gave up on it and sold it for $500 to someone who had a mechanic on staff to try to get it sellable again.
It was a beautiful failure in manufacturing for us. Never again will we but VW/Audi, and unlikely anything else German either.
They still might be in over their heads with the V8 stuff. My neighbor bought a demo Equus. After the motor had to be replaced under warranty he traded it and then found out exactly how bad the resale is on Korean luxury cars!
I know of two Equus that were disasters for the owners, one was a lemon law buyback, and the second had some severe problem, but with the second they did take a discounted Genesis and still have it, and bought a different luxury car. I've always liked the Genesis I have had as rentals, especially as they combine safety and features of more expensive marques, in a less conspicuous package. One of my neighbors traded a Genesis for an Equus, and has not had a problem with it, much better than their 7-Series which has been a series of problems, such that it's going when the warranty is exhausted.
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All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
Me neither. My 2003 VW Jetta TDI was an unreliable pile of garbage that constantly needed expensive repairs including a coolant leak, electrical short, defective air conditioner, and transmission problems. If that wasn't bad enough, the interior paint started peeling very badly after only 4 years. So much for the supposed wonders of "German engineering."
Don't know about VW, but my 13 year (now gone) 3 series had paint looking almost new (haven't waxed even once) and ICE cold AC (no repairs whatsoever). So, let's avoid generalizations. But, yes I did have clutch issues, after huge number of miles, in atrocious traffic.
I use to be a loyal fan of GM, especially Chevy until owning the 1997-2003 era Chevy Malibu with 3.1L V6. I now own a 2015 Hyundai Elantra (sister to the Kia Forte). These two cars do well in comparison test and improve with each model. Among the worst are Mitsubishi & Chrysler/FIAT. Mitsubishi killed off their midsize sedan, the Galant. Their compact, the Lancer, is outdated. Their subcompact, Mirage, is disposable. Chrysler/Dodge are eliminating their midsize sedan, Chrysler 200, as well as their compact sedan, Dodge Dart; both built on the same platform with different lengths and engines. All they have now is the Chrysler 300 and the two Dodge cars built on the same platform and then SUVs. GM has a history of producing cars with defects, blaming customers when they bring their car in for these defects, and not make any changes to correct the defects until the next generation, loss of class action lawsuit, or ordered by the government.
A while ago I acquired the impression the Buick line was well-made. This is going back several or so years. I don't know about now.
Re. the part above in bold, is it more so than Ford and Chrysler?
Quote:
Originally Posted by duster1979
Yugo was a model. Zastava was the manufacturer, they were in business for years.
Zastava is still in business making guns. I don't know what else they make.
Me neither. My 2003 VW Jetta TDI was an unreliable pile of garbage that constantly needed expensive repairs including a coolant leak, electrical short, defective air conditioner, and transmission problems. If that wasn't bad enough, the interior paint started peeling very badly after only 4 years. So much for the supposed wonders of "German engineering."
There isn't a maker out there that hasn't had a bad example, So using one example to trash an entire continent is stupid. My Jetta went 250k miles with very little issues. My BMWs have all gone to high mileage (my current one is a daily driver at 164k miles, and I've don't nothing but brake pads since I initially got it inspected when I bought it). On the other hand, my Honda CRX wouldn't go 1000 miles without something else going wrong with it. Would I trash Honda or all Japanese makes due to that? I could easily ***** about Japanese engineering with that car...
Location: San Ramon, Seattle, Anchorage, Reykjavik
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Quote:
Originally Posted by beachmouse
Our 2003 German-made Passat still looked new when it was dead in our driveway earlier this year. 91K miles (almost 50K fewer miles than the Neon that cost half as much) and after we put $6K into the last 5,000 miles of use and numerous German-certified mechanics still couldn't fix the electrical and encroaching transmission issues, we just gave up on it and sold it for $500 to someone who had a mechanic on staff to try to get it sellable again.
It was a beautiful failure in manufacturing for us. Never again will we but VW/Audi, and unlikely anything else German either.
I've had 4 Audis and 4 MBs from new and have had ownership ending experiences with most of them. 3 of the Audis (S4, S8, Allroad) didn't make it to 75k without major engine, suspension, AND transmission issues (major in my book is $7500 or more in a single repair). My 2003 RS6 has been faultless though. My Mercedes experience has been better (more nickel and dimed to death) although my CL65 had serious rust issues at less than 10k miles (a well known issue now but not when I bought it). Strangely, my 1988 300 TE 4Matic never had a single problem in the years I owned it. Neither did my 1992 500SEL. Of course those we before the merger with Chrysler.
Everyone talks about reliability, but it's hard to quantify without looking at many different owners over a long period of time.
An easier way is to just look around and see what older cars are still on the road. For example, if you take all the vehicles from 1990-1994 that are still in use, I'd guarantee that most of them have a Honda or Toyota badge. That tells me, that they had the most reliable cars back then. In 2016? Who knows.
Over the past 15 years I've owned a 1998 Mercury Sable- 168,000 mi. still looked good and still ran and sold as is, 1991 Volvo 740- 225,000 mi, needed brakes, interior looked shabby but engine and transmission were still solid and sold as is, 2006 Ford One Hundred- 140,000 still looked and ran well but traded in on new car. Today, I still drive 2002 Volvo S60- 163,000 it looks like new inside and out, much better quality than the 90's Volvos, runs strong and the style holds up, typical maintenance in brakes and suspension. Our new car is a 2015 KIA Optima, we've had it for a year, absolutely no problems, not even a squeak, only issue wasn't a KIA problem. At about 7 months old, my wife found that if she accelerated then applied the brake there was a kind of soft "thud" sound, I test drove it and sure enough, accelerate and brake, "thud", kind of subtle but it was there. We said, it's under warranty so let's get it taken care of so she brought it to the dealer. They worked on it for about a half an hour and told her they found the problem, a bottle of water had rolled under the passenger seat, so every time you accelerated it rolled back, then hit the brakes and it rolled forward and hit the seat with a "thud". Funny, but a little embarrassing. So I've had good luck with all of the cars I've owned, I do service regularly, take care of them, I think in general most are on par with a minimum level of quality. I mean, my Ford isn't going to compare in quality with a Mercedes, but they're not in the same class either. But, my Ford gave me great service and met my expectations for what I paid for it.
Everyone talks about reliability, but it's hard to quantify without looking at many different owners over a long period of time.
An easier way is to just look around and see what older cars are still on the road. For example, if you take all the vehicles from 1990-1994 that are still in use, I'd guarantee that most of them have a Honda or Toyota badge. That tells me, that they had the most reliable cars back then. In 2016? Who knows.
Relibability is generally the car starting up right and having frequently used systems not break down. Such as, amenities not dying (HVAC especially). The suspension being durable.
Sometimes, a car is reliable, but for a shorter period of time. People actually want three things, affordability, longevity, AND reliability. With Toyotas or Hondas of yore, the expectation was that you can run many to 150k no questions asked on mostly or all original parts, many of those vehicles can push 250k with affordable renewals of the alternator, struts, fluids, etc, and the climate control system would not fail mysteriously like some Fords or Chevys did on a more frequent basis.
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